Ahead of the Game: 5 Expert Tips for Meeting Preparation

Ahead of the Game: 5 Expert Tips for Meeting Preparation

Kelly Kennedy: Welcome to episode 123 of the business development podcast. And today we're talking about the five things you need to do to prepare for your next big meeting. Stick with us. You're not going to want to miss this episode.

Intro: The great Mark Cuban once said business happens over years and years. Value is measured in the total upside of a business relationship, not by how much you squeezed out in any one deal.

And we couldn't agree more. This is the business development podcast based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and broadcasting to the world. You'll get expert business development, advice, tips, and experiences. And you'll hear interviews with business owners, CEOs. And business development reps. You'll get actionable advice on how to grow business brought to you by Capital Business Development, Capitalbd.ca. Let's do it. Welcome to the business development podcast, and now your expert host. Kelly Kennedy.

Kelly Kennedy: Hello, welcome to episode 123 of the business development podcast. My gosh, 123 episodes. I can't even believe it, guys. It is, it is hard to believe we are on this day just a little over 14 months into the business development podcast, and it still blows my mind.

It still absolutely blows my mind. How far we have come in such a short period of time. And I just want to thank each and every one of you, my amazing rockstar listenership. You guys are amazing. This show could not have happened without you. It could not continue to happen without you. And it truly is your amazing reach out your support.

And my knowing that what we're doing here is helping you that allows me to keep going week over week, month over month, and soon year over year. I just want to say to you, it's an absolute honor to do this job for you. The reality is, I understand that it is a privilege to be a podcaster, that it is a privilege to be able to come to this mic and have a conversation with thousands of you week over week, and I just wanted to say once again, I understand that, and I appreciate it immensely, but once again, That could not happen without you guys tuning in and sticking with us and telling your friends, telling your family and enacting the things that we talk about here on the business development podcast.

So this is just as much about you as it is about me. But as we clip on 14 months into the show and hit these milestones, is super, super cool. And I want you to know that I, I want to thank each and every one of you for the effort. And for the time that you guys have put into this show, I know that it takes a lot of time to dedicate to a show every week.

You know what I mean? I have my favorite shows that I do that for as well. And I just want to say, I see you, I recognize you, and I'm thankful and grateful for you. I wanted to start today's show by going into a show update. So we are now sitting over 1, 800 followers on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Wow.

Just thank you. Thank you so much for sticking with us and for clicking that follow button. I recognize I recognize that not everybody does this and that there's thousands of you out there who have not yet done this. And if I'm speaking to you and you haven't given us a follow on Apple podcast and Spotify, I would be ever so grateful if you would make today the day and you would head on over to your Spotify, give us a rating, give us a follow on Apple podcast, leave us a review, give us a rating, give us a follow, and just allow us to reach further and further and further, because that's how it works.

These algorithms. Inside Apple podcast, inside Spotify, it's tracking our followers. So it is amazing to have you guys come and listen to us. I know I have my favorite shows, but I also follow my favorite shows because I understand what it does for them. And so I would be ever so grateful and appreciative if today could be the day.

that you choose to hit that follow button and stick with us. My gosh, I was looking at the download numbers, guys. And I like to do these these updates as we're starting to hit milestones. We are at one hundred and forty eight thousand five hundred downloads. Exactly. As of the recording of this episode, that's April 9th.

My gosh, we are just about to cross 150, 000 downloads in a little over 14 months. And once again, could not do it without you recognize that it's you guys telling your friends, your family. And listening to us week over week. And I could not appreciate that support more so far. We won best business podcast in 2023 from Quill Inc.

And we are the number one Canadian professional development podcast, according to feedspot. So far. flipping cool. So amazing. And just as we're heading into just cool accomplishments and fun things happening, we are now heading into the 2024 quill podcast awards. And so if you guys are following us on LinkedIn, if you're not, please do because that's where everything is going on.

But if you were following us on LinkedIn, you have likely seen the posts that I made about the quill podcast award nominations, and we would be honored to just be one. of the many podcasts that you guys choose to nominate because you love them. That would be so flipping cool. And so if you haven't done that yet, if you have not just the business development podcast, but any other podcast that you love and think deserve an award, please do head on over to the quill podcast awards or Follow us on LinkedIn.

You'll see the posts and just click one of the nominate us sections and you're able to enter your favorite podcast in for awards this year. And I think that would be super, super cool. And we were honored to win best business podcast 2023. And I would be ever so honored to win any of the categories once again here in 2024.

So Just a little call to action. Give us some follows on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and please do nominate us for the Quill Podcast Awards 2024. We would be ever, ever so grateful. My gosh. My gosh. April 2024. Man, does time fly. We spent the weekend in Kananaskis for a much needed getaway. And for any of you that maybe aren't from Canada, or aren't from Alberta specifically.

Kananaskis is a very beautiful, beautiful place in the Canadian Rocky Mountains is a beautiful resort. And we went there with the boys and just honestly got a weekend away within Canada. And it was quite expensive because unfortunately, if you travel within Canada, it's just the way it is, but it was very, very rewarding.

I'm sure you guys can tell I'm feeling very, very refreshed. I was I was definitely pushing the burnout button. I was, I was hitting the wall pretty hard there. Before we got on this trip, every once in a while, I just got to get away and reset. And it was one of those weekends. And just wanted to say, my gosh, if you, if you are from anywhere in the world and you get to come to Canada, please do, especially if you're in Alberta, go check out the Rocky Mountains.

Go check out Banff. Go check out Kananaskis. Go check out Jasper. It'll blow your freaking minds. There's nothing like a trip to the mountains to just reset. Reset everything. Mind, body, and soul. And so it was really cool. I'm feeling awesome. I'm feeling refreshed. And I just thought I would mention that if you have not had a chance to check out the Canadian Rocky Mountains, I would highly, highly, highly recommend.

Alright, let's just get into today's show. So today, I wanted to touch on a topic because it's super, super important. And I think on this show, we're always talking about meetings, right? Everything we do in business development, it's to get to the meetings, whether we're doing the digital introductions, we're adding our a hundred contacts a week on LinkedIn, we're making our weekly calls.

What do I always tell you? Ask for the meeting, get to the meeting. But what happens if you actually get this meeting? What happens at the moment that that contact says, absolutely, I would love to grab lunch with you. I would love to meet you. My gosh, then we have some preparation. And you know what? I've done shows on meetings, but I don't think that I've ever done one too in depth on how to prepare for a great meeting.

And it is important and preparation is required. And so today we are going to chat all about Everything we might need to think about as we prepare to head to that meeting. Okay. So everything we do in business development is to lead us to an effective meeting. Preparing and executing a great meeting, though, takes preparation.

and readiness. And so we're going to chat all about that today, step by step. We're just going to think about some of the things we may need to consider as we go to book that meeting, or maybe even ahead of that phone call, just in case they actually say yes about what we are going to do next, because it is important if you're calling and you're asking for that meeting that you're able to kind of set a time with that person and schedule something in fairly quickly.

And so the faster we can do this, the more effective we're going to be. The higher our odds of securing that meeting, and then if we can get to that meeting, the higher of our odds of getting an RFP, RFQ, bid list, vendor list, order, whatever it is you guys are after, much higher odds if we can get those people in person.

Okay, so what do we need to consider? When we are going to book a meeting with somebody, well the first thing that we really need to consider is the logistics of a meeting, okay? It doesn't matter whether you're going for lunch, going to their office going for coffee, there's a multitude of things that we have to consider ahead of that process, right?

Because if you just call somebody and say, Hey, let's get together for a lunch meeting or a meeting. And they say, yeah, let's do it. And you're like, Oh, well, you know, where do we go? Right. It's important that we are thinking ahead of time about the logistics of that meeting. So what do we always want to do?

Where's the best place to meet with somebody? Is it at their office? Is it at your office? Or is it out for lunch? Guys, it's always a neutral location, if possible. Okay. And I'm saying if possible, because I get it. Some of you have no choice. You have to go to the customer's office to have that meeting. Or maybe for whatever reason, you're You have to have your customer come to your office for the meeting.

But I do want, if that is the situation and you're having the customer come to your office, I do want you to consider potentially meeting at a neutral location first, ahead of that moment. Because when you are at a customer's office, let's start there. When you are at a customer's office, there is a power struggle going on.

And the power is always in your customer's hands. The power is always in the hands of the person whose office it is. It belongs to that's their home turf, and there's something about that home turf that tends to give people maybe a different mindset. They're not as open to having that connection or that conversation with you.

There's something about the power being in some being offset or offside that can make it really, really hard to build. a relationship. And so I always suggest, and you know, when I did this many years ago for Angrity or when I'm talking with clients today, what I'm usually talking about is when you meet with somebody, especially for the very first time, you should do it in a neutral location, coffee shop, restaurant, park, I don't know, just find a spot that isn't your office and isn't their office.

There's something about meeting in this neutral ground that just allows real connection to happen. It allows everybody's guard to drop a little bit and for you to be able to just connect this to individuals as opposed to, you know, operations manager of XYZ company or salesperson or business development person for XYZ company, right?

There's something about that neutral location. And so I always recommend, I get it. It's not always possible. That's fine. It may not always be possible, but that does not mean that it is not the ideal situation to meet somebody. So try to do it in a neutral location, wherever possible. And then heck, if you're going to go back for a tour of the facility, or you're going to go back and show them, you know, I don't know, a design you're working on or something like that, depending on what type of business you are.

Do that after, but I always do recommend that when we're building connection, especially in the very beginning, when you haven't met somebody yet, it is best to do it in a neutral location when possible. So never hurts. Go for coffee, go for lunch, go to someplace where you can just be two humans having a, having a conversation, having a connection.

This is going to foster a great starting point. to then build those other relationships down the line. But when you're making that first connection, a neutral location can be incredibly, incredibly beneficial. So we always want to meet at a neutral location when possible. We always want to meet close to the respective customers location.

So if you as a business development person, business owner are meeting with a prospect and you invite them out to a meeting, you should make it as easy as humanly possible for your prospect to be able to attend that meeting. Do not make them drive all the way across town so that it's convenient for you.

If you're asking, if you're asking, the onus is on you to go to them. And so I always recommend whenever you are booking a lunch for the client, make it easy for them. Make it like a block from their office. Do something that makes it really, really easy for them to just say, you know what? Yeah, I'm going to take my five minute walk and just go have lunch with you or go have a coffee with you.

Make it very, very easy for your prospect to be able to attend. It is just courteous. It is just the right thing to do. Be respectful of your prospect's time. and keep it close to their location. Who pays? I know, I know this is like, this is like first date situation, right? Who's going to pay for this date?

Who pays? The person who asks, guys, come on, come on. If you're in business development and you're asking a prospect for lunch, don't expect them to buy you lunch. And heck, the least you can do is offer to buy them lunch. And I get it. We're not all rolling in it. I get it. I'm not rolling in it either. But if I ask somebody to lunch and I say, Hey, I want to grab lunch with you.

I will at bare minimum offer to pay for that lunch. If they, if they say, no, no, no, it's okay. I got mine or I got this fine, whatever. Do what you're going to do. Guess what? The person who asks, if you're asking another prospect for lunch, they come to lunch and you are potentially going to sell them something or build some type of relationship where you are going to sell products and services.

Guys, buy them lunch, buy them a coffee. It's literally the least you can do and it is just a kindness. And frankly, as far as I'm concerned, it is just a simply a cost of doing business. If you're in business development, there's a cost of doing business to that. And lunch is just part of that deal. Okay. So please just don't even question it.

If you've asked somebody to lunch, if you've asked a prospect to lunch, it is on you to offer to pay that bill. If they reject that. Fine. If they say, no, I got this one because you've already had two lunches together. Fine. But if it is your first lunch, you've asked a prospect to lunch, pay the bill, pay the bill.

Don't even, don't even make them question it. Just pull out your debit card, your credit card and pay the damn bill. It's not a negotiation. There shouldn't even be a question. The person who asks for lunch pays for lunch period. Unless the other person rejects or says, don't worry about it. I got this one, but just assume if you've asked for lunch, you're paying for lunch.

It makes the whole situation much, much easier. Okay, we're going for lunch. Okay, and lunch is awesome. Lunch is a great place. I absolutely love going for lunch with clients, especially on first meetings to be able to have that conversation, that rapport, that like relaxed atmosphere. It is just a much better situation for that first introduction or that conversation you need to have or whatever else.

It's just a great place. Lunch is an awesome, awesome opportunity for this. Coffee, whatever. Just someplace neutral where it's a relaxed atmosphere and you guys can just chill. But as you guys may know, especially at lunchtime in a busy business sector. It's packed, right? It can be absolutely packed. Coffee shops can be packed.

Restaurants can be packed, especially if we're talking downtown. And you know what I mean? I'm talking like downtown Edmonton, downtown Calgary. If you guys are in like New York, Los Angeles, wherever the heck you guys are, you know it. It is packed. Make a damn reservation, okay? How important is this meeting to you?

Would it be worth looking like a fool if you got there and there was nowhere to sit? Guys, that's on you. It's on you. It's part of the preparation process for a lunch meeting, is calling, especially if you know it's a busy place. calling ahead, making a reservation for the time and date that you're going to be there.

Guys, it's just professional. Okay. It's just professional. You know, I've made reservations at places where I knew it wasn't going to be packed. I just knew it, but I still did because it's that one chance that like one time there's a wedding party or who knows what, and it just packs the place solid and there's no room for you and your prospect just call and make a reservation.

It literally takes five minutes. It literally takes five minutes tops to call and make a reservation for the date that you're going to be there. And when you get there, it's just super, super easy. You know, there's going to be a spot available for you. You know, you're going to be able to have that conversation with the prospect.

That's super, super important. No matter how busy it is, you are reserved. You have priority. Okay. Think about this. I know there's lots of you not doing this. I know and I have been one of you until I got bit in the ass horribly when I was supposed to have a big meeting and guess what place was full and there was no way and we ended up having to go to a different location.

Did it work out? Yeah. Did I look like a fool? Yeah. So, it's, I'm telling you this from experience guys, I've looked like an idiot, don't be me, make a reservation. I get it, you know what I mean, if you're in a small town or, or you know, like it's just not going to be packed, okay, okay, make your judgement call.

But if you don't know. If you don't know or you're going to a different city, a big city, and you're not familiar, whatever, it just doesn't hurt to make a reservation. It will save you a lot of heartache if it doesn't go to plan. Okay. All right. And calculate your travel time, right? If you're in Canada, like I'm in Edmonton, Calgary is three and a half hours away.

Fort McMurray is like five and a half hours away. You know, the Grand Prairie is like, I don't know, five hours away. Like point is. Places are a long way away, and if I'm meeting with a prospect in any of these big Alberta cities, my gosh, like, driving is a big part of that trip. And so I need to calculate, if I need to be in, whatever, Grand Prairie for lunch at noon or 1 o'clock, I need to leave, you know, my place by like 7, 7 in the morning to get there so that I'm about 30 minutes early for that lunch, right?

It's absolutely critical that we are leaving in time to give ourselves time. To get settled, to get situated, to text our client and let them know. We always want to be 15 to 30 minutes early for any meeting. This allows us to sit down, pull out our brochures review any, any company information, any customer information we might need to know ahead of time.

Text our customer, let them know where we're sitting, what we look like. Hey, it's Kelly, I'm in the corner, black shirt, bald head, can't miss me, right? We want to make sure that we are telling our customers what we look like, where we're sitting, so that it's very easy for them. And then we also want to be keeping an eye out because whenever we're greeting our customers, we want to get up off our table, get up off our butts, shake their hand, thank them for coming before they sit down.

Okay. It's just the right thing to do. So we always want to make sure that logistics, right? Our first thing that we've been talking about here is all logistics. Logistics of the meeting is absolutely critical and getting this process right is setting you up for success. Okay. The second part, we've done all the logistics.

We need to make sure that we are doing our research, okay? Understanding our customer, understanding our prospect. Who are they? What is their background? How long have they been in that position? Where were they before that? Try to figure out as much information about your customer as you can. This is just great because it's going to allow you to be able to have a real conversation with them.

Hey, I saw on LinkedIn that you guys were at a vacation like a month ago. How was that resort? Or I saw you on a motorbike trip. I saw that your company just won this big project. What was that like? I bet it was super exciting at the office. Hey, right. Do some research, know something about them, figure it out.

Try to understand who are these people? What are they like? How can I connect with them? Because that is what your job is. Your job is to try to figure out a way to build a relationship with this person. That's going to lead to long term mutually beneficial relationship for both of you. It starts with our business development people.

It starts with you guys. The ones who need to do that research know a little bit about the person that you're meeting so that you can build that relationship quickly so that you can ask real, genuine, thoughtful, caring questions about who your customer is, what are they like, what do they love, then you can build a great foundation for that relationship.

Okay, that's that's what you need to do. All of business development is really about building that relationship, right? The effort that we can put into building that relationship, the better off You know, that business relationship is just going to be. It's just the way it is. So let's make sure that we're taking our time and we are trying to understand a little bit more about our customer ahead of time.

Make sure that you research the company a little bit, right? It's one thing to know the person. You should also at least have a decent understanding about what it is the company does. You don't have to know everything. You can have that conversation with your prospect to really try to understand the intricacies of what their challenges are, what they really do.

What your prospect does at that company and what they're kind of tasks and job role is do try to have at least a really good basic understanding of what the company is, the products and services that they offer so that even even if it's not about you necessarily selling your products and services, just about you.

trying to better understand so that you can relate to the customer about what it is. So it doesn't hurt to remember, research your prospect and then research the company and know at least something about both of them. It will help you in the longterm. Try to understand the opportunity, right? The opportunity exists.

If somebody is meeting with you for a lunch, There is an opportunity. It is now your job to try to figure out what is that opportunity is an opportunity today. Is it an opportunity down the line? What is it? What's the pain point? What's the challenge? This is kind of all part of that conversation and you're going to figure it out.

It always comes up whether it comes up in the last five minutes or whether it's something that comes up in the middle of the conversation. Who knows? But you need to try to better understand what is the opportunity and you should at least have a base understanding of what that opportunity could be.

ahead of the meeting and you should be able to figure it out likely with that research. Okay. So number two, do your research ahead of time. It will make you more effective long term. Number three, get yourself a notebook or padfolio or both guys, both padfolios are amazing. Padfolios usually have a place for your business card.

They usually fit a brochure and they typically have a notepad inside or you can fit a notepad inside. Padfolios are amazing. I bring a padfolio to every big meeting that I go to. Usually it has my notebook inside because I love to take like a coiled notebook. But I always have a padfolio because it's just a great presentation.

I can fit my brochures in there. I can fit my business cards in there. I can fit some pens in there. I can put my notepad in there. It's all in this nice little leathery enclosed case. It just makes my life much, much easier. And so I would highly recommend you get yourself a padfolio and bring it with you to every meeting.

Also, bring a notepad, okay? Notepads are absolutely critical in business development. I know I hear lots of you saying, Well, Kelly, I take notes on my phone. It's not the same. It's just not the same. If you want to take notes on your phone, that's fine. Or if you want to transcribe those notes into your phone later or take a picture, that's fine.

But trust me, there's something really special about being able to pull out a notepad and just say to your prospect, Hey, if you don't mind, I'm just going to take some notes. It helps me to better understand what we're talking about and I'll have a nice notes later for how I can, you know, help you or if there's something here.

So nobody, I've never had anybody say, no, don't take notes, right? Most people have zero problem with with you taking notes. And so in my experience, it's just a great way to do it. I like having notes because especially if I have to do a proposal later, I like to have all the notes for the meeting. I do a meeting summary after every single meeting.

And, you know, I mean, obviously we can transcribe them if they're through meets or whatever else, but if they're in person, it's pretty hard to transcribe the meeting. Isn't it take some notes so that you are better able to. Transcribe those later into a summary for your, for your CRM or for whatever other reason you might need to do a summary.

So notepads are absolutely critical. I recommend them immensely, whether it's just a coiled line book or a specialty book. There's nothing wrong with either. Just make sure that you're taking notes, okay? And then always make sure that we are bringing brochures and business cards. You guys know, I hammer this, right?

Physical brochures are still a must. They are absolutely critical and they are great in a meeting. It gives you something real, something physical and tangible to give the customer and say, Hey, check this out. Look at this sweet brochure we made with all of our products and services in it. This is going to sit on your desk for the next like two years, right?

That's what you want. You want to be able to give them something tangible. And there's something about giving something to a customer that makes them give you something back in return, whether that be a business card, whether that be an opportunity, trust me, get into the habit of bringing physical business cards, physical brochures, and make it a habit to give them to your customer, right?

They are awesome. Real brochures are awesome. And they sit on people's desks for a very, very long time. The whole goal of business development is to get ahead of the need, right? What better way to get ahead of the need Then to be the brochure sitting on their desk when they have that need. Trust me.

Trust me. They work. They work well. Bring physical brochures to your meetings and make sure that you're handing them out every single time. Number four, arrive early. We talked about this briefly in number one, but number four is, I mean, it has its own point. Show up to meetings early. Stop being on time. Be early.

If you've asked for the meeting, you have a prospect meeting you show up on time at bare minimum, be five to 10 minutes early. You should be somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 to 30 minutes early to prepare properly for a meeting. So get in the habit of being early, text your contact, let them know where you're sitting, what you look like, and then keep an eye out.

And then obviously. Don't forget to stand up, shake their hand, thank them for coming, show them some respect, show your prospects some respect when they show up, okay? I've seen people who didn't even get up from the table, barely made a handshake or made a handshake across the table. Guys, it makes me cringe.

Don't do that. Just, just stand up, shake their hand, thank them for coming, then sit down together. All right? Number five, this one might actually be one of the more important ones. Number five, shut off your phone and stay present with your customer. Okay, guys, oh, cringe. Don't answer your phone in a meeting.

I don't care how important you think that call is. It is not more important than the prospect you're sitting across from. Okay, it isn't. Shut it off. If you can't deal with yourself, shut off the phone. Okay. Shut off the phone, but guys, stop answering your phones in the middle of a business meeting. Your time at that point is reserved for your prospect and your prospect only.

That's it. Shut off the phone. If you have to throw it out a window, get rid of the damn thing. Okay. Get rid of it. Stop answering your phone in a business meeting. There is nobody in that meeting more important than the person that you were sitting directly across from, okay? Unless your wife is having a baby, or you have a real damn good reason to be having that phone on, get rid of the phone.

It's like one hour, just get rid of it. You can answer, you can reply to any phone calls later, you can answer any texts after, okay? Get rid of the phone during that meeting. It is just going to make your life much, much better. Remember to ask engaging questions, take notes, and focus on building a relationship.

The business always comes, whether it's in the last five minutes or it's a phone call after, mark my words, the business always comes. Focus on building the relationship. That is the most important thing that you are looking to do in person. The business will come. Work on the relationship. Find common ground with the customer and leave a lasting impression.

Amazing guys. That takes us to the end of episode 123. Ah, I love meetings. Meetings are great. It's something that I really do find a lot of passion in really. It's like everything that I do in my job for the most part is to get to that face to face meeting to have that interaction. So it's something I'm very passionate about and I'm sure you saw that, but trust me.

It is very, very important that we are doing this pre work ahead of time to have success. Okay. Shout outs this week. Zael Miransky, Vijayan Swaminathan, Raphael Cervan, Christa Jones, Ruthann Weeks, Rodney Lover, Shawn Neels, Vince Phillips, Colin Harms. You guys are awesome. You rock stars. Appreciate you all.

Until next time, this has been episode 123 of the Business Development Podcast. And we will catch you on the flip side.

Outro: This has been the Business Development Podcast with Kelly Kennedy. Kelly has 15 years in sales. Sales and business development experience within the Alberta oil and gas industry and founded his own business development firm in 2020.

His passion and his specialization is in customer relationship generation and business development. The show is brought to you by Capital Business Development, your business development specialists. For more, we invite you to the website at www.capitalbd.ca. See you next time on the business development podcast.