Speaking

Meeting Professionals International-National Speakers Association Arizona Chapter. Talks of the Town. April 29, 2023. Speaker: Matt Silverman. If you’re in an organization and you know that interpersonal relationships are the best way to spread your message and influence people, how do you find the right people within your organization to do that?  How do you find those influencers?  By the way, don’t be scared of the word influencer.  It’s not just for people that were born after the Internet was invented.  Anyone can be an influencer.  So here’s what we typically do.  We typically look at an organization from the top down and we think, well, we need to influence that CEO, that C-Suite executive, that top level leader.  Surely then he or she will flow it down through the organization.  But that’s not always the case, right?  We tend to correlate big influence with big titles, big salaries, big offices.  And in doing so, we miss a lot of the most influential people within our organization.  So, instead of looking at it from the top down, adjust your network perspective.  When you’re looking for those influencers, look to people who have strong connections because of their seniority, because of their personalities.  Look for people who have knowledge of their organization, of their sites, of their departments, who the right people are to talk to, how messages get spread.  Look for people who have knowledge and you’ll find those people who can help you to push out your ideas, to support your ideas.  It happens all the time.  I’ve seen it happen.  Sometimes we call them champions networks or ambassador programs, right?  I see some heads nodding.  They work.  The issue is you have to find the right people, and if you can find those people, and train them, and use them, they’ll do the work for you.  They will be your influencers, they will be your social network, and they’ll be able to exchange, and pass on, and influence people much more than you could do on your own.