How to Leverage Relationships

The purpose of relationships has evolved. While relationships used to be a source of new matters, now, a good relationship has three purposes:

1. It should ensure that you hear about opportunities;
2. It should guarantee that you will be afforded an opportunity to pitch (i.e., the relationship should get you into the room); and
3. It should provide the basis for a built-in rapport with the prospect that should make her or him somewhat comfortable revealing confidences and admitting problems to you, which should aid in your conversion efforts.

Thus, relationships can reduce the amount of marketing and prospecting you need to do.

The way to leverage relationships is with regular, value-rich touches and by asking for the appropriate action or outcome. Do not ask your contacts to send you work. That is like asking a rich person for cash when the most valuable thing possessed by the rich person is information on how you also can become rich. (The cash will be spent quickly. The knowledge will last a lifetime, deepening with each of your subsequent life experiences.)

So, always ask contacts for information and knowledge. For example, ask your contacts to make you aware of specific opportunities within the niche for which you are known. (Note: It is okay if they make others aware as well because you are not counting on the relationship for a sale, you’re looking only for the opportunity.)

You may be tempted to ask your contacts to keep you in mind for work in general since your firm is full service. Resist that temptation. It will result in them altogether forgetting about you when matters come to their attention because deals are inherently specific, you are not the only provider they know, and your request was too general to trigger anything in their memory in the crucial moment.

So, if you’re in the M&A department, ask to be kept “apprised of potential M&A deals such as if a VC is thinking of acquiring a startup”. That specific instruction should be memorable enough that you’ll be top of mind when that sort of opportunity arises. Your contact becomes a lead generator. In addition, with that instruction, you haven’t put too much on him by asking him to do your sales work for your (i.e., to send you a client). You’ve asked only for the opportunity. That is how you leverage relationships.