Oh…the woes of raising your profile and being in demand. I was given some advice years back while working in Silicon Valley.
When everyone is networking 24/7 you need to 1) show interest and 2) have a success story for each inquiry you field as a consultant. Even if it means applying your creativity in ways you are not trained for. Or sharing an anecdote that never really happened.
For example…
Question: “Can you spend a few hours with our team to educate them on your design process?”
Possible answer: "Sure…I did that last month with a company across town. They invited me for the morning and I got a tour of their facility afterwards. They were very pleased with what I had to share. They even paid my fee in less than my usual net 30. "
or
Question: “Can you join our team on our off site to help us work through our product strategy?”
Possible answer…“Hmmmm?..This is possible. I do that kind of thing from time to time and have seen success. In fact I did it last winter with a company in Texas for just the day. They paid my expenses and even took me out for dinner afterwards. Sure!..let’s put something together for next month…”
Keep it general and keep it optimistic.
Some would say this is lying…some would say it is just business. Steve Jobs and Larry Ellison were famous for this kind of reality distortion. At the end of the day it is a reply to a positive possibility with yet another positive possibility. If they want to plant a seed in your garden…plant one in theirs as well. This is indeed next level thinking on your feet as a pro.
And remember…you are an ambassador of the ID profession when dealing with other disciplines outside of the studio. Help your fellow ID colleagues by always being open to helping others outside the profession with their needs. We need all of the brand help we can get.
Pro Bono work is not just for attorneys and no one ever says “no” in Asia…