My prospecting trip to the Forum E-Marketing in Paris was a total flop.
The event was perfectly fine, but I’m just not good at making an impression.
I had imagined shaking hands with friendly web professionals and talking about web writing, social media, newsletters, blogging . . . all the stuff I love to translate!
But in the end I was tongue-tied.
In retrospect I feel I wasted my morning because I didn’t learn anything and I didn’t meet anyone. This is the advice I’m giving myself for next time:
- Do not fail to select just a few stands to approach.
- Do not fail to register for at least one presentation.
- Do not fail to bring nice brochures.
Not being totally comfortable in French, I could not introduce myself confidently. If I had had a great brochure with me, I’m sure it would have been easier to approach people.
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What I do like are events for small groups. About a month ago I attended a WebMarketing Workshop at a Soleilles Cowork by Véronique da Costa from BeDigitalBusiness. This wasn’t about prospecting. This was about learning.
There were just six of us. After Véronique’s presentation we talked about our own online businesses, sitting around a small table and asking questions.
That evening as I put away my fellow attendees’ business cards, I sent them emails and contacted them by LinkedIn. I perfectly remembered who they were and why they signed up.
In contrast, at the trade fair on E-Marketing event, I never spent more than 60 seconds with a single person.
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I’m good at some things and terribly incompetent at others. Like elevator pitches. But what I can do is talk to people one-on-one, taking my time to get to know them.
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