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TOP OF THE WEEK TO YOU!
(by realwired! CEO, Brenda Dohring Hicks)
Top of the Week to You! is designed to offer the inside scoop and latest of what's important in the world of technology as it relates to the commercial real estate industry. |
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Don't Throw Away Your Rolodex
A couple of things happened to me this week that spurred this week's newsletter topic. The first was a conversation with a colleague about an upcoming conference I'm going to speak at on business development, sales and using social media. My colleague was expressing both interest and frustration using LinkedIn. The second was a Wall Street Journal article, Has LinkedIn Killed the Rolodex. Actually, there was one more thing that prompted this newsletter, a conversation with a client who thought it was okay to use LinkedIn as their CRM - Customer Relationship Manager to which I rebutted with a loudly and firmly, "No it's not, okay!" I followed this up with a lot of reasons why neither LinkedIn nor the other thing people think is a CRM by default - Outlook, are suitable.
So let me discuss LinkedIn. I use it. I'm not a consistent user and may never be but it's a great place to get basic information about someone or "someones". For instance, I might run a search for a particular type of contact and review the top 100 results. Depending upon how specific my search, the likelihood is that I'm not directly connected with any of the identified "contacts". But this is a great starting point for me to study the resulting profiles. If there are enough shared connections, I might ask for an introduction. But essentially I'm going to view LinkedIn, with 100 million members having an average income of more than $100,000, as a really big cocktail party. And I'm going to handle myself accordingly. I won't make shallow endorsements and I won't assume that someone wants to talk to me, let alone help me. I will never try to sell my services, unless there is an established relationship. I will look for some commonalities and a reason to engage in dialogue by participating in a group and look for opportunities to give information or provide value. The only way to do this effectively is to be active. Over time you'll figure out and so will the targeted contact if there's potential to do business together or create a referred introduction. Always be polite and relate things to how you would act in person.
You wouldn't walk up to a stranger at a cocktail party or even a network event and ask someone for a favor, don't do it online. Your objective in social media should be to build a relationship, not push your message out to thousands of strangers. Remember, ALL relationships require mutual respect and trust. Just because you can connect to hundreds and thousands of people through something like LinkedIn or any other social media site doesn't mean you should. Just as we build up trust through a series of ongoing connections and communications in our day-to-day lives, we must do the same in the online environment. Make sure your profile is complete and up-to-date which will go a long way to having those who view it trust you.
Your personal Rolodex is extremely valuable and you must treat it as such. It's something that you have developed over the years because you've met and know people on a personal basis. Making it work best for you is why you want it electronic, you want it mobile, you want it customizable, and you want to decide who you're willing to share those precious contacts with.
If you would like to join our blog discussion click here or I welcome your feedback through email. |
Hot Deals/Leads
White Castle System, Inc. trades as White Castle at 416 locations throughout IL, IN, KY, MI, MN, MO, NJ, NY, OH, TN and WI. The fast food restaurants, offering hamburgers, fries and chicken, occupy spaces of 2,000 sq.ft. to 2,500 sq.ft. in freestanding locations and outlots of shopping centers. Growth opportunities are sought throughout the existing markets during the coming 18 months. Typical leases run 10 years with six, five-year options. Preferred cotenants include Home Depot, Lowe's Home Improvement, Target and Walmart. Major competitors include Burger King, Krystal and McDonald's. Area demographics include a population of 30,000 within two miles earning $50,000 as the average household income. A land area of 20,000 sq.ft. to 40,000 sq.ft. is required. For more information, contact Rob Albert, White Castle System, Inc., 555 West Goodale Street, Columbus, OH 43215
Pretzels Plus, Inc. trades as Pretzels Plus at nine locations throughout PA and VA. The shops occupy spaces of 2,000 sq.ft. to 2,500 sq.ft. in malls and strip and tourist centers. Growth opportunities are sought throughout the existing markets during the coming 18 months. Typical leases run five years. A vanilla shell and specific improvements are required. Major competitors include Auntie Anne's and Wetzel's Pretzels. The company is franchising. For more information, contact Brad Eline, Pretzels Plus, Inc., 639 Frederick Street, Hanover, PA 17331
W.H.Braum, Inc. trades as Braum's Ice Cream & Dairy Store at 285 locations throughout AR, KS, MO, OK and northern TX. The shops, offering ice cream, sandwiches and other items, occupy spaces of 4,900 sq.ft. or 5,700 sq.ft. in freestanding locations. The company is seeking new sites to replace existing locations in Benbrook, Grapevine and Lewisville, TX during the coming 18 months. The company will also consider new locations in KS, OK and TX that are at least five miles from existing units, with a focus on the 5,700 sq.ft. prototype for future growth. A land area of 50,000 sq.ft. and a drive-thru are required. The company will only acquire sites, prefers to acquire raw land, and prefers site submittals to be sent via email. For more information, contact Gordon Pulis, W.H.Braum, Inc., 16135 Preston Road, Suite 107, Dallas, TX 75248
Like these leads? Want More? Go to the Dealmakers website for a Subscription. Dealmakers, the nation's weekly news source on retail real estate.
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