1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,280
Welcome to the Talent Trade.

2
00:00:02,280 --> 00:00:08,160
I am your host, Stephanie Maas, partner here at Thinking Ahead, executive Search.

3
00:00:08,580 --> 00:00:10,620
I am a dork about this business.

4
00:00:10,620 --> 00:00:12,270
I always have been at this point.

5
00:00:12,270 --> 00:00:13,980
I'm gonna guess that I always will be.

6
00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:15,030
I freaking love it.

7
00:00:15,240 --> 00:00:22,410
And this is gonna be talking about one of my all time favorite
parts of our business, which is the business development piece.

8
00:00:22,500 --> 00:00:25,740
So today's topic is business development with intention.

9
00:00:25,810 --> 00:00:26,890
Here at Thinking Ahead.

10
00:00:26,890 --> 00:00:32,710
We primarily focus on three core ways that we do business development.

11
00:00:32,769 --> 00:00:36,310
By the way, we call it marketing, business development, whatever you wanna call it.

12
00:00:36,310 --> 00:00:47,170
But basically where we are proactively trying to go into our respective markets and get
somebody to agree that if we show up with the right talent, they will in accordance pay us.

13
00:00:47,440 --> 00:00:50,140
That's what our business development or marketing is.

14
00:00:50,200 --> 00:00:53,050
There are three primary ways that we teach this at Thinking Ahead.

15
00:00:53,460 --> 00:00:57,870
The first way, not in any order of importance, but the first way is through the MPC.

16
00:00:58,200 --> 00:00:59,790
This is where we have the talent.

17
00:00:59,790 --> 00:01:03,630
We go into the market saying, could you use somebody like this and would you pay me for 'em?

18
00:01:03,840 --> 00:01:09,000
The other area is what I call the blind squirrel, and this is literally if you just show up.

19
00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:17,480
Ask enough biz dev questions, you will literally stub your toe on a search
and it's off the, even a blind squirrel gets a nut every now and again.

20
00:01:17,539 --> 00:01:21,380
So that is just kind of our mantra for saying, just get on the phone and market.

21
00:01:21,500 --> 00:01:25,130
Even if you don't know what you're doing, you will stub your toe if you make enough effort.

22
00:01:25,280 --> 00:01:34,340
The third way is what I like to call, or what we call
the relationship building or the relationship management.

23
00:01:34,550 --> 00:01:38,780
It's also pipeline development or pipeline management.

24
00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:41,510
This is the drip marketing system.

25
00:01:41,780 --> 00:01:53,690
How do we execute this idea of business development with intention in a pipeline
management, relationship, building, whatever you wanna call it, mentality.

26
00:01:53,690 --> 00:01:57,260
How do we actually do that with intention?

27
00:01:57,440 --> 00:02:01,340
The reason why I love to use this word intention is when I talk about recruiting.

28
00:02:01,700 --> 00:02:06,860
One of my favorite things about recruiting is how I get to use my brain.

29
00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:11,900
You know, one of my favorite self-deprecating things to
say about myself is I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed.

30
00:02:11,900 --> 00:02:14,690
I'm not the dost, but I'm definitely not the sharpest.

31
00:02:14,750 --> 00:02:22,940
But one of the things I love about our business is
that when we really get to engage and use our brains.

32
00:02:23,170 --> 00:02:24,790
I was a business major.

33
00:02:24,940 --> 00:02:30,520
I do like sales, but what I've learned about myself is the kind of sales that I like.

34
00:02:30,670 --> 00:02:40,600
The way I like to do it is in a very soft, highly consultative, highly influential type of model.

35
00:02:40,660 --> 00:02:42,310
And once I figured this out.

36
00:02:42,675 --> 00:02:46,455
That recruiting could happen this way and be tremendously successful.

37
00:02:46,665 --> 00:02:48,765
I was literally white on rice.

38
00:02:48,825 --> 00:02:53,325
I mean, I just latched on and I, I, I just love that I get to use my brain.

39
00:02:53,625 --> 00:03:00,945
And over the years, this is part of what I have been able to incorporate
into my desk that I have, I have just seen payoff in huge dividends.

40
00:03:01,305 --> 00:03:11,745
So here is what we're trying to do in trying to accomplish, when we do business
development with intention, there are three stages of client development.

41
00:03:12,360 --> 00:03:21,150
The first stage is everybody that we are reaching out to is in what we call the suspect category.

42
00:03:21,420 --> 00:03:25,200
So the first category is literally our list of suspects.

43
00:03:25,260 --> 00:03:28,829
This is our two to 300 names we put in our drip marketing system.

44
00:03:28,890 --> 00:03:30,990
These are people we want to do business with.

45
00:03:30,990 --> 00:03:33,540
These are people we've done business with in the past.

46
00:03:33,810 --> 00:03:38,970
Usually there are five to seven contacts per organization because.

47
00:03:39,010 --> 00:03:45,399
We market in biz dev like a web, so this is everybody in the suspect category.

48
00:03:46,299 --> 00:03:48,730
The second category is a prospect.

49
00:03:48,970 --> 00:03:51,429
Then the third category is a client.

50
00:03:51,910 --> 00:03:56,440
Let me also explain that these three categories.

51
00:03:56,780 --> 00:04:03,440
Are incredibly fluid, and just because somebody can
go in one category doesn't mean they're there forever.

52
00:04:03,500 --> 00:04:13,489
So what I want you to first do is understand from a holistic picture that our goal
is to be moving somebody from suspect to client through the prospect category.

53
00:04:13,640 --> 00:04:15,980
But it is a very fluid thing.

54
00:04:16,399 --> 00:04:22,039
So every conversation we have, we are constantly reevaluating, Hey, where are they?

55
00:04:22,280 --> 00:04:26,210
And how can I either navigate them to the client or stay in the client?

56
00:04:26,550 --> 00:04:28,350
Those are the three different categories.

57
00:04:28,740 --> 00:04:39,600
The first category is where we're gonna spend most time because this
is where we really start to understand our place with this suspect.

58
00:04:39,930 --> 00:04:51,600
When somebody is in the suspect category, there are three things that we need
to answer to decide if they get to move forward into the prospect category.

59
00:04:51,930 --> 00:04:58,080
They cannot move forward until we get a yes to all three of these questions.

60
00:04:58,320 --> 00:05:06,180
And again, to really implement this consistently over
time, we've gotta be pretty engaged in the conversation.

61
00:05:06,460 --> 00:05:18,910
When you hear the answers to these questions and when you hear what they're
not saying in regards to these answers, this is the difference between a good
recruiter who's good at BD and a phenomenal recruiter who's phenomenal at bd.

62
00:05:19,120 --> 00:05:20,410
Here are the three questions.

63
00:05:20,470 --> 00:05:21,910
They're gonna sound super simple.

64
00:05:22,120 --> 00:05:24,580
The first question is, do they have a need?

65
00:05:25,030 --> 00:05:25,390
Right?

66
00:05:25,660 --> 00:05:28,090
Do they even have talent needs?

67
00:05:28,710 --> 00:05:32,040
Second question is, do they need us?

68
00:05:32,310 --> 00:05:36,240
I like to throw in there in parentheses, do they want us as well?

69
00:05:36,480 --> 00:05:47,640
Sometimes we're desperately needed, but the relationship is so adversarial because they really
don't want us involved, that it almost makes it impossible for us to do what we do best.

70
00:05:47,940 --> 00:05:50,490
So again, the main focus is do they need us?

71
00:05:50,730 --> 00:05:56,610
But again, when you wanna get in advance, you can throw in do they want us The third question.

72
00:05:57,405 --> 00:06:01,604
Is, do they have the budget to pay us?

73
00:06:02,085 --> 00:06:07,695
If we get a yes to all three of those questions, they can move into the prospect.

74
00:06:07,755 --> 00:06:13,650
Now, before we get there, let's talk about how do we ask these questions in a way that really.

75
00:06:14,445 --> 00:06:15,735
Develop a relationship.

76
00:06:15,825 --> 00:06:18,735
We don't compete on price, we compete on relationships.

77
00:06:19,065 --> 00:06:25,095
Yes, sometimes it comes down to price, but at the end of the
day, that creates a vendor environment, not a relationship.

78
00:06:25,095 --> 00:06:25,695
And that's fine.

79
00:06:25,695 --> 00:06:26,925
We do business with vendors.

80
00:06:27,105 --> 00:06:30,105
I mean, we, we have clients that they're vendors and we're their vendor.

81
00:06:30,225 --> 00:06:36,375
But for the most part, when we're talking about really developing
long-term core business, we're not looking for vendor relationships.

82
00:06:36,730 --> 00:06:39,280
So number one, do they have a need?

83
00:06:39,460 --> 00:06:41,140
Now, here's a rookie mistake.

84
00:06:41,320 --> 00:06:48,970
When folks first get into search, what they are really thinking about
when it comes to biz dev is they go, Stephanie, all this sounds great.

85
00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:50,135
Uhhuh, Uhhuh, Uhhuh.

86
00:06:50,620 --> 00:06:55,420
But my dashboard says that I need to win a search, so I am gonna call people.

87
00:06:56,015 --> 00:06:58,234
Looking for who has a need now.

88
00:06:58,715 --> 00:07:01,984
And that's exactly what we sound like to these suspects.

89
00:07:02,284 --> 00:07:03,335
It's, do you have a job?

90
00:07:03,335 --> 00:07:04,025
Do you have a job?

91
00:07:04,025 --> 00:07:04,775
Do you have a job?

92
00:07:04,984 --> 00:07:11,734
And because so often our timing isn't that impeccable,
that they just happen to answer and go, oh, praise B.

93
00:07:11,974 --> 00:07:12,455
Thank God.

94
00:07:12,455 --> 00:07:14,885
A recruiter called, yes, we have a need.

95
00:07:15,005 --> 00:07:16,205
Yes, let's dive in.

96
00:07:16,205 --> 00:07:17,164
Thank you for calling.

97
00:07:17,284 --> 00:07:17,974
Rarely.

98
00:07:18,315 --> 00:07:19,875
Is that what's on the other end?

99
00:07:20,025 --> 00:07:27,525
So when we hear a, any kind of objection, then we go into,
oh yeah, okay, maybe they don't have a need right now.

100
00:07:27,735 --> 00:07:29,955
Let me ask a couple other questions and then I'll get off the phone.

101
00:07:30,195 --> 00:07:39,705
And this is the huge mistake because this question of do they have a need is
where we can really start to insert our value and show how we're different.

102
00:07:40,485 --> 00:07:59,205
So instead of the mentality of, Hey, I need to win a search assignment because that's on my
dashboard and I'm just gonna call people looking for a search, instead, what I want you to think of
is, Hey, I know if I call a hundred BD people sometime in the next four weeks, I will get a search.

103
00:07:59,565 --> 00:08:09,045
So that allows us, when we get on the phone with someone to have a little bit
more sophisticated consultative conversation, and that's our first differentiator.

104
00:08:09,405 --> 00:08:11,685
Hey Tom, Stephanie Moss with Thinking Ahead.

105
00:08:11,985 --> 00:08:15,375
I specialize in commercial banking here in the Mid-Atlantic.

106
00:08:15,495 --> 00:08:17,235
I think we know a lot of folks in common.

107
00:08:17,235 --> 00:08:18,615
Somehow we don't know each other.

108
00:08:18,795 --> 00:08:30,285
I wanted to reach out, take a quick professional introduction, and when the
time's right, we'd love to talk to you a little bit about what we do and how
it makes sense for us to stay connected as it relates to talent on your team.

109
00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:32,445
Did I happen to catch you with a couple minutes, Tom?

110
00:08:32,955 --> 00:08:34,425
Most likely he's gonna gimme an objection.

111
00:08:35,565 --> 00:08:37,665
I'm sure you get inundated with calls.

112
00:08:37,665 --> 00:08:39,945
I'm sure you don't have any needs right now.

113
00:08:40,005 --> 00:08:46,065
In fact, quite frankly, if I happen to call you at that magic moment,
I'm gonna ask that you, hang on, I need to go buy a lottery ticket.

114
00:08:46,095 --> 00:08:50,295
'cause today is my lucky day and I love diffusing these things with humor.

115
00:08:50,685 --> 00:08:53,925
So instead of saying, Hey, do you have a search for me today?

116
00:08:54,135 --> 00:08:55,575
I just wanna get to know your world.

117
00:08:55,845 --> 00:09:01,155
Tell me about your team, and then we get into some good, thoughtful questions.

118
00:09:01,365 --> 00:09:02,625
Tell me about your team.

119
00:09:02,625 --> 00:09:04,185
Tell me about upcoming retirements.

120
00:09:04,185 --> 00:09:05,325
Is there anybody on a bip?

121
00:09:05,385 --> 00:09:06,795
What's your growth plans look like?

122
00:09:06,795 --> 00:09:08,415
How did you discover those growth plans?

123
00:09:08,415 --> 00:09:10,275
What's, what's creating those growth plans?

124
00:09:10,275 --> 00:09:11,655
If you're in your traction mode?

125
00:09:11,655 --> 00:09:12,525
What's going on?

126
00:09:12,675 --> 00:09:18,885
And again, I don't know all of your individual niches to be
able to give you good, sophisticated questions, but you do.

127
00:09:19,290 --> 00:09:26,010
This is step one, and this is where we spend a lot of time just gathering information, listening.

128
00:09:26,190 --> 00:09:28,590
Again, I don't care if they have a need or not.

129
00:09:28,830 --> 00:09:32,790
I just wanna start developing this relationship again.

130
00:09:32,790 --> 00:09:35,970
Man, I would love if I called you and today was the day.

131
00:09:36,180 --> 00:09:36,720
It's not.

132
00:09:36,870 --> 00:09:39,630
So let me tell you the other reason why I'm calling.

133
00:09:39,810 --> 00:09:43,680
Let's you and I talk, I'm an expert and talent in your field.

134
00:09:44,070 --> 00:09:46,320
My guess is if you're running a team of some sort.

135
00:09:47,025 --> 00:09:48,615
You at some point need talent.

136
00:09:48,885 --> 00:09:49,665
Let's talk about that.

137
00:09:49,965 --> 00:09:50,155
That's it.

138
00:09:50,580 --> 00:09:52,620
Let's just go and say that.

139
00:09:52,620 --> 00:09:57,180
They say something that isn't an absolute no, I don't have a need.

140
00:09:57,480 --> 00:10:01,470
Okay, now we wanna transition into the second is, do they need us?

141
00:10:01,530 --> 00:10:07,920
By the way, when we take a lot of notes, most of our
biz dev calls are gonna be spent in this first question.

142
00:10:08,160 --> 00:10:12,780
We take a bunch of notes and we go, Hey Tom, I really appreciated your 10, 15 minutes today.

143
00:10:12,780 --> 00:10:15,000
It was, you know, really nice getting to know you and your team.

144
00:10:15,090 --> 00:10:19,560
Again, based on what I've heard, it doesn't look like
y'all are even gonna be considering any additional talent.

145
00:10:19,560 --> 00:10:20,490
It's till Q1.

146
00:10:20,550 --> 00:10:23,460
What I'd love to do and what your permission on is, let's just stay in touch.

147
00:10:23,550 --> 00:10:26,970
By the way, I hopefully have shared with them what I'm seeing and hearing in the market.

148
00:10:27,185 --> 00:10:28,835
I'm a big believer in give to get.

149
00:10:28,835 --> 00:10:33,275
If you're having a hard time getting someone to open
up, that's when you bring in third party selling.

150
00:10:33,545 --> 00:10:37,235
Hey, let me share with you what I've been learning
from some of your peers, some of your competitors.

151
00:10:37,235 --> 00:10:38,765
Here's what we've been hearing in the market.

152
00:10:39,095 --> 00:10:40,205
How does that resonate with you?

153
00:10:40,205 --> 00:10:41,675
How's that different than what you're seeing?

154
00:10:42,155 --> 00:10:42,995
Stay in touch.

155
00:10:43,055 --> 00:10:43,805
I'm not gonna bug you.

156
00:10:43,805 --> 00:10:45,425
I'm not gonna send you anything unsolicited.

157
00:10:45,425 --> 00:10:46,595
I'm gonna shoot you a quick email.

158
00:10:46,595 --> 00:10:47,855
I want you to have my information.

159
00:10:47,975 --> 00:10:48,935
I'll call you in a couple months.

160
00:10:48,935 --> 00:10:50,405
Just check in, see how things are going.

161
00:10:50,765 --> 00:10:51,305
Is that cool?

162
00:10:51,605 --> 00:10:52,835
I've never had anyone say, no.

163
00:10:53,105 --> 00:10:54,755
It's path of least resistance.

164
00:10:55,079 --> 00:10:56,550
They're like, yeah, okay, that's cool.

165
00:10:56,579 --> 00:10:58,439
Call me in a couple months, whatever, whatever.

166
00:10:58,500 --> 00:11:00,150
And at that point, they're ready to get off the phone anyway.

167
00:11:00,150 --> 00:11:03,689
So they don't wanna fight me with, you know, oh no, never call me again.

168
00:11:03,689 --> 00:11:05,010
And we've just had a conversation.

169
00:11:05,099 --> 00:11:08,939
Please notice I wasn't directly selling anything.

170
00:11:09,000 --> 00:11:11,910
I didn't even, I don't even talk about what we do here at Thinking Ahead.

171
00:11:12,060 --> 00:11:13,410
I don't talk about my process.

172
00:11:13,500 --> 00:11:14,734
I don't talk about what makes me different.

173
00:11:15,375 --> 00:11:17,145
But this is what makes us different.

174
00:11:17,205 --> 00:11:22,875
This is where consultative selling is the art of what we do.

175
00:11:23,085 --> 00:11:25,515
This is where selling through influence.

176
00:11:25,695 --> 00:11:32,025
I don't need to sell anything on that first call at
that time right now, because they don't have a need.

177
00:11:32,385 --> 00:11:42,135
All I wanna do is the next time I call 'em back, I want them to either pick up my call
or return my call, or if I send 'em a newsletter, if that's my next point of contact.

178
00:11:42,135 --> 00:11:43,485
I don't want them to hit unsubscribe.

179
00:11:43,490 --> 00:11:43,830
That's it.

180
00:11:44,625 --> 00:11:46,515
Now, let's say they go, wow.

181
00:11:46,574 --> 00:11:56,175
It is interesting that you would call, or sometimes y'all use language
where you're intentionally calling and you say, Hey, I saw on your website
you had this position, or I heard you were looking for this, or whatever.

182
00:11:56,234 --> 00:11:57,704
I just wanted to call touch base.

183
00:11:57,704 --> 00:11:58,905
I'd be curious, how's the search going?

184
00:11:59,715 --> 00:12:06,285
So if you are calling with that kind of intention, like you think they
might actually have an opening, we'd never jump into question number two.

185
00:12:06,285 --> 00:12:07,095
Do they need us?

186
00:12:07,245 --> 00:12:08,925
We go back to question number one.

187
00:12:09,075 --> 00:12:10,515
Let's verify the opening.

188
00:12:10,755 --> 00:12:16,395
Somebody could accept an offer and starting in three weeks and the posting's
still up 'cause they're not taking the posting down to the person starts.

189
00:12:16,575 --> 00:12:18,285
So we gotta start at the beginning.

190
00:12:18,555 --> 00:12:20,085
Hey, yes, you're right.

191
00:12:20,085 --> 00:12:20,925
You saw our posting.

192
00:12:20,925 --> 00:12:23,564
We are looking for an X, Y, Z. Awesome.

193
00:12:23,835 --> 00:12:28,845
Most rookie recruiters, most of our competition, they wanna jump in right away and start selling.

194
00:12:29,250 --> 00:12:30,120
That's not us.

195
00:12:30,660 --> 00:12:31,829
That's not sophisticated.

196
00:12:32,219 --> 00:12:34,079
So instead we say, Hey, how's it going?

197
00:12:34,380 --> 00:12:35,069
What's it been like?

198
00:12:35,370 --> 00:12:37,410
I've heard all kinds of crazy stories that I've heard.

199
00:12:37,410 --> 00:12:40,740
Some people say they literally got inundated with hundreds of resumes.

200
00:12:40,979 --> 00:12:46,530
I've heard some say they've got 30 resumes and you know, 28 of 'em were bartenders.

201
00:12:46,535 --> 00:12:48,390
What's, what's your experience been like?

202
00:12:48,870 --> 00:12:52,500
Silly question, but educate me, I don't think we've done work in the past before.

203
00:12:52,589 --> 00:12:55,589
What does your typical process look like when you have an opening?

204
00:12:56,040 --> 00:12:59,130
Walk me through how you partner with your internal talent acquisition.

205
00:12:59,550 --> 00:13:01,380
Again, gaining information.

206
00:13:01,410 --> 00:13:03,060
We haven't said anything about thinking ahead.

207
00:13:03,060 --> 00:13:05,370
We haven't said anything about why you need to partner with us.

208
00:13:05,430 --> 00:13:07,680
Just gaining tons and tons of information now.

209
00:13:07,680 --> 00:13:08,819
What's so great?

210
00:13:09,495 --> 00:13:15,915
Once we spend all this time getting all this information, then
we can go back and have an even more educated conversation.

211
00:13:16,095 --> 00:13:18,405
So let's say they go, yeah, which is going fine.

212
00:13:18,495 --> 00:13:19,064
Blah, blah, blah.

213
00:13:19,095 --> 00:13:19,755
Okay, great.

214
00:13:20,175 --> 00:13:21,525
Again, love to stay in touch.

215
00:13:21,525 --> 00:13:22,935
You never know, blah, blah, blah.

216
00:13:23,175 --> 00:13:25,245
Go back to the clothes that I did on the first one.

217
00:13:25,485 --> 00:13:26,775
Love to stay in touch with you, blah, blah, blah.

218
00:13:26,985 --> 00:13:30,615
But then you call 'em back in a month and you go, Hey, I just wanted to rally back.

219
00:13:30,615 --> 00:13:34,035
I know last time we spoke, you mentioned you wanted to give your internal folks.

220
00:13:34,395 --> 00:13:36,075
Three weeks to see how they did.

221
00:13:36,315 --> 00:13:37,815
Sorry, it's been four weeks.

222
00:13:38,085 --> 00:13:39,285
Things have been crazy around here.

223
00:13:39,285 --> 00:13:39,885
How's it going?

224
00:13:39,885 --> 00:13:40,455
What's it like?

225
00:13:40,755 --> 00:13:42,225
Have you found your person, by the way?

226
00:13:42,225 --> 00:13:46,005
I thought, you know, I've heard a couple things out
in the market I'd love to share that might be timely.

227
00:13:46,335 --> 00:13:47,040
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

228
00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:52,440
This is where we elevate, this is where we use our brains, said super lovingly.

229
00:13:52,740 --> 00:14:04,440
Now all of a sudden, and again, you can leave that message that in a voicemail,
and again, all I'm looking for is to start having conversation where people
wanna talk to me and they're willing to call me back and not unsubscribe.

230
00:14:04,920 --> 00:14:05,790
Now, let's say.

231
00:14:07,140 --> 00:14:11,850
We get on the horn with them and they go, Hey, it is interesting that you would call.

232
00:14:12,090 --> 00:14:13,320
We do have a need.

233
00:14:13,530 --> 00:14:15,660
We've been at it for X amount of time.

234
00:14:15,870 --> 00:14:20,220
We are getting really frustrated and we're not finding what we need, blah, blah, blah, blah.

235
00:14:20,220 --> 00:14:28,620
So now we think they may be saying that they need and or want us, and
at this point us is just a generalization for an alternative solution.

236
00:14:29,010 --> 00:14:29,310
Okay.

237
00:14:29,310 --> 00:14:32,370
So in the past, when you've gotten to this point.

238
00:14:32,775 --> 00:14:34,545
You mentioned you've partnered with other firms.

239
00:14:34,545 --> 00:14:37,065
Tell me about your experience working with search firms.

240
00:14:37,455 --> 00:14:40,605
But after I ask that question, man, I shut up.

241
00:14:41,085 --> 00:14:44,835
This is where they need to talk and we need to listen now.

242
00:14:44,835 --> 00:14:46,665
I know some people are like, yeah, it's been fine.

243
00:14:47,055 --> 00:14:47,775
Let it get awkward.

244
00:14:48,405 --> 00:14:51,315
They will keep talking, but we so quickly jump in and go.

245
00:14:51,315 --> 00:14:51,525
Yeah.

246
00:14:51,555 --> 00:14:52,125
Okay, thanks.

247
00:14:52,125 --> 00:14:52,785
Next question.

248
00:14:52,785 --> 00:14:54,015
That sounds sophisticated.

249
00:14:54,510 --> 00:14:55,370
That's impulse buying.

250
00:14:55,370 --> 00:14:58,949
That was me at Trader Joe's last night buying cereal
because it looked like they had some really good cereal.

251
00:14:58,949 --> 00:15:02,490
It wasn't on my list, it wasn't in my budget, but I
walked by and I was like, oh, damn, that looks good.

252
00:15:02,490 --> 00:15:03,150
Put that in the cart.

253
00:15:03,329 --> 00:15:04,439
That's not sophisticated.

254
00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:05,640
That's not thoughtful.

255
00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:07,290
So instead, just be quiet.

256
00:15:07,290 --> 00:15:08,189
Let 'em talk.

257
00:15:08,760 --> 00:15:10,350
Listen, listen, listen, listen.

258
00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:17,640
Chances are, even if they are a decision maker, they are not the only decision maker.

259
00:15:17,910 --> 00:15:21,035
So now usually if we get a yes, they, they have a need.

260
00:15:21,870 --> 00:15:25,800
We think they may need us or a search firm and have desire.

261
00:15:25,980 --> 00:15:29,160
By the way, if you hear like, man, we need a search firm so bad.

262
00:15:29,160 --> 00:15:33,600
And this sometimes happens with internal talent folks,
but man, I hate when we have to go to a search firm.

263
00:15:33,900 --> 00:15:36,689
Oh, tell me why it comes out of our budget.

264
00:15:36,689 --> 00:15:39,910
I get dinged and it hits my promotion, blah, blah, blah, blah.

265
00:15:40,470 --> 00:15:40,949
Okay.

266
00:15:41,100 --> 00:15:44,160
Is there ever a scenario where you'd be thankful to work with a firm?

267
00:15:44,805 --> 00:15:49,995
Yeah, I hate it when it happens, but if I don't get these
filled, then I'm fired and I have X amount of dollars.

268
00:15:49,995 --> 00:15:52,695
I mean, you know, if you just ask questions, people will start telling you things.

269
00:15:53,175 --> 00:15:59,865
If we get a, they have a need and we think they may
need us, we've gotta ask the smart, hard questions.

270
00:16:00,075 --> 00:16:05,265
Hey, do you have a firm that you consistently partner with?

271
00:16:05,895 --> 00:16:10,335
Are they your go-to before you would even consider anybody else?

272
00:16:11,025 --> 00:16:12,680
Do you have someone you would go to first?

273
00:16:13,530 --> 00:16:20,670
And by the way, that's a, it sounds like a bad question 'cause it's
a yes or a no, but what I'm interested in is what is their answer?

274
00:16:21,060 --> 00:16:22,650
Yeah, we do.

275
00:16:23,220 --> 00:16:24,540
How convincing does that sound?

276
00:16:25,140 --> 00:16:25,350
You go.

277
00:16:25,350 --> 00:16:25,710
Okay.

278
00:16:25,710 --> 00:16:28,020
Well, tell me what, I'm just curious, what made you partner with them?

279
00:16:28,020 --> 00:16:29,430
How long have y'all been working together?

280
00:16:29,670 --> 00:16:33,210
Oh, you just have a vendor that you let no, that you have an opening and they submit.

281
00:16:33,300 --> 00:16:34,710
Oh, well that's not a real partner.

282
00:16:34,740 --> 00:16:36,600
Not, I mean, we don't say that, but that's what we think.

283
00:16:36,600 --> 00:16:36,900
Right.

284
00:16:37,260 --> 00:16:41,640
Let me share with you a little bit about us, or if they're
like, yeah, we've been working with the firm for 10 years.

285
00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:42,420
They're our go-to.

286
00:16:43,005 --> 00:16:43,665
Blah, blah, blah, blah.

287
00:16:43,755 --> 00:16:44,655
That's a different answer.

288
00:16:45,105 --> 00:16:51,320
So even though it's a yes, no question, what they say and or how
they say it, what they don't say gives us a lot of information.

289
00:16:52,245 --> 00:16:54,705
If they have a need, they are not the only decision maker.

290
00:16:54,915 --> 00:16:56,295
They may be a decision maker.

291
00:16:56,295 --> 00:17:00,765
So that's what we need to do next is try to get on the horn, Hey, who else has to be a part of this?

292
00:17:00,795 --> 00:17:03,645
Tell me about what's going on in your world, and then we can expand the call.

293
00:17:03,645 --> 00:17:04,005
Is this now?

294
00:17:04,245 --> 00:17:06,345
Do you have another 10, 15 minutes to talk about this?

295
00:17:06,464 --> 00:17:09,464
Or you reschedule and you try and get their boss on the line.

296
00:17:09,464 --> 00:17:14,204
You try and get somebody from HR on the line or whatever the case may be before you hang up.

297
00:17:14,579 --> 00:17:16,980
You can find out the answer to number three as well.

298
00:17:17,339 --> 00:17:20,849
Hey, if I'm hearing you right, sounds like you've had this position open for a while.

299
00:17:20,849 --> 00:17:23,609
You've done the internal thing, you've done this over here.

300
00:17:23,700 --> 00:17:28,800
It might be time to think about partnering with a search firm or alternative solution.

301
00:17:29,070 --> 00:17:30,210
Lemme just ask you this question.

302
00:17:30,550 --> 00:17:38,379
I'm not saying I could, but if I could show up with the absolute perfect candidate
tomorrow, would y'all have the fee to be able to pay to hire that candidate?

303
00:17:38,560 --> 00:17:40,090
And y'all, I like to use the numbers.

304
00:17:40,090 --> 00:17:41,320
Would you have the 25 grand?

305
00:17:41,320 --> 00:17:42,520
Would you have the 60 grand?

306
00:17:42,790 --> 00:17:44,350
It's not, would you have the money?

307
00:17:44,649 --> 00:17:45,790
Because that's vague.

308
00:17:46,180 --> 00:17:47,440
That's not sophisticated.

309
00:17:47,585 --> 00:17:51,129
You, you need to hear if they go, yeah, that's, that's in our budget, that's fine.

310
00:17:51,550 --> 00:17:55,360
Or if they go, oh, I don't know.

311
00:17:55,600 --> 00:17:55,960
Okay.

312
00:17:56,370 --> 00:17:58,320
Well, yeah, sometimes you don't know until you ask.

313
00:17:58,320 --> 00:18:03,540
But let's set up a call and then, you know, if you set up a call, the
first question you gotta find out is, do they actually have the budget?

314
00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:05,190
So these are our three.

315
00:18:05,550 --> 00:18:06,480
Do they have a need?

316
00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:07,170
Do they need us?

317
00:18:07,170 --> 00:18:09,330
And can they actually pay us?

318
00:18:09,450 --> 00:18:11,610
'cause that's what we do.

319
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:16,920
If the answer is yes to all three of those, they now become a prospect.

320
00:18:17,185 --> 00:18:20,725
And we set up a call with usually multiple decision makers.

321
00:18:20,754 --> 00:18:23,965
We now set up a call to get the details of the search assignment.

322
00:18:24,235 --> 00:18:27,595
We set up a call to talk about who we are, how we do business.

323
00:18:27,595 --> 00:18:31,195
Sometimes that next call, the prospect call, is two or three calls.

324
00:18:31,465 --> 00:18:35,665
This is the first time that we actually start talking about who we are and what we do.

325
00:18:35,665 --> 00:18:40,764
And I love to say, Hey, let me just share with you super fast how we're a little bit different.

326
00:18:41,100 --> 00:18:45,149
Why folks have shared with us that they appreciate partnering with us in the past.

327
00:18:45,389 --> 00:18:50,850
When I go to have that conversation, these are my cheat sheet
notes, it's three points, and I go, here's how we're different.

328
00:18:50,850 --> 00:18:52,830
This is what people say they appreciate about working with us.

329
00:18:52,830 --> 00:18:53,939
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom.

330
00:18:53,939 --> 00:18:55,379
I can deliver it to my elevator speech.

331
00:18:55,379 --> 00:18:57,870
I can deliver it in about 30 to 45 seconds.

332
00:18:58,260 --> 00:19:02,730
And then I ask a open-ended question, how does that
compare with the search firms you've used in the past?

333
00:19:03,030 --> 00:19:05,010
It's a great way of saying, we're a little different.

334
00:19:05,010 --> 00:19:06,270
Are you open to talking about that?

335
00:19:06,780 --> 00:19:09,720
And if they go, well, that's exactly how we've been partnering with firms in the past.

336
00:19:10,020 --> 00:19:10,439
Awesome.

337
00:19:11,025 --> 00:19:13,065
Do you need to be talking to me about this?

338
00:19:13,065 --> 00:19:14,655
I mean, trust me, I want your business.

339
00:19:14,655 --> 00:19:15,645
I say this all the time.

340
00:19:15,855 --> 00:19:16,965
I want your business.

341
00:19:17,115 --> 00:19:22,665
I am happy to earn your business when it makes sense,
but if you don't need us, I don't wanna waste your time.

342
00:19:22,935 --> 00:19:24,135
I just wanna be respectful.

343
00:19:24,645 --> 00:19:25,695
That's the prospect.

344
00:19:25,935 --> 00:19:28,275
Then what is super fun and the prospect calls.

345
00:19:28,935 --> 00:19:31,335
Is we get to take the search assignment details.

346
00:19:31,335 --> 00:19:37,755
We get to take, we find out about what their hiring process
is like, who all else the rest of the decision makers are.

347
00:19:37,815 --> 00:19:45,945
You can find out, hey, I'm going to, you know, if, if you think you can work this
and this is your wheelhouse, nail 'em down to go ahead and get three interview times.

348
00:19:46,275 --> 00:19:55,515
If they're hesitant, then maybe it's not a great search In the prospect time, this
is where you start to determine, is this an A search, a B search, or a C search?

349
00:19:55,905 --> 00:19:57,975
We'll take 'em all 'cause we fill 'em all.

350
00:19:58,485 --> 00:20:03,885
We know we're gonna have a lot more enthusiasm about on
A or B, how to determine if a search is an A, B, or C.

351
00:20:03,885 --> 00:20:06,945
That's another whole conversation, so I'm not gonna delve into that.

352
00:20:07,095 --> 00:20:17,325
But during the prospect call or calls, this is where we make that
determination and that's where we decide, Hey, is this an A, B, or C search?

353
00:20:17,415 --> 00:20:21,225
And then whether, whatever it is that determines the level of effort we put into the effort.

354
00:20:21,345 --> 00:20:26,265
Once we've done all that, that's when we get fee
agreement, fee negotiations, all this kind of stuff.

355
00:20:26,625 --> 00:20:32,715
If all of that clears, they actually become a client once they pay a fee.

356
00:20:33,165 --> 00:20:36,675
So if you never fill the search, they are still a prospect.

357
00:20:36,945 --> 00:20:39,075
And in fact, they may actually go back to being a suspect.

358
00:20:39,465 --> 00:20:50,175
Clients by definition, who are actively paying fees, which in my mind means
they've paid me a fee in the last 12 months and we are working together.

359
00:20:50,745 --> 00:20:55,215
I have some clients, quote unquote, that I have to go through job boards.

360
00:20:55,575 --> 00:20:57,315
In my mind, they're always a prospect.

361
00:20:57,825 --> 00:21:03,195
'cause if you have to kick me to a job board and I have to
look at a job board to get my answers, I will take that work.

362
00:21:03,615 --> 00:21:07,875
But I'm never gonna consider them a client and they don't consider me anything more than a vendor.

363
00:21:07,875 --> 00:21:08,475
And that's fine.

364
00:21:08,565 --> 00:21:09,465
That's just business.

365
00:21:09,525 --> 00:21:18,470
But again, I've already made that determination during the prospect
calling because I determine that hey, they're a C client, but they
hire and they'll occasionally pay if I show up with the right talent.

366
00:21:19,530 --> 00:21:26,310
Again, we spent most of our time on suspects because that's
where we set the stage for everything else going forward.

367
00:21:26,550 --> 00:21:29,520
These are general thoughts or maybe some nuances in your world.

368
00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:34,290
This works super well for me and I did not make it up.

369
00:21:34,530 --> 00:21:42,179
The last couple years have probably been the biggest blessing
for me as it relates to business development coming in.

370
00:21:42,590 --> 00:21:56,690
Because I haven't had the same amount of time to dedicate to phone that I have in the past, and I
just have to think that it's finally coming my way because of course, always how we treat people.

371
00:21:56,750 --> 00:22:09,320
But I've also gotten opportunities to work with folks because of how, Hey, I got a call
today from a guy and literally he took my call once every five years and on the 15th year.

372
00:22:09,600 --> 00:22:10,800
He said, okay, it's time.

373
00:22:11,010 --> 00:22:11,850
I'm ready to make a move.

374
00:22:12,149 --> 00:22:12,990
Isn't that crazy?

375
00:22:13,139 --> 00:22:18,870
'cause now he's in a hiring situation, so I just have to think
that there's enough evidence to say that this stuff works.

376
00:22:18,899 --> 00:22:24,449
Again, it may need some modifications for your niche,
but hopefully this was helpful and good use of your time.