It’s the holidays, so I thought today I’d talk about a feelgood topic, and that is the subject of human connections. As a marketer, I’m keenly aware of how much more we’re able to get through our day without making any human connections. Over 20 years ago, when my husband and I were first dating and he lived in Brazil, we used to laugh about how Brazilians never needed maps. Here’s how finding your way from Point A to Point B used to work when driving around Brazil. Maybe this will sound familiar for some of you as you think about your home countries. You’d start out in the right general direction, and then when you weren’t sure which road to take, you’d stop and ask someone in a small town. Their directions would go something like this, “you go down the road for 3 speed bumps, and then turn right at the little blue church.” “And then what?” you’d ask them. “And then you stop and ask for directions”, they’d say. And if you think I’m kidding, this is a direct translation from an actual road trip.
Fast forward to today, and we don’t need to talk to humans to ask for directions because we have a GPS in our smartphone. We don’t need to ask about the weather, because there’s an app for that. And when did you last ask someone for the time?
Adults ask an average of 20 questions per day. Google has almost 93% of online search engine volume. The average person makes 4 searches/day on Google, not including the average of 142 minutes per day we spend on social media, in which we are certainly asking more questions. That means at least 40% of our questions don’t involve asking a human.
But here’s the downside. Today my husband and I are happily married, but let’s say he really did something to piss me off. I might Google, “best divorce attorney near me”. I’d come up with a list, all of whom would undoubtedly offer a free consultation, and I’d pick one. On the other hand, if I spoke with a human, they might ask me if I had considered mediation. “What’s that?” I would ask. Not being familiar with this practice area it wouldn’t have entered my mind to Google it. They would explain that it was a professionally guided discussion of how to split up our stuff where I would be left feeling more in control of my circumstances. Well that does seem less disruptive. But then perhaps I’d speak with another human, who would suggest that maybe we just needed some time away from our daily stresses and there is an amazing resort called Sandals that specializes in pampering couples. Now that sounds even better and I certainly wouldn’t have started out Googling “couples resort” after my husband pissed me off. So in theory I have gone from a messy divorce to a sexy getaway with my husband. All because real humans opened my perspective to more ideas than I had considered searching for on my own.
The same thing goes for your business. The power of the real human connections we have in this room is far greater than going through the mechanics of passing each other referrals. It’s about taking the time to truly understand each other’s business. It’s about coming up with creative ideas on how we might grow, and making connections to people in our own network who can support that growth.
To form a network you need two things:
- Humans
- Connections
If you go to your local Chamber event, spend 15 minutes sharing a cocktail with strangers and then exchange business cards, you have humans, but you haven’t made a connection, so you’re not really networking. If you follow up by sending an email outlining all of the things your business does, then you’re still not really networking because you still haven’t made a connection.
You’re missing the next step of taking those business cards and setting up a coffee or dropping by their office to begin the process of understanding more about their business. Once you’ve made that connection, then you’re truly networking and over time, this investment will lead to results.
Over the holidays, while you’re spending time with family and friends enjoying your eggnog or several glasses of Macallan, take a moment to reconnect and anchor that good feeling of spending meaningful time with other humans. Then in January when we get back together, work on how you can deepen the relationships with your business family, and we’ll all have a spectacular 2020!