"Just trust me."

Why would you use your valuable time to meet with someone who is not a clear target for your business? Don't you hate it when someone pitches you, right out of the gate? And yet, don't you wish your prospects would be more trusting? In business-to-business, unlike soup, soap, or shampoo, it just doesn't work that way.

This morning I met with a new business connection. He and I had a mutual interest in an association where I'm a member, and so I reached out after a recent meeting. We hadn't connected at the meeting, but I took a chance that this tenuous link would be enough to get us started in a conversation. It wasn't even a warm lead, really - no one brokered the introduction, other than that most people attending the event had consented to share their contact information. What made it possible for us to have a face-to-face meeting?

First, there is a certain level of trust engendered in the fact that the email came from a trusted source (thanks Life Sciences Ontario, and especially super-connector, Andy Donovan, who let me experience many benefits of the organization without giving me the pressure sell, allowing me to become a member on my own timeline). Much like that, neither of us "started the meeting with a sale in mind". We didn't come in with a sales goal, just an aim to connect and understand each other. Although it's popular to say that coffee meetings are time-consuming and unproductive, I'm in it for the long game, and so is my new contact. There is no specific transaction being lined up. He's not in my "funnel". While there's a chance my company may help his at some point with a paid project, for now, our agreement is simply to keep an ear out for introductions for one another. This "network as net worth" attitude has served me well for nearly two decades in my own business, and began even before that. I'm always excited to see how serendipitous links open doors at the most unexpected times.

After an email and LinkedIn exchange, when we actually met (IRL, on a rainy Toronto morningn), neither of us bailed on the meetup. We talked about our businesses. Each of us shared what we do, and how or why we do it. We talked about challenges, ideas, and trust. You see, this new friend's business also revolves on trust. He's working with target customers who have been burned many times before by companies saying they will (a) make operations more efficient, (b) save them tons of money, and (c) have limited risk. We discussed warm introductions from mutually-trusted partners, proving your worth, and how one offering in your business, combined with feedback, can start you thinking of something else that will really make a difference to customers and build trust, one brick at a time.

Someday, maybe we'll do a business project together. Or maybe we won't. What's for sure is that we have started to build a foundation that will serve us many times, rather than walking in the door and trying and establish trust to make a fast transaction that might leave both of us disappointed, empty-handed, and with nothing to show for our time.

I'm Megann Willson and I'm one of the partners at PANOPTIKA. We help our clients see everything they need to know to make better decisions. What does that mean? We work with them to use strategic research to answer tough but important questions, and we act as advisors and sounding boards for critical choices they need to make for their businesses. For more #betterbusiness ideas like these, you can follow us on Twitter or Facebook, or sign up for news you can use like this, delivered straight to your inbox.