Tom H. C. Anderson - Next Gen Market Research

To Recruiters and Next Gen Market Research Job Seekers in my Network

It’s late November, conference season is over, and so I’m glad to be back in the office with nothing to concentrate on but work. Looking at my recent collection of lanyards I sometimes wonder about the ROI of conferences I attend. I know I’ve gotten direct business at some of these events, but much of it comes later and is due to continous networking which takes longer.

While conference events are a great way to network with colleagues I think many of us forget that networking is something that is done every day of the year. Social Media including LinkedIn, Online Discussion Boards (like NGMR and Data and Text Analytics Professionals groups), and even Facebook, Twitter and Google+ have made it far easier for those of us who understand the power of networking to do so effectively.

It’s important to understand that networking is most definitely not about always taking. In fact if you are doing it right it’s at least 80% or more helping others, and less than 20% helping yourself.

Job hunting is a great example of this. So many times I see professionals only using LinkedIn when they know their jobs are being eliminated or they have found a new position and are connecting to current colleagues before they move to their next position. It’s rather easy to spot when these individuals start adding contacts in a flurry which they could have connected to during the course of regular business.

If we continuously network and give back to our network, even when we are not in the market for help, it’s far easier to leverage our contacts later when we need them most.

Obviously one of the most common ways we can help others in our network is when they are looking for new positions. Likewise, many of us know recruiters who are continuously looking to fill interesting positions. Networking and connecting these opportunities with the right contacts can be time consuming, so here is a tip to those in my network, both clients and respected colleagues I’m connected to as well as the recruiters whom I also consider a valued part of my network.

When you reach out to those of us like myself who also truly understand the value of networking please realize that while we are eager to help you, the size of our networks while powerful, can also make it time consuming to help you as you are likely not to be the only one reaching out to us at any one point in time.

Here is a tip I often give to suppliers who reach out to me offering to sell their services to me, but one which I think is equally beneficial to both recruiters and job seekers I interact with in the course of business. For new research suppliers requesting to send me information I often ask that they send an email with relevant attachments to one of our general email accounts in the subject line clearly labeling the service they are offering, i.e. “Sample Provider”, “CATI Interviewing”, “translation services” etc. While we may not have a relevant need currently, should one come up later we can easily search for contacts.

So whether you are a recruiter or someone searching for a new position, when sending someone in your network a message via email or LinkedIn chances are an immediate relevant opportunity will not be top of mind for the person in your network. Therefore in the subject line I would humbly suggest that in your message you might be as specific as possible so that at a later date when we do hear of a relevant match we can quickly search for and locate someone who might be able to help you.

In your subject line consider clearly labeling who you are and what type of skill set you are looking for in what location, i.e. “Recruiter: Senior Statistician, Connecticut” or for candidates “Jobs: Research Sales, National” etc.

This simple subject line idea was introduced to me by the Marketing Executive Networking Group (MENG), which I’ve belonged to for a number of years. Group members seeking advice from other group members may email the membership with information requests from time to time in a respectful manner, using the subject line to clearly indicate what they are looking for “MENG Request….”.

I can’t speak for others, but as for myself, and I believe most others who understand and value true networking, and what to help those in our network this would allow us to be more helpful to you. I wouldn’t worry about they formality of the subject line, you may still personalize the email message inside (also often important).

I truly value everyone in my network and want to help them whenever I can.

@TomHCAnderson