1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:13,720 Hello, and welcome to Networking Unleashed, Building Profitable Connections. 2 00:00:13,720 --> 00:00:14,720 Welcome to the show, folks. 3 00:00:14,720 --> 00:00:19,920 I'm your host, Michael Forman, and you're listening to the podcast where networking 4 00:00:19,920 --> 00:00:23,920 is more than just an awkward handshake and bad coffee. 5 00:00:23,920 --> 00:00:26,080 It's an art and a talent. 6 00:00:26,080 --> 00:00:27,580 But here's the twist. 7 00:00:27,580 --> 00:00:30,800 It's an art and talent you can actually learn. 8 00:00:30,800 --> 00:00:36,440 Yes, even if you're the person hiding in the corner at every event pretending to check 9 00:00:36,440 --> 00:00:38,360 emails. 10 00:00:38,360 --> 00:00:41,080 Networking isn't just a nice skill to have. 11 00:00:41,080 --> 00:00:42,840 It's a game changer. 12 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:47,760 And when you get good at it, you'll wonder why you didn't start sooner. 13 00:00:47,760 --> 00:00:51,960 More connections, more opportunities, more profits. 14 00:00:51,960 --> 00:00:55,320 It's like unlocking a cheat code for life. 15 00:00:55,320 --> 00:01:00,120 So whether you're the life of the party or the let me just stay at home and text type, 16 00:01:00,120 --> 00:01:02,240 we've got something for you. 17 00:01:02,240 --> 00:01:03,680 So stick around. 18 00:01:03,680 --> 00:01:08,760 Let's turn those awkward small talk moments into big wins. 19 00:01:08,760 --> 00:01:11,960 Now I've got quite a guest this morning. 20 00:01:11,960 --> 00:01:14,160 His name is Chris Griggs. 21 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:15,840 Don't look like that, Chris. 22 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:19,640 He is the owner of a photography studio. 23 00:01:19,640 --> 00:01:23,560 He's an Atlanta native, but he graduated UGA. 24 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:28,360 By the way, my future daughter-in-law also graduated from UGA. 25 00:01:28,360 --> 00:01:30,280 And he's got a wife, three kids. 26 00:01:30,280 --> 00:01:31,280 But you know what? 27 00:01:31,280 --> 00:01:34,400 I'm really not doing him justice. 28 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:37,640 Let me introduce Chris and let him tell you all about himself. 29 00:01:37,640 --> 00:01:39,240 Chris, how are you today? 30 00:01:39,240 --> 00:01:40,240 I'm doing great, Michael. 31 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:45,080 I am actually really excited about doing this today because you kind of mentioned those 32 00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:46,800 networking skills and all that. 33 00:01:46,800 --> 00:01:52,440 But you know, podcasting skills are pretty important too, I think. 34 00:01:52,440 --> 00:01:56,960 It all works together because one helps you and teaches you about the other. 35 00:01:56,960 --> 00:01:58,680 Oh, yeah, for sure. 36 00:01:58,680 --> 00:02:01,240 You know, I really appreciate that intro. 37 00:02:01,240 --> 00:02:06,320 I don't know how interesting of a guest I am, but I'll try to stay on my ground. 38 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:10,960 You know, one thing you didn't mention is being an owner of a photo and video company. 39 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:13,800 I have to give that credit to my wife, just though. 40 00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:16,600 She is the founder of our company. 41 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:22,360 She founded it a little over eight years ago and she really is the driving force behind 42 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:23,360 what we do. 43 00:02:23,360 --> 00:02:31,440 I just kind of sort of claim part ownership for my own sake, but she really is the one 44 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:35,360 that drives the bus in most things. 45 00:02:35,360 --> 00:02:38,400 And sometimes I'm all in front of the ride and sometimes, you know, she'll let me take 46 00:02:38,400 --> 00:02:39,400 a few things on. 47 00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:47,160 Okay, so you've got this photography studio, video studio and networking obviously is a 48 00:02:47,160 --> 00:02:51,360 very important part of what you do, how you market. 49 00:02:51,360 --> 00:02:58,040 But this has become a very digital world. 50 00:02:58,040 --> 00:03:05,360 And how do you build genuine connections in a world that's increasingly digital? 51 00:03:05,360 --> 00:03:06,360 Wow. 52 00:03:06,360 --> 00:03:11,200 Gosh, that digital angle is a tough one. 53 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:18,160 I guess really to kind of start, you're right, networking really is huge. 54 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:23,880 And I think a lot of people, especially small business owners, I think they underestimate 55 00:03:23,880 --> 00:03:25,600 that and the value of it. 56 00:03:25,600 --> 00:03:29,680 I was even talking to somebody the other day and this kind of segues into something else 57 00:03:29,680 --> 00:03:38,880 that I bring out too, but their key role is new client acquisition for their employer. 58 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:43,520 And they kind of said, you know what, networking can almost be a full time job. 59 00:03:43,520 --> 00:03:49,960 If your role is to bring in more clients, more customers to get people in the door, 60 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:54,840 whatever your business is, whether you're staying by an account or working behind a 61 00:03:54,840 --> 00:04:01,200 computer, networking has been absolutely key in our business. 62 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:06,640 I mean, it's absolutely crucial from the digital side, though, gosh, I don't really have an 63 00:04:06,640 --> 00:04:11,440 answer on that one because to me, I'm really more old school. 64 00:04:11,440 --> 00:04:18,360 I like being in person, being in rooms, talking to people, seeing faces, shaking hands, even 65 00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:24,400 when those rooms are excessively packed with 100 people and you have to shout to the person 66 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:26,400 next to you. 67 00:04:26,400 --> 00:04:30,360 You know what, that might be a really good dive on this too, to talk about the sort of 68 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:33,520 virtual digital aspect of that. 69 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:37,120 And that might be something that I can learn here today. 70 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:40,480 It's virtual is good. 71 00:04:40,480 --> 00:04:48,120 Zoom is very good, but I am old school and I believe in the face to face networking, 72 00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:54,120 networking events, meetings, small meetings, large meetings, whatever, because you get 73 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:59,120 to feel the vibe of the person that you're talking with. 74 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:03,680 You get to feel the vibe of the room that you're in. 75 00:05:03,680 --> 00:05:08,320 And so many things can happen that you need to pick up the vibe. 76 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:15,160 Now the first thing you must consider when you're speaking with somebody is confidence. 77 00:05:15,160 --> 00:05:20,480 You have to have confidence in yourself in order for you to start to speak on a confident 78 00:05:20,480 --> 00:05:21,480 level. 79 00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:23,040 So it all starts from there. 80 00:05:23,040 --> 00:05:30,760 Can you give me a specific example of how a networking relationship significantly impacted 81 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:31,760 your business? 82 00:05:31,760 --> 00:05:33,800 Oh, that's an easy one. 83 00:05:33,800 --> 00:05:37,360 So I'll actually kind of step back a few years on this one. 84 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:40,240 So I actually came into our business about four years ago. 85 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:45,960 I did, as a lot of people kind of jokingly refer to as the pandemic pivot. 86 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:49,800 So I had my prior career went for about 20 years. 87 00:05:49,800 --> 00:05:52,000 And so this is career number two. 88 00:05:52,000 --> 00:05:59,080 When I came into the business, Jess had been a member of some of the area organizations 89 00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:03,160 around here, business associations and so on. 90 00:06:03,160 --> 00:06:08,080 And she showed up to a couple of meetings, met some people, picked up a tiny little business. 91 00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:15,840 But at that point for us, like joining any local area organization, especially when we 92 00:06:15,840 --> 00:06:21,800 were literally trying to figure out week to week how to keep the business running and pay 93 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:27,080 ourselves, joining an organization for like $150 a year or something like that. 94 00:06:27,080 --> 00:06:28,480 That was kind of a big deal. 95 00:06:28,480 --> 00:06:30,840 So four years ago, we had an opportunity presented to us. 96 00:06:30,840 --> 00:06:35,000 I won't go too far into the story, but we had an opportunity presented to us to photograph 97 00:06:35,000 --> 00:06:38,680 an event for a larger organization. 98 00:06:38,680 --> 00:06:42,760 And fortunately, we got that and we were booked for it. 99 00:06:42,760 --> 00:06:47,120 And then the person that connected us with this opportunity said, the organization would 100 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:51,600 actually feel a little better about you shooting this, especially considered what you guys 101 00:06:51,600 --> 00:06:53,920 are being paid to shoot this. 102 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:56,880 If you would join the organization, we're like, okay, sure. 103 00:06:56,880 --> 00:06:57,880 No big deal. 104 00:06:57,880 --> 00:07:02,600 And at that point, I think we had only joined, I think we were only actively like once, twice 105 00:07:02,600 --> 00:07:06,080 a month, attending two other organizations. 106 00:07:06,080 --> 00:07:10,560 And those were to the team, like I mentioned, like $150 for an annual membership and all 107 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:11,560 that. 108 00:07:11,560 --> 00:07:12,720 And we were like, well, sure, how much? 109 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:14,440 And they were like, it's $150. 110 00:07:14,440 --> 00:07:16,960 And we were just kind of like, oh, okay. 111 00:07:16,960 --> 00:07:19,720 Well, you know, we had to give it some thought. 112 00:07:19,720 --> 00:07:24,080 So we bit the bullet, joined the organization. 113 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:29,360 And we made a point to network to show up to meetings, show up to after hours, show up 114 00:07:29,360 --> 00:07:33,560 to lunches, show up to anything that we could fit in our schedule with that organization 115 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:37,160 because we made a pretty significant investment for us at that time. 116 00:07:37,160 --> 00:07:38,160 That was huge. 117 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:42,040 And even today, four years later, it's still not some change. 118 00:07:42,040 --> 00:07:48,840 But so networking, showing up, being a part of that organization, our $850 investment 119 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:53,360 netted us $35,000 in revenue in the first year. 120 00:07:53,360 --> 00:07:59,600 And now on a year to year, we average, I think, about $60,000 to $65,000 revenue in our business 121 00:07:59,600 --> 00:08:02,920 just from that one organization. 122 00:08:02,920 --> 00:08:06,880 And that's because of the client base that we've built out of that organization. 123 00:08:06,880 --> 00:08:09,760 These are companies that we now shoot with on a regular basis. 124 00:08:09,760 --> 00:08:13,920 These are regular clients and clients who we've held on to for now two and three years 125 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:15,080 plus. 126 00:08:15,080 --> 00:08:20,080 So networking absolutely is key to our business. 127 00:08:20,080 --> 00:08:25,520 And it's not just that we just made those relationships and then they just sort of self-sustain. 128 00:08:25,520 --> 00:08:29,080 Still got to show up, still got to be seen, still have to follow up. 129 00:08:29,080 --> 00:08:30,080 We need network. 130 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:36,120 Yeah, the follow up, I say this all the time and on most of the podcasts, the follow up 131 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:40,400 is almost more important than just meeting the person. 132 00:08:40,400 --> 00:08:45,280 Because it's not only how you follow up, but how many times and the way that you follow 133 00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:51,760 up so that you don't feel like you're overdoing it, but you don't want to underdo it as well. 134 00:08:51,760 --> 00:08:53,280 So it's very, very difficult. 135 00:08:53,280 --> 00:08:59,880 Oh, you're totally hitting that concern right there for me because I'm always wondering 136 00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:02,640 how much is too much, how much is too little. 137 00:09:02,640 --> 00:09:06,640 And most times I feel like I'm not doing enough, to be honest. 138 00:09:06,640 --> 00:09:11,960 I have what's called a secret sauce for follow up. 139 00:09:11,960 --> 00:09:17,920 And within two weeks, you find out whether or not the person was serious. 140 00:09:17,920 --> 00:09:25,080 So it's a fine line, but it has always worked very well for me. 141 00:09:25,080 --> 00:09:28,880 And that's what I profess that follow up. 142 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:34,800 But what would you say are the key elements with professional networking? 143 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:43,160 The key elements for me in my own experience is just becoming known, not showing up and 144 00:09:43,160 --> 00:09:45,200 trying to make a sale. 145 00:09:45,200 --> 00:09:49,760 I guess the best way to sort of encapsulate this, and I don't take credit for this, somebody 146 00:09:49,760 --> 00:09:55,320 else gave me this one, is that networking is farming, not hunting. 147 00:09:55,320 --> 00:09:58,080 You know, I think a lot of people ship to network events and immediately they want to 148 00:09:58,080 --> 00:10:01,280 shake your hand, they want to tell you who they are and exactly what they do and why 149 00:10:01,280 --> 00:10:03,280 you need to use them. 150 00:10:03,280 --> 00:10:06,840 And you know, when I started networking, I was guilty of that too. 151 00:10:06,840 --> 00:10:09,720 Definitely did that and found out right away. 152 00:10:09,720 --> 00:10:13,760 People don't care and that's the quickest way to turn people away. 153 00:10:13,760 --> 00:10:19,160 But really just by showing up and just getting to know people, you know, and I think if you 154 00:10:19,160 --> 00:10:24,880 kind of get to know people a little on a personal level, just to know if they're married, if 155 00:10:24,880 --> 00:10:28,840 they have kids, you know, I mean, know enough about what they do in their job just to have 156 00:10:28,840 --> 00:10:36,560 conversation but not necessarily to try to drive them, you know, to book a project or 157 00:10:36,560 --> 00:10:43,760 something and over time, and this has been our experience over time, when people have 158 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:50,040 a need for something and they remember you, they come to you and they're like, I've got 159 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:52,080 an idea, can I just talk to you about it? 160 00:10:52,080 --> 00:10:55,760 And I'm like, you know what, let's have a conversation and that's it. 161 00:10:55,760 --> 00:11:00,560 I don't have to sell them on a photography package or a video package or give them a 162 00:11:00,560 --> 00:11:01,560 price or anything. 163 00:11:01,560 --> 00:11:05,160 It's like, I don't even want to ask them, you know, what kind of budget are you looking 164 00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:11,000 at because I'm not concerned about the money aspect at that point because they've approached 165 00:11:11,000 --> 00:11:14,960 me, they're like, I've got a challenge and I'm looking for a solution. 166 00:11:14,960 --> 00:11:17,240 It may or may not be me. 167 00:11:17,240 --> 00:11:18,240 And that's fine. 168 00:11:18,240 --> 00:11:22,920 You hit a lot of topics that I talk about. 169 00:11:22,920 --> 00:11:23,920 Okay. 170 00:11:23,920 --> 00:11:27,480 The first and foremost is you look to give, not receive. 171 00:11:27,480 --> 00:11:28,480 Yeah. 172 00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:29,480 All right. 173 00:11:29,480 --> 00:11:34,960 So that's the first thing you walk into that room and you say, who can I be a good referral 174 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:39,480 source for or how can I help them become more successful? 175 00:11:39,480 --> 00:11:45,360 There's a lot of different ways to give and you're not even thinking about receiving. 176 00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:51,360 Then you're talking about your rapport that you build with the person. 177 00:11:51,360 --> 00:11:55,280 If they know you like you trust you, they'll do business with you. 178 00:11:55,280 --> 00:12:00,640 If they know you, that's great because you're in a big area and everybody knows you, you're 179 00:12:00,640 --> 00:12:01,640 great guy. 180 00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:03,560 They like you. 181 00:12:03,560 --> 00:12:08,240 That narrows the field down just a little bit, but trust you. 182 00:12:08,240 --> 00:12:14,160 The trust factor is so crucial that, you know, when you're building that rapport with that 183 00:12:14,160 --> 00:12:19,720 person and I use something else, well, this is stolen, by the way, everything, I've just 184 00:12:19,720 --> 00:12:29,160 put it all together, but it's form, F-O-R-M, family, occupation, recreation and a message. 185 00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:33,920 So you want to talk to them about anything and everything, their family, what they do 186 00:12:33,920 --> 00:12:37,680 for a living, how they enjoy themselves. 187 00:12:37,680 --> 00:12:47,960 Ever since the pandemic, the days of building your customer base is really out the window. 188 00:12:47,960 --> 00:12:53,840 It's building relationships and how do you build those relationships through form, know 189 00:12:53,840 --> 00:12:59,960 you like, you trust you, everything else comes into play, but it's very, very important. 190 00:12:59,960 --> 00:13:00,960 Okay. 191 00:13:00,960 --> 00:13:10,240 So what is your, give me your biggest mistake you made in business and how you overcame 192 00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:11,240 it? 193 00:13:11,240 --> 00:13:14,880 Oh gosh. 194 00:13:14,880 --> 00:13:15,880 That's embarrassing. 195 00:13:15,880 --> 00:13:19,200 And it goes outside of networking too. 196 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:23,480 I mean, it doesn't even have anything to do with that, to be honest. 197 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:29,280 You know, we work with a lot of difficult clients in a large segment of our business. 198 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:32,640 That doesn't mean we don't have a lot of undesirable clients. 199 00:13:32,640 --> 00:13:37,640 Occasionally, you just run across a personality that's really hard to work with. 200 00:13:37,640 --> 00:13:43,880 And sometimes it's hard to not react to that. 201 00:13:43,880 --> 00:13:48,840 It could be as simple as, gosh, like I said, I'm putting myself out there. 202 00:13:48,840 --> 00:13:49,960 I'll give you one example. 203 00:13:49,960 --> 00:13:57,400 We had a real estate shoot one time and the agent was not there at the property that I 204 00:13:57,400 --> 00:13:59,000 was shooting. 205 00:13:59,000 --> 00:14:04,240 As I'm finishing the shoot, the homeowner comes in and I just make chitul, nice, good 206 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:05,240 conversation. 207 00:14:05,240 --> 00:14:09,800 And then all of a sudden the homeowner starts kind of becoming a little obsessive about 208 00:14:09,800 --> 00:14:11,640 what I am shooting. 209 00:14:11,640 --> 00:14:18,320 And she starts asking questions that really pertain more to us in our business and our 210 00:14:18,320 --> 00:14:21,120 client who is the realtor. 211 00:14:21,120 --> 00:14:23,280 And these were questions that I actually got. 212 00:14:23,280 --> 00:14:29,440 I grew increasingly more uncomfortable with because it's like, you know, the agent is 213 00:14:29,440 --> 00:14:32,360 the one who I work with. 214 00:14:32,360 --> 00:14:39,080 And I guess long story short, this particular homeowner started asking kind of personal questions 215 00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:40,880 like, well, what do you charge? 216 00:14:40,880 --> 00:14:47,600 Why are you charging this to my realtor and blah, blah, blah, and then also started to 217 00:14:47,600 --> 00:14:53,040 tell me what you wanted to have photographed in the house. 218 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:57,200 Whereas we already had direction from our client, the realtor. 219 00:14:57,200 --> 00:15:02,680 And it kind of started, I mean, tension started building. 220 00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:04,960 I felt like it was starting to escalate. 221 00:15:04,960 --> 00:15:07,400 And I had to leave. 222 00:15:07,400 --> 00:15:09,200 I had to get out of there. 223 00:15:09,200 --> 00:15:13,720 And as I'm leaving, the homeowner is yelling at me. 224 00:15:13,720 --> 00:15:14,880 Yelling at me. 225 00:15:14,880 --> 00:15:20,000 And it's really hard to not yell back at somebody because, you know, when it comes to like fight 226 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:26,480 or flight, you know, it's like, you know, I want to fight, but I'm like, I can't do this 227 00:15:26,480 --> 00:15:27,480 professionally. 228 00:15:27,480 --> 00:15:28,760 I can't do this. 229 00:15:28,760 --> 00:15:36,800 But the thing was is it ended up with the homeowner being mad at me. 230 00:15:36,800 --> 00:15:39,400 And then of course, the homework, talk to the realtor about it. 231 00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:44,640 We had a phone call with the realtor, explain what happened, had a conversation. 232 00:15:44,640 --> 00:15:52,480 The realtor fully understood, but we never got a call again from that, from that realtor. 233 00:15:52,480 --> 00:15:56,320 Now that was very early on for me. 234 00:15:56,320 --> 00:15:58,800 And that was a big lesson. 235 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:06,640 It really was because it's like, you know, it was a lesson in me keeping myself in check, 236 00:16:06,640 --> 00:16:12,080 not just me personally, but I have to remember that I represent not just me, but I represent 237 00:16:12,080 --> 00:16:13,080 my business. 238 00:16:13,080 --> 00:16:14,600 I represent what I do. 239 00:16:14,600 --> 00:16:17,320 And there's a brand element to that. 240 00:16:17,320 --> 00:16:22,240 The biggest thing that I realized is that even though the realtor was our client and 241 00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:30,480 the homeowner was the realtor's client, that homeowner is also a client by extension. 242 00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:36,140 And what I do, what I come in and when I photograph a house or do you video or anything 243 00:16:36,140 --> 00:16:46,200 like that, it goes beyond what we provide to our immediate client because when the homeowner 244 00:16:46,200 --> 00:16:51,320 is trying to sell their house, they're trying to maximize what they're potentially going 245 00:16:51,320 --> 00:16:52,680 to sell that house for. 246 00:16:52,680 --> 00:16:56,800 And what they sell the house for probably is going to help them move into whatever the 247 00:16:56,800 --> 00:17:01,480 next step of their life, their journey, whatever is going to be. 248 00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:11,760 And it really humbled me quite a bit and it made me change my perspective in how we work, 249 00:17:11,760 --> 00:17:18,160 not just with our clients, but our clients, customers and clients as well. 250 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:22,200 Because in the end, it doesn't matter who really booked the project with us and who's 251 00:17:22,200 --> 00:17:24,640 paying what and all that kind of stuff. 252 00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:27,720 The end result is, is it? 253 00:17:27,720 --> 00:17:28,720 That's it. 254 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:29,720 That's what matters. 255 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:38,520 The way we deliver is the very thing that defines our business and how we work with people. 256 00:17:38,520 --> 00:17:45,680 And so, yeah, that was, trust me, you do that one time, you do not do it again. 257 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:48,080 Yeah, it's humbling. 258 00:17:48,080 --> 00:17:52,960 And all of this comes around to that trust factor because they have to trust you to such 259 00:17:52,960 --> 00:17:55,800 a point where they let you do your job. 260 00:17:55,800 --> 00:18:07,160 But how do you establish and maintain the relationships, thinking that trust factor, 261 00:18:07,160 --> 00:18:21,920 how do you maintain the relationships now with fellow professionals? 262 00:18:21,920 --> 00:18:28,880 I know this probably sounds cliche, but chemistry, it's like personality chemistry. 263 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:33,240 We've had clients that we get good work from, we even get regular work from, but we can 264 00:18:33,240 --> 00:18:34,960 barely hold a conversation. 265 00:18:34,960 --> 00:18:37,720 And that's nobody's fault. 266 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:41,400 Some personalities click better than others. 267 00:18:41,400 --> 00:18:43,920 But chemistry and personality is very important to us. 268 00:18:43,920 --> 00:18:49,880 In fact, it's one of the things that we bring up with our team, within our company. 269 00:18:49,880 --> 00:18:54,760 We've got about six contractors that work with us on various projects. 270 00:18:54,760 --> 00:19:00,720 Five of them are very active and very regular in our day to day business. 271 00:19:00,720 --> 00:19:04,560 And one of the things that we always tell them is that chemistry is really important. 272 00:19:04,560 --> 00:19:09,640 Personality is really important because it's part of our culture and our business. 273 00:19:09,640 --> 00:19:15,960 Quite simply put, if we didn't love what we do, we wouldn't do it. 274 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:17,560 Just fair enough. 275 00:19:17,560 --> 00:19:21,760 And honestly, that comes up with our clients as well. 276 00:19:21,760 --> 00:19:26,560 So the very people that are looking projects with us and are bringing revenue into our 277 00:19:26,560 --> 00:19:29,400 business, same thing. 278 00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:36,400 And it goes back to what I was saying earlier about just getting to know people using form, 279 00:19:36,400 --> 00:19:42,200 just saying hi and sometimes a handshake and a smile is all you really need to do. 280 00:19:42,200 --> 00:19:45,400 And it takes that tension away too. 281 00:19:45,400 --> 00:19:47,400 That's another thing too. 282 00:19:47,400 --> 00:19:50,680 We found out that it takes the weight off of our own shoulders. 283 00:19:50,680 --> 00:19:58,880 It's like, if we make a connection at a meeting at an event, then it doesn't mean that we 284 00:19:58,880 --> 00:19:59,880 got a booking. 285 00:19:59,880 --> 00:20:01,120 It's just that we got a connection. 286 00:20:01,120 --> 00:20:02,120 We met somebody. 287 00:20:02,120 --> 00:20:04,280 We had a good conversation. 288 00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:08,960 And to the point that the next time we see them, it's going to be like, oh my God, hey, 289 00:20:08,960 --> 00:20:10,160 man, it's great to see you again. 290 00:20:10,160 --> 00:20:15,280 There's one guy that is in three of our networking groups. 291 00:20:15,280 --> 00:20:18,400 Three different, completely different organizations. 292 00:20:18,400 --> 00:20:22,720 There literally was one day a couple of weeks ago, I saw him three times in this. 293 00:20:22,720 --> 00:20:27,960 It makes the job more fun when you see familiar faces. 294 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:29,200 I'm not the best with names. 295 00:20:29,200 --> 00:20:31,760 I remember faces, but names are kind of hard to me. 296 00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:34,840 I'm probably going to have to see you about a good six or eight times before I remember 297 00:20:34,840 --> 00:20:35,840 your name. 298 00:20:35,840 --> 00:20:42,400 But that's only because of the sheer volume of people I encounter on a daily basis. 299 00:20:42,400 --> 00:20:44,400 So no offense to anybody. 300 00:20:44,400 --> 00:20:52,600 What you're describing, because you're describing the relationship you get to obtain with these 301 00:20:52,600 --> 00:20:53,960 people. 302 00:20:53,960 --> 00:20:59,080 And ever since the pandemic, when I said that it's really not a time for building a customer 303 00:20:59,080 --> 00:21:05,360 base anymore, and this is the way that I tell you the difference between a customer and 304 00:21:05,360 --> 00:21:06,360 relationship. 305 00:21:06,360 --> 00:21:12,400 Let's say you're going along in a supermarket and I bump into you and say, hey, Chris, how 306 00:21:12,400 --> 00:21:13,400 you doing? 307 00:21:13,400 --> 00:21:14,400 Goodbye. 308 00:21:14,400 --> 00:21:16,440 And that's it. 309 00:21:16,440 --> 00:21:20,920 That is what a customer usually does. 310 00:21:20,920 --> 00:21:21,920 A relationship. 311 00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:23,600 Hey, Chris, how you doing? 312 00:21:23,600 --> 00:21:24,600 Oh, that's great. 313 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:25,600 How's your wife? 314 00:21:25,600 --> 00:21:26,760 Oh, is your child doing this? 315 00:21:26,760 --> 00:21:27,760 Oh, was he doing? 316 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:29,280 Oh, he's playing Little League now. 317 00:21:29,280 --> 00:21:30,280 Oh, that's great. 318 00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:32,640 And we have a little conversation. 319 00:21:32,640 --> 00:21:33,960 That is a relationship. 320 00:21:33,960 --> 00:21:40,280 So when I leave, you now remember that much better. 321 00:21:40,280 --> 00:21:45,520 You remember me and you put me more on top of the pile of people that you've already 322 00:21:45,520 --> 00:21:47,020 run into. 323 00:21:47,020 --> 00:21:49,200 So it's a relationship. 324 00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:50,760 And actually, I prefer this. 325 00:21:50,760 --> 00:21:56,400 I prefer this type of getting together and networking because it brings us all closer. 326 00:21:56,400 --> 00:21:59,080 And that is exactly my philosophy. 327 00:21:59,080 --> 00:22:05,040 I've actually said this a number of times when speaking with people and also in network 328 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:16,720 meetings, I mean, you're almost verbatim nailing what my philosophy is, is that in this manner 329 00:22:16,720 --> 00:22:22,520 I'd be the best delivery, but I don't care about a transaction. 330 00:22:22,520 --> 00:22:23,520 I don't. 331 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:24,520 I really don't. 332 00:22:24,520 --> 00:22:27,880 I can have a one off client and this happens in our business. 333 00:22:27,880 --> 00:22:30,520 We can have one off clients all the time. 334 00:22:30,520 --> 00:22:32,280 Now as long as we did our job, we did it well. 335 00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:36,920 We delivered, we did everything to the satisfaction of the client. 336 00:22:36,920 --> 00:22:38,560 That's great. 337 00:22:38,560 --> 00:22:45,600 But I feel like in our business, we're more effective and we deliver better work when 338 00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:50,000 we understand what our client's business is. 339 00:22:50,000 --> 00:22:57,440 You know, so without going long on it, I mentioned earlier, we belong to several organizations 340 00:22:57,440 --> 00:23:01,440 and associations and whatnot. 341 00:23:01,440 --> 00:23:04,840 But they're not all the same type of group. 342 00:23:04,840 --> 00:23:12,180 They're not just, you know, business chambers, you know, business association or whatever. 343 00:23:12,180 --> 00:23:16,680 We try to join organizations in sort of different markets, different areas. 344 00:23:16,680 --> 00:23:19,600 And that's one of the things that's also helped us build our business. 345 00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:23,960 But going back to your point, by getting to know people and what they do and what their 346 00:23:23,960 --> 00:23:29,800 business is about, you know, it doesn't matter if it's real estate, it could be banking, 347 00:23:29,800 --> 00:23:36,480 it could be insurance, it could be law, maybe it's professional speaking and networking, 348 00:23:36,480 --> 00:23:37,480 Michael. 349 00:23:37,480 --> 00:23:42,440 You know, it's like by us kind of getting to know those people and what they do, it 350 00:23:42,440 --> 00:23:50,080 actually better positions us to deliver on what their needs are. 351 00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:51,080 It really does. 352 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:52,080 Okay. 353 00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:53,080 So let's do this. 354 00:23:53,080 --> 00:24:00,760 Give me one tip that if somebody is looking to improve their networking or sales skills, 355 00:24:00,760 --> 00:24:01,760 what would you say? 356 00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:02,880 Just give me one tip. 357 00:24:02,880 --> 00:24:09,000 I think I would say this, networking and approaching people and all that. 358 00:24:09,000 --> 00:24:11,240 You don't wake up one morning and you can just do it. 359 00:24:11,240 --> 00:24:17,840 It's like anything else you do, any hobby, any sport, any skill that you develop, it 360 00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:19,680 takes practice. 361 00:24:19,680 --> 00:24:28,880 You have to show up and you keep having to work sort of those social muscles, so to say, 362 00:24:28,880 --> 00:24:33,640 in order to walk into a networking event and be comfortable and just walk right up to somebody 363 00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:38,640 you've never met before and go, you look just as lost as I feel sometimes. 364 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:39,840 How are you doing? 365 00:24:39,840 --> 00:24:40,840 What brought you here? 366 00:24:40,840 --> 00:24:43,600 And just opening up a conversation that way. 367 00:24:43,600 --> 00:24:48,880 You know, the other side of that too, especially for those of us out there that attend networking 368 00:24:48,880 --> 00:24:55,320 events where you have to give your elevator pitch, quote unquote, Jesus, I am still learning 369 00:24:55,320 --> 00:24:56,320 how to do that. 370 00:24:56,320 --> 00:24:57,520 That is so hard to do. 371 00:24:57,520 --> 00:24:58,520 It really is. 372 00:24:58,520 --> 00:25:02,040 Even though I've done it like 200 times, I get up there. 373 00:25:02,040 --> 00:25:03,480 I say what I say. 374 00:25:03,480 --> 00:25:10,040 You know, say your elevator pitch in front of a B&I group is one thing. 375 00:25:10,040 --> 00:25:18,080 But if you say your elevator pitch in front of real people, then you really don't, they 376 00:25:18,080 --> 00:25:23,480 say an elevator pitch is 30 seconds long and you try to keep it to that. 377 00:25:23,480 --> 00:25:24,480 I don't. 378 00:25:24,480 --> 00:25:25,480 Okay. 379 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:29,680 Networking skills are all practice, practice, practice, you'll get better. 380 00:25:29,680 --> 00:25:32,240 Now here's my elevator pitch. 381 00:25:32,240 --> 00:25:38,200 I help professionals network and communicate more effectively and efficiently, thus creating 382 00:25:38,200 --> 00:25:40,680 more profits. 383 00:25:40,680 --> 00:25:45,680 Now I don't say, if I imagine myself in an elevator, I don't come out with that whole 384 00:25:45,680 --> 00:25:46,680 thing. 385 00:25:46,680 --> 00:25:51,120 I help professionals network and communicate. 386 00:25:51,120 --> 00:25:55,000 And all you're trying to do is get a response. 387 00:25:55,000 --> 00:25:58,760 That's the whole idea of an elevator pitch is to get a response. 388 00:25:58,760 --> 00:26:02,240 So if they say, well, what do you mean by that? 389 00:26:02,240 --> 00:26:05,400 Or can you further explain that? 390 00:26:05,400 --> 00:26:06,400 Or you know what? 391 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:08,480 Let's get off the floor and just tell me about. 392 00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:11,360 So something so that you get a response. 393 00:26:11,360 --> 00:26:12,360 Okay. 394 00:26:12,360 --> 00:26:13,720 So, but that's it. 395 00:26:13,720 --> 00:26:19,840 But that's the key thing you have to remember in the classes, when I teach in a workshops 396 00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:22,760 and things like that, that's exactly what I say. 397 00:26:22,760 --> 00:26:27,520 Say, just enough to get a response. 398 00:26:27,520 --> 00:26:30,120 And then that will invoke the conversation. 399 00:26:30,120 --> 00:26:33,640 And then it's up to you to take it for what it's worth. 400 00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:35,240 But it's very important. 401 00:26:35,240 --> 00:26:39,920 And that is just a small fraction of the part when you meet somebody. 402 00:26:39,920 --> 00:26:46,280 When you walk into that room, that big room, most people are like, oh my God, what did 403 00:26:46,280 --> 00:26:49,040 I get myself into? 404 00:26:49,040 --> 00:26:54,280 But you know, if you are there, if you've gone to eight networking events beforehand 405 00:26:54,280 --> 00:26:58,800 and you practice, practice, practice, you've tweaked it, you've done it and you don't say 406 00:26:58,800 --> 00:26:59,800 certain things. 407 00:26:59,800 --> 00:27:01,600 You do say certain things. 408 00:27:01,600 --> 00:27:09,760 But what most people neglect is when they walk up to a networking table, you don't talk. 409 00:27:09,760 --> 00:27:12,640 You don't say a word. 410 00:27:12,640 --> 00:27:15,680 You listen for the conversation. 411 00:27:15,680 --> 00:27:19,200 Is this a conversation that I want to be a part of? 412 00:27:19,200 --> 00:27:20,200 It's not. 413 00:27:20,200 --> 00:27:23,320 I'm going to politely bow out and go to the next table. 414 00:27:23,320 --> 00:27:26,200 If it is, then you come out with something. 415 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:30,360 And I remember, you're the expert in your field and your professional. 416 00:27:30,360 --> 00:27:33,840 So whatever you say should really be that. 417 00:27:33,840 --> 00:27:37,040 And all you figure there's four or five people at the table. 418 00:27:37,040 --> 00:27:43,000 What you're trying to do is to get two or three of those people to look at you and comment 419 00:27:43,000 --> 00:27:45,680 on what you said. 420 00:27:45,680 --> 00:27:52,040 So then you're thinking form when you're speaking to that one, two or three people and you're 421 00:27:52,040 --> 00:27:58,520 letting them talk and you're letting them talk about themselves because trust, here's 422 00:27:58,520 --> 00:28:00,640 that trust factor. 423 00:28:00,640 --> 00:28:06,240 That trust factor is building and that wall is coming down because listen, everybody loves 424 00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:11,080 to talk about themselves and you let them, let them talk. 425 00:28:11,080 --> 00:28:14,080 And the first thing that you say, first of all, you're listening to them. 426 00:28:14,080 --> 00:28:21,920 You don't know distractions and you listen is the pause at the end of the listening. 427 00:28:21,920 --> 00:28:24,160 And why is it so important? 428 00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:30,960 Because that tells the other person that you were listening to them wholeheartedly and 429 00:28:30,960 --> 00:28:32,120 you respond to them. 430 00:28:32,120 --> 00:28:37,520 What they were saying, not the next thing that you want to say, but the next to respond 431 00:28:37,520 --> 00:28:40,040 to something that they said. 432 00:28:40,040 --> 00:28:43,800 And after that, you say, you know something, I like you. 433 00:28:43,800 --> 00:28:47,880 I like the way you do your business. 434 00:28:47,880 --> 00:28:51,320 How can I make you more successful? 435 00:28:51,320 --> 00:28:56,280 How can I be a good referral source for you? 436 00:28:56,280 --> 00:29:02,000 Usually blows them away, but this is the art of giving and not receiving. 437 00:29:02,000 --> 00:29:04,920 The whole whole works together. 438 00:29:04,920 --> 00:29:13,560 I've even had moments where I'll meet somebody at any given event and I'll be honest with 439 00:29:13,560 --> 00:29:14,560 it. 440 00:29:14,560 --> 00:29:15,560 It's rare that I say that. 441 00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:18,760 It's very rare that I say that and I'm sure a lot of people, maybe even yourself are going, 442 00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:20,320 never say that. 443 00:29:20,320 --> 00:29:23,920 But no, no, I believe what you're saying. 444 00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:32,000 But what I follow up with that is this is like, you know what, let's exchange information. 445 00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:37,800 Because although I know I don't need your service, you don't need my service. 446 00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:44,400 I encounter people all the time who are looking for what you do. 447 00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:51,960 Networking has built our business and I am always, always willing and open to share information 448 00:29:51,960 --> 00:30:00,640 to somebody else who needs a lead, needs a direct contact, needs an introduction to somebody 449 00:30:00,640 --> 00:30:10,560 out of probably the 1500 plus contacts that I have saved in our CRM software. 450 00:30:10,560 --> 00:30:18,400 If somebody is looking for a mortgage loan, a home remodeler, a painter, a plumber, an 451 00:30:18,400 --> 00:30:24,120 owner, somebody who's looking to open, just moved to town and needs to know what bank 452 00:30:24,120 --> 00:30:25,120 to go to. 453 00:30:25,120 --> 00:30:31,200 It's like, I could give them pretty much an answer to anything that they're asking about 454 00:30:31,200 --> 00:30:34,240 or need some kind of information about. 455 00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:38,320 When we made a referral to somebody else, and this is one of those people that we did 456 00:30:38,320 --> 00:30:45,280 not think that we would be doing business with, they've contacted us and they'd be like, 457 00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:51,520 hey, we've added some staff to our office, we've got 50 plus people, we think we need 458 00:30:51,520 --> 00:30:52,520 headshots. 459 00:30:52,520 --> 00:30:56,640 It's like, oh, well, let's talk about that. 460 00:30:56,640 --> 00:30:58,600 It surprises us. 461 00:30:58,600 --> 00:31:01,040 All the art of giving. 462 00:31:01,040 --> 00:31:05,240 Because listen, if you give, give, give, what goes around does come around. 463 00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:12,080 It will come around to you because that client, that person will remember how much you helped 464 00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:13,080 them. 465 00:31:13,080 --> 00:31:18,520 So the best way to do that, obviously, is to give a referral and not ask for anything 466 00:31:18,520 --> 00:31:20,520 in return. 467 00:31:20,520 --> 00:31:23,600 Because you will get that in return eventually. 468 00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:27,480 Okay, let's bring this full circle. 469 00:31:27,480 --> 00:31:33,040 Give me one takeaway that my listeners can use today. 470 00:31:33,040 --> 00:31:35,720 One takeaway regarding network. 471 00:31:35,720 --> 00:31:57,760 Seriously, just one thing, what's one thing that you do most often in networking? 472 00:31:57,760 --> 00:32:04,760 I think the one thing that, and I do this consciously and subconsciously, is just try 473 00:32:04,760 --> 00:32:05,760 to be sincere. 474 00:32:05,760 --> 00:32:06,760 Just be authentic. 475 00:32:06,760 --> 00:32:07,760 Just be authentic. 476 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:08,760 Just be authentic. 477 00:32:08,760 --> 00:32:09,760 Be genuine. 478 00:32:09,760 --> 00:32:10,760 Be authentic. 479 00:32:10,760 --> 00:32:16,280 Like I said earlier, I'm not there to try to close a sale. 480 00:32:16,280 --> 00:32:18,080 That's not what networking is about. 481 00:32:18,080 --> 00:32:19,160 It really isn't. 482 00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:26,240 I mean, networking is just, just meeting people and having fun. 483 00:32:26,240 --> 00:32:30,680 I mean, honestly, that's actually been the hardest thing for me to learn. 484 00:32:30,680 --> 00:32:35,440 It's so funny saying that now because it's so obvious and sounds so easy. 485 00:32:35,440 --> 00:32:43,240 But having going to networking meetings and events and all this kind of stuff for four 486 00:32:43,240 --> 00:32:48,560 years, it's only within the past year that I'm just kind of like, you know what, if I 487 00:32:48,560 --> 00:32:55,480 just walk into this place, no matter how many people there are five or 150, I'm just gonna 488 00:32:55,480 --> 00:32:56,480 have fun. 489 00:32:56,480 --> 00:33:00,360 And honestly, that's actually one of the things that also keeps me in check too. 490 00:33:00,360 --> 00:33:05,200 It's like if I'm not having fun, I'll leave. 491 00:33:05,200 --> 00:33:06,200 I will. 492 00:33:06,200 --> 00:33:08,120 I mean, because your job to be a job. 493 00:33:08,120 --> 00:33:09,120 Right. 494 00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:14,360 I don't want my job to be a job, but also like if it's a new group, it's a different environment. 495 00:33:14,360 --> 00:33:19,120 If something feels off, I mean, we've learned to kind of trust our gut and just be like, 496 00:33:19,120 --> 00:33:22,800 maybe this isn't the best use of our time right now because we have plenty of back work 497 00:33:22,800 --> 00:33:23,800 to do. 498 00:33:23,800 --> 00:33:24,920 We got client work. 499 00:33:24,920 --> 00:33:29,720 We have things waiting to be delivered, finished, worked on, edited, whatever. 500 00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:36,240 That's rare, really rare that we show up to a place and we check out after 15 minutes, 501 00:33:36,240 --> 00:33:37,240 right? 502 00:33:37,240 --> 00:33:39,360 You're picking up the vibe of the room. 503 00:33:39,360 --> 00:33:40,360 Yes. 504 00:33:40,360 --> 00:33:44,120 You're picking up the vibe of the room, the vibe of the other people. 505 00:33:44,120 --> 00:33:48,240 You have to trust your gut, your instincts. 506 00:33:48,240 --> 00:33:54,400 And if you don't like the vibe of the room, then absolutely you pick up and walk out. 507 00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:55,400 Yeah. 508 00:33:55,400 --> 00:33:57,400 But of course you pay $100 for it. 509 00:33:57,400 --> 00:33:58,400 Yeah. 510 00:33:58,400 --> 00:34:00,400 Right. 511 00:34:00,400 --> 00:34:03,560 Well, the paid ones, we're going to have fun. 512 00:34:03,560 --> 00:34:05,960 We're going to make sure that the mines work. 513 00:34:05,960 --> 00:34:07,680 But again, it goes back to what I said earlier. 514 00:34:07,680 --> 00:34:12,520 If we didn't enjoy what we do, why would we do this? 515 00:34:12,520 --> 00:34:19,840 I've had plenty of jobs in my previous career where, I mean, it was okay, but I didn't love 516 00:34:19,840 --> 00:34:20,840 it. 517 00:34:20,840 --> 00:34:21,840 I wasn't passionate about it. 518 00:34:21,840 --> 00:34:26,000 It's like I just showed up, clocked in, did the work, clocked out. 519 00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:29,680 I mean, it was about as robotic as it could be. 520 00:34:29,680 --> 00:34:34,480 And that's easy to do when you work for somebody else, right? 521 00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:37,960 Because you got to pay check. 522 00:34:37,960 --> 00:34:39,360 You get paid every two weeks. 523 00:34:39,360 --> 00:34:42,400 As long as you do your job, you do it well. 524 00:34:42,400 --> 00:34:47,440 You work just hard enough to not get fired. 525 00:34:47,440 --> 00:34:55,800 But now that we're business owners and we are the only source of our income. 526 00:34:55,800 --> 00:34:58,000 We are the only source of our business. 527 00:34:58,000 --> 00:35:05,200 And we are the only ones providing for our livelihood, for ourselves and our family. 528 00:35:05,200 --> 00:35:08,320 It's like having fun is actually much more important. 529 00:35:08,320 --> 00:35:11,080 It makes our interactions with our clients better. 530 00:35:11,080 --> 00:35:16,280 And a lot of times, so I know I gave that horror story earlier about the homeowner or 531 00:35:16,280 --> 00:35:18,920 the house that I was shooting and all that. 532 00:35:18,920 --> 00:35:24,960 But you know, like now, when I walk into a house and the realtor is there, or it could 533 00:35:24,960 --> 00:35:26,480 even be a builder, right? 534 00:35:26,480 --> 00:35:28,720 It doesn't have to be a resale. 535 00:35:28,720 --> 00:35:31,720 And the homeowner is there too. 536 00:35:31,720 --> 00:35:35,600 That's the first person I walk up to and I introduce myself to. 537 00:35:35,600 --> 00:35:40,480 That is absolutely because I want them to know that I'm there for them. 538 00:35:40,480 --> 00:35:43,080 You know, that lesson I mentioned I learned earlier. 539 00:35:43,080 --> 00:35:44,080 I'm there for them. 540 00:35:44,080 --> 00:35:45,080 I really am. 541 00:35:45,080 --> 00:35:49,040 And when I have those opportunities to meet the homeowner or whoever the end user is, let's 542 00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:54,120 just say that the end user of the product that's being provided by putting them at ease. 543 00:35:54,120 --> 00:35:55,400 It actually puts me at ease. 544 00:35:55,400 --> 00:35:57,440 So it kind of makes sense. 545 00:35:57,440 --> 00:35:58,880 And it sets the tone right there. 546 00:35:58,880 --> 00:36:04,640 And it's like within the first five minutes of showing up on a project, it's like, there 547 00:36:04,640 --> 00:36:05,640 it is. 548 00:36:05,640 --> 00:36:06,640 The tone has been set. 549 00:36:06,640 --> 00:36:07,640 The vibe is there. 550 00:36:07,640 --> 00:36:08,640 The atmosphere is good. 551 00:36:08,640 --> 00:36:11,880 And it's just like, you know what, I'm going to have fun with this. 552 00:36:11,880 --> 00:36:15,000 Let's just knock this out and we're going to deliver some amazing work. 553 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:20,960 It makes working that much easier because it's really not like working, you know, it 554 00:36:20,960 --> 00:36:21,960 makes it more fun. 555 00:36:21,960 --> 00:36:23,960 Chris, let me ask you a question. 556 00:36:23,960 --> 00:36:24,960 Sure. 557 00:36:24,960 --> 00:36:30,160 Somebody wants to contact you for photography, for video or anything else. 558 00:36:30,160 --> 00:36:32,560 What's the best way that they can get hold of you? 559 00:36:32,560 --> 00:36:36,800 And if you have anything in the works that's coming out that's new, tell me about that 560 00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:37,800 also. 561 00:36:37,800 --> 00:36:38,800 Yeah, sure. 562 00:36:38,800 --> 00:36:41,360 So they answered the first party question. 563 00:36:41,360 --> 00:36:45,880 We're really fortunate that we have a very unique name. 564 00:36:45,880 --> 00:36:52,440 So for anybody who missed it or didn't see it in the notes, our company is LaRouche Photo. 565 00:36:52,440 --> 00:36:58,000 It's LaRuCHE Photo. 566 00:36:58,000 --> 00:37:05,400 And if you look for at or hashtag LaRouche Photo on pretty much any social media platform, 567 00:37:05,400 --> 00:37:07,320 you will find us. 568 00:37:07,320 --> 00:37:13,120 We're in all the usual places, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube. 569 00:37:13,120 --> 00:37:17,120 We have our own channel there where we post client videos, things like that. 570 00:37:17,120 --> 00:37:19,680 And if I missed one, I probably did. 571 00:37:19,680 --> 00:37:23,880 But I think we have a TikTok page, but I know we don't know where TikTok's going. 572 00:37:23,880 --> 00:37:27,600 But Instagram is probably the best place to find us. 573 00:37:27,600 --> 00:37:31,040 That's where we keep a lot of our current work posted. 574 00:37:31,040 --> 00:37:37,840 We don't do a lot of videos there, but as far as our photo work, every market, every 575 00:37:37,840 --> 00:37:40,720 industry that we service, you'll see examples there. 576 00:37:40,720 --> 00:37:46,120 So things that are kind of coming up sort of new for this year, we are expanding our 577 00:37:46,120 --> 00:37:47,120 team. 578 00:37:47,120 --> 00:37:51,160 We're increasing our capabilities to bring on more clients. 579 00:37:51,160 --> 00:37:57,200 As a matter of fact, just in January, we've brought on two new builder clients in our 580 00:37:57,200 --> 00:37:58,200 business. 581 00:37:58,200 --> 00:37:59,800 They're testing the waters with us. 582 00:37:59,800 --> 00:38:01,120 We're testing them too. 583 00:38:01,120 --> 00:38:06,160 But we've had multiple projects already in the bag and shot and delivered for them. 584 00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:07,800 And they've been super happy. 585 00:38:07,800 --> 00:38:13,160 And we're trying to get some more builder clients on board with our business. 586 00:38:13,160 --> 00:38:16,680 It just so happens, and this goes back to the whole pandemic thing, that the majority 587 00:38:16,680 --> 00:38:19,440 of our business happens to be property related. 588 00:38:19,440 --> 00:38:21,400 It's not what we were looking to do. 589 00:38:21,400 --> 00:38:27,160 It's not sort of that niche market that we were just like, that's it. 590 00:38:27,160 --> 00:38:28,280 That's our only focus. 591 00:38:28,280 --> 00:38:37,600 It just turned out that about, I'm just going to guess probably about 60 to 70% of our business 592 00:38:37,600 --> 00:38:39,280 is property related. 593 00:38:39,280 --> 00:38:42,080 That includes, of course, resale market. 594 00:38:42,080 --> 00:38:43,080 That's always there. 595 00:38:43,080 --> 00:38:47,160 We've really built our business into the new build market. 596 00:38:47,160 --> 00:38:52,840 So we work with a couple of national builders, some regional builders, and some custom luxury 597 00:38:52,840 --> 00:38:54,200 home builders as well. 598 00:38:54,200 --> 00:38:55,880 We work with remodeling companies. 599 00:38:55,880 --> 00:38:57,680 We work with investment companies. 600 00:38:57,680 --> 00:39:02,720 We work with a small amount of even commercial real estate, people who are looking for that 601 00:39:02,720 --> 00:39:04,720 mixed use office type work. 602 00:39:04,720 --> 00:39:09,120 And a lot of our work is actually sort of grown peripherally out of that market. 603 00:39:09,120 --> 00:39:15,680 So when we shoot for builders and things like that, we've developed relationships with mortgage 604 00:39:15,680 --> 00:39:22,280 providers and closing attorneys and other and remodeling companies. 605 00:39:22,280 --> 00:39:28,200 And it's kind of interesting how that all just sort of grew out of itself. 606 00:39:28,200 --> 00:39:30,320 But outside of that, we do a lot of headshot work. 607 00:39:30,320 --> 00:39:32,880 We do a lot of event and video work. 608 00:39:32,880 --> 00:39:36,640 We shoot award shows and we shoot business seminars. 609 00:39:36,640 --> 00:39:39,480 We also do a little bit of product work too. 610 00:39:39,480 --> 00:39:44,080 We don't push for that, but occasionally somebody comes in, we shoot product. 611 00:39:44,080 --> 00:39:49,400 But I think probably overall the biggest area, or I would say the biggest category of what 612 00:39:49,400 --> 00:39:55,560 we do in addition to this property stuff, and actually the property work sort of siphons 613 00:39:55,560 --> 00:40:00,040 back into this category too, is we provide marketing assets. 614 00:40:00,040 --> 00:40:05,760 I think that's honestly probably the most accurate description of what we do. 615 00:40:05,760 --> 00:40:09,320 One short we do photo and video. 616 00:40:09,320 --> 00:40:14,360 It's like, yes, in the end, we deliver photography, we deliver videos and things like that. 617 00:40:14,360 --> 00:40:19,280 But what we are doing is we are providing people with marketing assets because when 618 00:40:19,280 --> 00:40:22,700 it comes to social media, these companies, they need content. 619 00:40:22,700 --> 00:40:25,000 They need content for social media marketing. 620 00:40:25,000 --> 00:40:29,000 And it doesn't matter if it's product, if it's a service, or even if it's their own 621 00:40:29,000 --> 00:40:30,000 face. 622 00:40:30,000 --> 00:40:37,120 And if that's what they build their business on, just recognition, then hey, that picture 623 00:40:37,120 --> 00:40:39,320 review is pretty important. 624 00:40:39,320 --> 00:40:42,520 But your marketing assets go beyond social media. 625 00:40:42,520 --> 00:40:49,280 It goes into whatever, anything you put in front of a potential client, you need a photo 626 00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:51,840 or a video of some sort. 627 00:40:51,840 --> 00:40:57,120 Every presentation, if it's a proposal debt to a new client, if it's your next Facebook 628 00:40:57,120 --> 00:41:04,080 post, another good example is, let's say a company's redesigning their website for 2025. 629 00:41:04,080 --> 00:41:10,960 We've worked with web design companies as well to provide full asset suites for websites. 630 00:41:10,960 --> 00:41:16,960 So all the photography, all the video, your video banners, all that kind of stuff, probably 631 00:41:16,960 --> 00:41:21,800 a better, better enlarger picture of what we're able to offer. 632 00:41:21,800 --> 00:41:27,240 Okay, Chris, you know something, this was an outstanding podcast. 633 00:41:27,240 --> 00:41:30,160 I love learning all about what you do. 634 00:41:30,160 --> 00:41:35,000 And if any of my listeners want to contact Chris, contact him, go on Instagram. 635 00:41:35,000 --> 00:41:37,280 That's the most prevalent one. 636 00:41:37,280 --> 00:41:39,360 And just thank you for coming on. 637 00:41:39,360 --> 00:41:40,360 Thanks Michael. 638 00:41:40,360 --> 00:41:41,360 I appreciate it. 639 00:41:41,360 --> 00:41:42,360 This has been a lot of fun. 640 00:41:42,360 --> 00:41:46,480 And to be honest, this is, I haven't done a lot of podcasts, so I needed this practice. 641 00:41:46,480 --> 00:41:48,480 All right then. 642 00:41:48,480 --> 00:41:49,480 All right. 643 00:41:49,480 --> 00:41:50,480 Goodbye. 644 00:41:50,480 --> 00:41:52,840 Wait one minute. 645 00:41:52,840 --> 00:41:54,120 Don't leave yet. 646 00:41:54,120 --> 00:42:00,120 This podcast has been sponsored by author Rodney Davis. 647 00:42:00,120 --> 00:42:02,240 Quit your way to success. 648 00:42:02,240 --> 00:42:06,120 27,000 to life-changing success today. 649 00:42:06,120 --> 00:42:12,440 How many times have you heard someone say that they just can't seem to find success? 650 00:42:12,440 --> 00:42:15,560 Perhaps you thought this yourself. 651 00:42:15,560 --> 00:42:17,400 It's time to quit. 652 00:42:17,400 --> 00:42:18,400 That's right. 653 00:42:18,400 --> 00:42:22,360 Quit your way to success by Rodney Davis. 654 00:42:22,360 --> 00:42:31,320 This is an incredibly motivating book about the habits that actually work to make us success. 655 00:42:31,320 --> 00:42:36,120 Many times we don't even realize that we are the cause of our own failures. 656 00:42:36,120 --> 00:42:42,120 We think, act, and react in ways that end up keeping us from what we really want out 657 00:42:42,120 --> 00:42:43,320 of life. 658 00:42:43,320 --> 00:42:46,480 We envision defeat instead of success. 659 00:42:46,480 --> 00:42:49,360 We count our defeats instead of our options. 660 00:42:49,360 --> 00:42:54,800 We give up when success is just around the corner. 661 00:42:54,800 --> 00:43:01,120 Quit your way to success is all about helping us pass the things that hold back. 662 00:43:01,120 --> 00:43:07,360 Each chapter is full of specific examples of those who refuse to give up, a quote that 663 00:43:07,360 --> 00:43:11,600 can be memorized and used over and over again. 664 00:43:11,600 --> 00:43:19,360 Furthermore, each chapter has a specific lesson for the one in sales, as well as a to-do list 665 00:43:19,360 --> 00:43:21,840 to make a concrete effort to change. 666 00:43:21,840 --> 00:43:25,960 Quit your way to success by Rodney Davis. 667 00:43:25,960 --> 00:43:31,720 This will change your life for the better, available on Amazon today. 668 00:43:31,720 --> 00:43:34,840 Well, that's a wrap, folks. 669 00:43:34,840 --> 00:43:40,400 A huge thank you to our special guests for sharing such incredible insights today, and 670 00:43:40,400 --> 00:43:46,440 of course, a big shout out to you, our amazing listeners, for tuning in and spending your 671 00:43:46,440 --> 00:43:48,040 time with us. 672 00:43:48,040 --> 00:43:51,760 Remember, networking isn't about being perfect. 673 00:43:51,760 --> 00:43:53,440 It's about being present. 674 00:43:53,440 --> 00:43:58,760 So take what you've learned today, get out there, and make some meaningful connections. 675 00:43:58,760 --> 00:44:03,800 If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe, leave us a review, and share 676 00:44:03,800 --> 00:44:08,160 it with someone who could use a little networking inspiration. 677 00:44:08,160 --> 00:44:10,480 Let's keep the conversation going. 678 00:44:10,480 --> 00:44:17,320 You can find me on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or my website, MichaelAForman.com. 679 00:44:17,320 --> 00:44:24,480 Remember, until next time, keep practicing, keep connecting, and keep building those relationships. 680 00:44:24,480 --> 00:44:27,080 This is Michael A. Foreman, signing off. 681 00:44:27,080 --> 00:44:39,280 Take care, and happy networking.