Traded 5 minutes of my pitch for a real conversation at a Denver meetup and got a referral that paid out $2k

I usually go to these things with my elevator pitch ready to go. Hand out cards, shake hands, move on. Last week I just asked someone about their biggest headache instead. We talked for 20 minutes about hiring issues. He introduced me to his partner who needed exactly what I do. Has anyone else had better luck ditching the script and just listening?

3 comments

3 Comments

jesse_green5515d ago

Started going to these things with the exact same mindset. Had my pitch memorized down to the hand gestures and everything. But man, every time I tried using it people's eyes just glazed over. Switched to asking about their problems instead and suddenly I'm having actual conversations instead of just reciting lines. Still mess it up sometimes though. Last week I listened so hard to some guy's hiring struggles that I walked away and left my coffee on his table. Real smooth move.

alice8915d ago

Isn't it wild how the whole "go in with a script" thing is basically the opposite of how we actually connect with people anywhere else? Like if you're at a backyard barbecue and someone just starts rattling off their resume, you'd think they were weird. I've noticed this same pattern with customer service too actually. When you call a company and the person on the other end just reads from a screen, it's super frustrating. But the ones who actually listen and ask what you need, those are the ones you remember and tell your friends about. It's like we've been trained to think business conversations need to be this formal performance, but really people just want to feel heard. That referral you got, it probably happened because the guy felt like you actually cared about his problem, not because you had the perfect pitch.

laura_allen14d ago

That barbecue analogy is perfect (and hilarious when you picture someone doing that with a hot dog in one hand). I think the real problem is that scripts train us to listen for our next line instead of actually hearing what the other person is saying. Like when you call your internet provider and they say "I understand your frustration" but you can tell they're just waiting for you to stop talking so they can read the next bullet point. With my own clients, I started keeping a simple notebook of their offhand remarks - things like "my kid's soccer team" or "we're remodeling the kitchen" - and bring those up next time. Makes people light up because they realize you see them as a whole human, not just a walking wallet.