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Jim Rockford had a knack for helping people who showed up at his trailer door in desperate need. Most of the time, they weren’t the kind of clients he really wanted. They couldn’t pay him, didn’t fully understand what he actually did, or assumed he would work miracles on their shoestring budgets. It’s a wonder he managed to eke out a living as a private eye.
The truth is, what made The Rockford Files such a fun show doesn’t translate into a successful business strategy. You can have a stellar reputation, but if people don’t know how to describe your services or don’t understand who your ideal clients are, they’re likely to send you the wrong people, or worse yet, say nothing at all.
Recently, two of my networking connections showed me a better way. After we shared information about our businesses and agreed to refer each other, they each sent me a short description of their services to pass along. They weren’t long or salesy…just a couple of sentences to copy and paste into an email or DM when making an introduction. It made referring them so easy and inspired me to create one of my own
I call this a Pocket Intro, a quick and clear way to help others talk about your business. It’s not a sales pitch, just a thoughtful, friendly line or two that gives your network confidence to send you the right referrals.
Where does this come in handy?
- After networking events, when you are sending follow-up emails or introducing people to each other.
- When someone asks, “What do you do again?” and you want to give them an easy way to pass your name along.
- During coffee chats or Zoom meetings, so your referral partners know exactly how to describe you. The easier it is, the more likely they are to refer you.
Keep your Pocket Intro organized
- Add it to your email signature so every message quietly markets your work.
- Save it in a Trello Networking Board (like the one I use!) to keep track of contacts and copy your intro quickly when you need it. You can even store it in a Google Doc or Airtable base so it’s easy to share during follow-ups. Just pick a system that works for you.
This small step can save you from Rockford’s fate of working with clients who aren’t the right fit. It will also make it easy for your network to send you the right clients.
Why leave it to chance? Craft your Pocket Intro today and share it with two or three trusted colleagues. If you’d like to be considered for my referral list, hit reply and share it with me . You might be surprised how much smoother your networking follow-up feels when you have a system and are ready to go.