Planting Seeds

Whether you are an individual looking for your next career move, a sole proprietor expanding your business, a business manager seeking new markets or a CEO reaching out for new opportunities, the key to development is planting seeds.  The days of the “hard sell” are behind us.  People are inundated with marketing messages.  Planting seeds is a gentle way of marketing and making your services known to others.  Here are some tips to creating a growing market.  Some seeds will sprout, others may not – you won’t always know the impact that you might have on a decision maker.

Tip 1:  Tell stories.  Wherever you find yourself, tell stories of the successes of your business or yourself.  At networking events or within your own organization have a few success stories you can share.  It might go something like “Wow, our team has been working so hard, we’ve been able to surpass our goals by….” or “Recently a new client found great success when I started working with them”.  Keep your stories short and emphasis the results, not necessarily the details of how you got there.  People respond to success.

Tip 2:  Meet with key players.  You may be interested in career advancement.  Meet with others who are in a similar position that you’d like to be.  Ask questions about their career path.  When you are serving a particular market, meet with leaders who influence that market – ask what more you can provide to those they lead and what products and services that would make their job easier.

Tip 3:  Be curious.  Whenever you step out the door of your home you are marketing yourself and your company in addition to conducting market research.  Strike up conversations in the grocery store line, ask lots of questions, engage in the exchange.  I once found a wonderful job at a cocktail party by asking my new boss (who I didn’t know could potentially be my new boss) what his greatest challenge at work was.

Tip 4:  Get out there.  Create a facebook page for your business.  Start a blog on your website.  Write articles for industry publications.  Give presentations and training sessions wherever you can.  You never know who might be reading, attending or listening.  One article I wrote for a trade publication has turned into many new clients.  It was a subject that I was passionate about and apparently resonated with many.  I had no idea when I wrote it.

Tip 5:  Be patient.  Some seeds grow very quickly while others may not sprout for a few years.  Perhaps someone you met at a conference a few years ago remembers your conversation or your recent marketing campaign is an instant sensation.  It’s hard to know what sticks and what doesn’t.  Be consistent, persistent and don’t stop putting yourself and your business in front of others.  Too often we look at someone’s success and think it was instant – we forget that it has taken them many years and many seeds to sprout their success.

How do you plant seeds?  Any tips that have worked for you?  What surprises have you found from seeds you’ve planted and forgotten?  Never forget you make an impact on others each and every day – in ways you may never see.  Leave your comments below.

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