Resource Guide
Methods that Work for Creating Corporate Clients, page 15
Matchmaking meetings are often considered an efficient way to meet potential clients, as the pre-event application screening connects suppliers with buyers who need their specific services or products. If you are going to invest your time in preparing a presentation and money for airfare to get there, how can you make the most of these meetings?
According to Annette Taddeo, president and CEO of LanguageSpeak, Inc., a language services firm in Miami, Florida that is certified as a women’s business enterprise through the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, there are a number of ways to use matchmaking meetings. The first begins before you arrive at the event: do your research.
She suggests starting with the corporation’s own web site, but then going beyond and reading recent articles about them, as well as their competition. Then, do a little more digging. “Call anyone you know who is working with them – or has worked with them – and simply talk about their impressions of the company,” she says. “Ask about future goals, local and global strategies and internal concerns.”
Once you have a solid understanding of the corporation you will be meeting with, the next thing you need to do is to shift expectations. She advises business owners to see the opportunities to meet one-on-one with purchasing professionals as groundwork for building a long-term relationship. “Many business owners go into the scheduled appointment thinking it
might turn into a contract,” Taddeo explains. “It might, but it might not. With that expectation , you either win or lose. Another way is to approach the meeting as the first of many in a long and positive relationship. This way, you win no matter who gets the contract.”
Taddeo also reminds business owners that the events are a forum for networking with supplier diversity professionals beyond the pre-scheduled appointments. “Anytime people from corporations are gathered together, it is a priceless opportunity,” she says. “In some instances I have made better contacts at the gatherings held before the appointments than at the appointments themselves.”
Once in the appointment, Taddeo says, make the most of the time you have scheduled. Draw on your research to develop a customized presentation that reflects your knowledge of the corporation’s needs and goals. Bring enough materials to hand out to everyone in the meeting.
Include copies of articles, awards and client testimonials. “Let them know you are a l ready successful,” she says. “ Remember, nothing creates success like success.”
After the event, it is standard to follow-up with materials and calls, Taddeo acknowledges, “but the most important thing is to keep going to events and to see the same faces again and again. It is an ongoing process,” she says, “so being willing to maintain the relationships is key to creating business.”
Citation
Center for Women’s Business Research. “Methods that Work for Creating Corporate Clients, page 15.” Washington, DC.