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The first principle in the sales process is prospecting. It is also the first principle in a job hunt. Or is it?
Finding new customers on a continual basis is even more important in business today as the economy struggles to recover. Job seekers face the same struggle looking for promising potential employers and connecting with them..
Sales Paradigm Shift
How businesses find and develop new customers has changed as fast as technology and our new methods of networking.
In the past, sales people went “cold calling” door-to-door in a neighborhood, business area, or office building. We know that just doesn’t work anymore. Companies and people just don’t want to be “cold-called" anymore. We just don’t want to be intruded on by someone we don’t know or trust - that practice is fading fast.
Job Search Paradigm Shift
Today, we see that same change in the job market. Now, "prospecting" to find a job is about online and off-line relationships and trust building. It is about giving people “reasons to hire you” as opposed to selling yourself to them
Women have the edge when it comes to this because we are born communicators, relationship builders, community supporters, emotional connectors.
Today, the relationship comes first and the selling comes later. Applying this to job search can be very effective, especially for women. We should be involved in relationship building and expanding our network of human capital. Some of the ways we can do this are through:
- engagement
- volunteering
- networking
- mentorship
Prospecting today is much more focused on building community: friends, fans and followers who naturally connect because you are the center point (the "Agent Zero" from Trust Agents author Chris Brogan), that they have in common. The community naturally leads to connections, which naturally leads to conversations, which will eventually lead to sales or referrals.
22 New-Style "Prospecting" Sources
As prospecting morphs into relationship-building, which was always the most successful long-term solution for generating sales, job seekers look at these potential sources of networking connections and job leads:
- Chambers of commerce
- Networking groups
- Professional organizations
- Websites
- Blogs
- Social media
- Article marketing
- Internet radio
- Volunteering
- Pro-Bono
- Referrals
- Sponsorships
- Events
- Email marketing
- Keynote speaking
- Webinars
- Teleseminars
- Workshops
- Traditional media
- Neighborhood community
- Faith community
- Business community
If you really look at the social persona of companies, social leaders and experts you can learn a lot about the “new prospecting” process they are using, which is the new norm and where we need to be.
Look at how these people and companies do what they do.
We can learn a lot about the “new prospecting” process from these successful examples. They all give, share, connect, help, and care about what their people think. They are building “like” and “respect” and that is the prerequisite for “moving goods and services” today.
Here is an awesome article from Womenentrepreneur.com, about How Women Can Win in Sales.
Bottom Line
Consider how are you adopting this new approach into your current job search process? Are you giving people reasons to hire you instead of selling yourself to them?
© Copyright Deborah Shane, 2010. All rights reserved. Used With Permission.
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About This Author:
Job Search for Women Expert Deborah Shane is founder and Chief Motivator, Educator and Catalyst at Train With Shane, which delivers business education and professional development through speaking, events and training in the career, sales, social marketing, and motivation fields. Reach Deborah through TrainWithShane.com, her blog deborahshanetoolbox.com on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn at Deborah Shane, and at Blogtalkradio.com/trainwithshane.
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