Intros at a client's offsite or user group

When a client invites you to their offsite, their customer council or the user group they host, you're in a room most sellers never see.

The other guests are their peers, their partners and sometimes their own buyers. Everyone there trusts the host. Some of that trust rubs off on you.

But only if you behave like a guest. The fastest way to lose the invite is to work the room like it's a booth.

Why these rooms are different

A trade show is full of people expecting to be sold to. A client's event is full of people who came to learn from each other. They lower their guard there.

And your client is vouching for you by inviting you. That's a warm intro to every person in the room, given before you say a word.

So the bar is higher. You're spending your client's credibility on top of your own.

Ask the host first

Before the event, ask your client contact who'll be there and who they'd like you to meet. Let them pick. They know which guests would welcome a conversation and which ones came for a quiet day.

Then ask how they'd like you to show up. Some hosts want you to speak or run a session. Some want you in the back taking notes. Do what they ask.

If there's someone you'd like to meet, say so plainly. "Would it be all right if I introduced myself to the COO from Westway?" gives the host a chance to say yes, offer to make the intro or steer you away.

Contribute before you connect

The best way to earn intros at a client event is to be useful in the room. Ask good questions in the sessions. Share what you've seen at other companies without naming them. Help with the logistics if the host is short-handed.

People notice. The guest who made the panel better gets asked to coffee. The guest who handed out business cards during the break doesn't.

If you're given a speaking slot, teach. Don't pitch. A talk that leaves people with one thing they'll use on Monday does more for you than any slide about your firm.

When you meet someone, lead with the host and the topic of the day. "How do you know Dana?" or "What did you make of the session on vendor consolidation?" Then listen.

Most of these conversations shouldn't end in an ask. They should end with a reason to follow up. A paper you mentioned. A contact they'd like. A question you couldn't answer on the spot.

If the person brings up a problem your firm solves, say you've seen it before and ask if they'd like to compare notes after the event. That's it. No meeting request in the hallway.

The follow-up afterward

Write within two days. Name the event and the host, refer to what you discussed and send what you promised. Keep it short.

If the conversation gave you enough to form a guess, the follow-up can carry a light hypothesis. Say you met Ruth, VP of operations at Westway Foods, at your client's supplier council, and she mentioned their new plant.

Good to meet you at Dana's council on Thursday. You mentioned the Columbus plant opens in the spring, and my guess is the scheduling and maintenance systems are the part still being worked out. Is that accurate, or is the bigger issue something else?

Then copy nobody. Your host doesn't need to be in the thread.

Tell the host how it went

After the event, thank your client and tell them who you met and what came of it. If a conversation turns into work, let them know. If it doesn't, tell them you enjoyed the people.

Hosts invite back the guests who made the room better and kept them informed. That's how one invite becomes a standing one. The how to thank a connector post covers the thank-you itself.

The point

A client's offsite or user group is a room full of warm paths, but you get in on your client's name. Act like a guest, add something to the day and follow up with care. More on events in introductions at conferences and event pipeline that survives the event.