What makes an amazing elevator pitch? Recently, I attended one of those MeetUp entrepreneur events in the East End of London. The reception area was overflowing with budding entrepreneurs and wantrapreneurs, an orchestra of voices all vying to elevator pitch and tell amid the clatter of glasses. Scanning the room, I noticed a pair of tall guys in conversation. One spoke excitedly, cradling an iPad on his arm like a puppy and pushing up his glasses every so often. His conversation partner, … [Read more...]
Drop the shoehorn: How to turn a chance encounter into a business meeting
The use of shoehorns can be traced back to 15th century and are named after their function – wedging your hoof into a shoe – and composition – originally, animal horns. They were also made in silver, bone and shell. Today they’re usually made of plastic, metal or wood. Queen Elizabeth apparently had over twenty of them. Have you ever used a long-handled shoehorn? They’re great! You don’t have to bend over and stick your finger in the back of your shoe to squeeze your foot inside. Your foot … [Read more...]
How to instantly attract more clients and referrals
Do you want to instantly attract more clients and referrals? I know, silly question. Who wouldn't, right? But here's the irony about that statement: the more you want to attract clients, the more you repel them. Let me explain with an example. When I met one of my coaching clients, she talked about her "sales pipeline", putting a percentage on clients against a number of different variables to determine the numerical value of them so she could immediately see who she should spend the most … [Read more...]
8 Tips to quickly build rapport
An essential part of building your business is growing your network, which means you have to meet new people. And we can’t expect to be on our “game” all the time, right? I'm an ambivert - not to be confused with ambivalent :) - both extrovert and introvert, so sometimes I'm on it, other times it physically pains me to network, so I sympathise networking is especially challenging for introverts. Here are 8 tips to quickly build rapport and connect with people: Friendly body language – … [Read more...]
How to network when you hate networking – 7 networking tips
Some people HATE it. I know I used to. When you’re starting up your business or want to grow your small business, you have to network. Here are my 7 favourite networking tips I’ve used to overcome my networking phobia that I want to share with you, today. Ask about something relevant to the occasion: “what brings you here?” or “what do you hope to get out of this event?” Comment on a topic of general interest: I scan the news the day before the event for ideas Ask questions people … [Read more...]
