Ever been into a meeting where there are new people on the call, and everyone starts introducing themselves before you get into the meat of the discussion? How about… everyday!
It’s kind of strange isn’t it, that you have been doing this time and again almost multiple times in a day, but haven’t really paid much attention to it. The normal response to such an introduction is: “Hi, My name is ABC, I have been in this company for N years, I live in XYZ city and manage ……”
This would normally be ok in a meeting that’s taking place within your organization, but expand this to a customer/prospect meeting and it falls short of the expectation. When you are in the role of a sales professional or even as someone who is on the meeting to contribute, it’s always a good idea to give the first impression which stands you apart from the rest of the crowd.
Here are some pointers on what can make your introduction something that the others value:
Think from the point of view of the others: This was in fact my very first blog on this website. If you are a prospect or a customer who is on the call waiting to hear from the other side on how they’d make the former’s life easier, the expectation will be from the very start. Hence, when you are presenting yourself keep in mind that the introduction has to instill the belief in the other person that you are someone whom they can trust.
Your credibility is important here. The type of projects you have been a part of in the past is important. So is mentioning your current set of responsibilities and how they tie into the fact that those set of responsibilities will help the client on the call. Bring in your experience of helping other companies do what you are proposing to them. Listing out the names of the companies is an added advantage here.
Remember, all this is part of building a relationship with the prospect you are meeting for the first time, therefore anything that will help break the ice is a good thing to have as part of this introduction.
Usage of emotional words: People tend to listen to folks who evoke emotions in them. Remember your favorite leader? Chances are that you are mesmerized by their oratory skills, and further the chances are that they use emotive words in order to charge the audience. But you know of many leaders (past or present) who can use this to great harm. Hence using such emotions early on should be done with great caution.
An example of such an introduction: “Hi, I’m ABC, <designation> with XYZ company, with over n years’ experience in <Industry>. In this meeting, I want to share inside information about a profitable solution that rarely gets talked about but that is currently generating millions of dollars for a chosen few organizations. As we get into the meeting, I’ll put forth the proposition to what we believe is the opportunity of a life time.”
People will be waiting with bated breath to hear what you have to say next
Time it: Remember it’s an introduction, mostly in a meeting which is 30 mins to an hour long, with many people in line to give their own introductions. This means that you do not have time to give an extempore. While there is no fixed guideline on how long your introduction should be, anything more than 30 seconds and you are pushing on the edges of ‘long’. Be mindful that this isn’t something that’ll come naturally to you while you are in the middle of the meeting. Like all things in life, this needs practice especially since it has to be done within half a minute. There is no one size fits all here, hence you’ll need different introductions prepared for the kind of meeting you are in. They necessarily don’t have to be 100% different from each other, but a variable of the main speech will help break the monotony of the same introduction that your teammates would have to keep listening to every time you are asked to say something about yourself.
How about the cliche’s that I mentioned in the beginning of this blog, like your name, designation, location etc. They have their place and shouldn’t be completely done away with, but be cognizant of the surroundings you are in.
For example: If you are in a virtual meeting, the chances are that your name is already popping on the screen. In such a situation mentioning your name again isn’t the best thing to do, instead you can just start with “I”. Designation can be a good introduction but if your title doesn’t mention your role or what you do in the company, you might want to keep it on the side. Your location is helpful to know if you are talking to each other from across geographies, but then again in today’s age if you are in the same timezone it might not be a very fruitful use of the time.
Good chance to know your prospects: A benefit of doing an introduction first is that you can ask for your prospects to go next. After you’ve revealed information about yourself, the people you are talking to will feel comfortable to go next. In meeting invites that get forwarded to other people in your customer organization, this might be the perfect segue for you to ask for those introductions.
CONCLUSION:
As the proverb goes “Well begun is half done”. Introductions are the first set of words that your prospect will hear from you. Laying out your credibility and setting a hook for them to wait for you to speak next can give you the edge that very few people even care to think about. Use the above pointers to prepare and master your introduction. This is something that you can probably use till the end of your life.
