Latest / Networking Unleashed: Building Profitable Connections / Networking Unleashed: S1E83 An Interview with Al Kushner and Michael A Forman, Public Speaker

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Networking Unleashed: S1E83 An Interview with Al Kushner and Michael A Forman, Public Speaker · Networking Unleashed: Building Profitable Connections

• 0:16
  Welcome back to Networking Unleashed, Building
• 0:19
  Profitable Connections, the podcast where we
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  uncover the strategies, stories, and systems
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  that turn relationships into real results. I'm
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  your host, Michael Foreman, and today we're diving
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  into a conversation that sits right at the crossroads
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  of technology and human connection. We're talking
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  about how AI is transforming marketing, revolutionizing
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  content creation, sharpening audience targeting,
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  and taking campaign optimization to the next
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  level. But here's the big question. Can AI help
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  us build better relationships, or are we just
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  risking turning our networks into just another
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  automated process? My guest today is here to
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  unpack exactly how business can leverage AI to
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  stay ahead without losing the human touch that
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  makes networking so powerful. So come on, let's
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  grab it. I'd like to welcome to the podcast,
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  Al Kushner. And I don't want to butcher his background,
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  so let him tell you a little bit about it. Al,
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  welcome to the podcast. Thank you, Michael. Glad
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  to be here and appreciate the opportunity. So
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  a background. So I am an award -winning author.
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  My new book is called The AI LinkedIn Advantage.
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  Not sure if you can see it over here, but it
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  is a resource for those who are looking to maximize
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  their presence on LinkedIn and using AI technology
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  to really elevate your, not only your level of
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  your presence, but also to make your... presence
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  impactful on LinkedIn. And that's really what
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  it sets the, sets it apart from other books on
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  the marketplace. That sounds great. And really
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  every listener should pay close attention because
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  one thing I promote is for business is LinkedIn.
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  So if this is going to give them a little advantage,
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  they should really pay attention. Okay. How is
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  AI transforming the way businesses build and
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  nurture professional relationships? Does it complement
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  or compete with the human connection? I believe
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  it complements it because it's just helping you
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  to create ideas, to structure sentences in a
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  way that is compelling to whoever you're going
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  to be targeting to. So if you have any information
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  that you'd like to share, this just helps to
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  enhance that information and provide something
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  that will be relevant to whoever your target
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  is. And I think it's going to make a big difference,
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  particularly on LinkedIn. So what you're saying,
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  so... What they want to post on LinkedIn and
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  they use AI, do you suggest that they go over
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  what they want to say or should they add their
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  own little personal touch to it? Yeah, of course.
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  AI is just a tool that you would use to help
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  you create ideas for content. It's always good
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  to be yourself and be authentic because that
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  really is going to make a difference and people
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  can see that. So if you're talking in a certain
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  way, it should be conveyed in the... information
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  that you are trying to relate to people. So it's
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  always important to provide information that's
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  of value. When you're on LinkedIn, it's more
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  about giving than taking. And that's really what
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  my advice would be to do. Give more than you
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  receive. Good. That's right in line with what
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  we're always talking about. In what ways can
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  AI help marketers and networkers identify the
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  right people? faster without losing authenticity
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  in the process. Well, I think the most important
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  thing when it comes to LinkedIn is to have your
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  profile optimized because the first thing is
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  that people are going to look at is your profile
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  and you don't get a second chance to make a first
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  impression, simply put. So if you're, for example,
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  your profile headshot is not. professional or
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  even your background, that can really impede
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  your ability to make quality connections. So
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  you really need to optimize that, make sure it
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  looks good, make sure your information, your
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  background is informative. I'd stress a lot of
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  bullet points because people don't have time
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  to read long sentences and such. So you really
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  want to be as concise as possible. Even your
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  headline, the words that you have in there should
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  be strategic. almost optimized. So when people
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  are doing searches, let's say you're an SEO expert,
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  it should be in your header itself, as well as
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  other things that help people find you on LinkedIn.
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  Good. Good. Very good. Okay. With AI -driven
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  personalization on the rise, how do we ensure
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  we're not just automating connections, but actually
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  building meaningful ones? Well, the important
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  thing is that you want to establish yourself
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  as a thought leader. In order to do that, you
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  should create content that's going to be valued
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  to wherever your target audience is. My example,
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  I've created newsletters. I have about five different
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  newsletters on LinkedIn. And when I send out
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  at least once a week, people look forward to
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  receiving that information. And what generally
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  are those newsletters about? It depends. I have
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  newsletters for referral partners, which are,
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  let's say, accountants or attorneys or financial
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  planners. And I would talk about topics about
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  LinkedIn and how they can make themselves more
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  impactful, how to, for example, get referrals
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  on LinkedIn, how to use it in a way to outreach
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  and not become sound like salesy. So these are
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  just examples of articles I do every week. And
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  it really is making a difference. In addition,
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  I also do videos as well. Videos, I take it,
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  are more inviting than even just the newsletters.
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  Oh, absolutely. In fact, videos are perhaps the
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  biggest growth I've seen on the platform because
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  the algorithm loves videos. So if your video
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  is between 60 to 90 seconds, which is a sweet
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  spot, that'll make a difference, particularly
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  if you're posting in groups. And that's my next
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  thing to talk about. Groups are definitely going
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  to help you raise your level of awareness and
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  also make you more connections than you can imagine.
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  What's a practical example of how AI has helped
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  you or your clients optimize networking -related
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  marketing campaigns? I've used it to reach out
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  to influencers on LinkedIn. A lot of times these
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  influencers would post at various times on LinkedIn,
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  and I would... Be alerted when their post is
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  online and reply back to them, usually in a timely
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  fashion, because the key thing is they may have
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  thousands of followers. But what happens is as
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  soon as they post, the first few posts that are
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  going to be on there are going to be viewed better
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  than the ones that are down with the hundreds
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  of other people. And when you're posting, you
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  had to be a little bit more than just thanks
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  for sharing, but also take the information that
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  is posted and maybe see what ways you can add
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  to it, add value to the influencers post. questions
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  that may not have been asked that really complement
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  what they're doing. And you'll find that not
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  only you'll get possibly more followers to look
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  at your profile, but even the influence themselves
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  may decide to reach out to you because they find
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  you of value for their post. How do you suggest
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  getting more? Everybody has a certain amount
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  of LinkedIn connections, followers, and everything
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  else. How would you suggest them getting more
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  LinkedIn connections? The best way, of course,
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  as I mentioned, is to join groups because you
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  have an opportunity to connect with people that
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  are like -minded or looking for the services
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  that you offer. I would post videos in those
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  groups because very few actually do post videos
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  for the most part. And that's going to definitely
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  raise your game and get you a lot more people
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  reaching out to you. And that's really what you
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  want to have is quality connections. So instead
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  of posting haphazardly. post strategically into
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  groups and use video as a format that's definitely
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  made it made a difference for me good good okay
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  how can small businesses or solopreneurs leverage
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  ai for smarter networking for smarter networking
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  and content outreach without needing a huge tech
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  budget With software like ChatGPT, it definitely
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  helps you to create ideas for articles. It can
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  actually help outline your article itself. And
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  I think it's definitely a good resource where
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  you don't have to spend a lot of money on hiring
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  people to do that. You just access that. And
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  a lot of times I do. On the weekend, I create
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  my newsletters for during the week, and then
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  I use LinkedIn's scheduling to schedule in advance
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  to post at times when people are most likely
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  to read it and receive it at that time. Okay,
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  good. So what's your take on the balance between
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  AI efficiency and irreplaceable value of face
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  -to -face networking, and where should leaders
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  be focusing? Certainly, AI does make a lot of
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  efficiency when it comes to connecting with people,
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  especially through Zoom and other types of platforms,
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  because In -person networking has limitations
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  because you have to be there physically to do
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  something. And a lot of it is by geographic,
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  where on platforms like LinkedIn, you can reach
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  people worldwide for your services. Why limit
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  yourself? And with AI technology, there's a reason
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  why you can't use it to create content to reach
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  your target audience, where normally it would
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  be almost impossible through traditional ways.
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  Do you network just through... electronics or
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  do face -to -face networking? I just speak in
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  engagements. So when there's an opportunity to
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  speak in front of associations, I do that. And
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  I find that to be very important as far as an
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  outreach, because speaking always is going to
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  raise your level of awareness. I talk about my
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  book. I talk about topics that are relevant to
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  the members of the association. So I think that's
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  very vital in terms of outreach. Okay, what's
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  your take on the balance between AI efficiency
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  and the... I asked you that question already.
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  Okay, wait, let me go down one more. What makes
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  you see businesses... What mistakes do you see
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  businesses making when they try to use AI to
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  shortcut the relationship going? Very simple.
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  I see a lot of businesses fail because the first
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  thing they do as soon as they connect with someone
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  is they pitch slap them. And that's definitely
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  something that for me would be a no. And I immediately
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  usually block these individuals because they
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  don't understand this is not the way to do it.
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  They have AI create some kind of elaborate sales
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  pitch and they think I'm going to fall for it.
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  And it's not. That's not how you make a connection.
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  Same thing if you were in person with someone
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  and as soon as they meet with you and they shake
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  your hand, they're already pitching you. And
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  that's not the way to do business. You really
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  have to do it in a way that it seems natural.
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  Just get to know the person first. Find out their
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  interests. Find out what they like about LinkedIn,
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  for example. For me, a lot of times I provide
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  an e -book to give them information that may
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  be valuable to them. And they're usually well
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  received by those who are interested in connecting.
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  So give more than you receive is the way to connect.
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  When I go and I speak at different conferences
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  or if I go into a company, do a workshop, I always
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  suggest going to a networking event with a servant's
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  heart. Okay, so that is so that you're always
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  giving and not receiving. If you go in, as you
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  said, give a pitch automatically, you're going
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  to turn everybody off. But if you go in and I
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  use something called F -O -R -M, family, occupation,
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  recreation. and a message that usually puts the
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  other person at ease. So you have them talk about
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  themselves, have them talk about their family,
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  what they really like to do. And what that does,
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  that lowers that wall between the two of you,
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  but it raises the trust value. And that's what
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  really makes it. So networking, know you, you
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  trust you, they'll do business with you. So that's
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  all part of the same thing. Okay. How can AI
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  professionals stay top of mind with their network
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  in a way that feels personal, not robotic? I
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  use, for example, newsletters and I reach out
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  to people and I be as authentic as I can. And
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  the information I provide being on a regular
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  basis weekly is ideal. because it's always about
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  being on top of mind, which is what you want
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  to do. Create videos of value. So I post videos
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  into various groups that I'm a part of, and it
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  gets well received. So it's a combination of
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  things that you can do for any type of outreach
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  is to be on top of mind. So create content. provide
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  value, and also comment on influencers that are
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  in your field that also help raise awareness,
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  give things of value to whoever they're posting.
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  And it's something that will help to move the
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  needle, I would say. Very good. Okay. What's
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  one emerging AI tool or trend that you think
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  will completely reshape how we approach networking
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  and marketing in the next 12 months? Certainly,
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  I would say videos are on the rise and a lot
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  of opportunity there is available. There are
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  ways that perhaps you can create even an avatar
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  of yourself with your thoughts and feelings and
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  doing a video without you doing it yourself.
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  I think that would be tremendous because a lot
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  of the information that you have, again, you
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  can't be in two places at once, but with this
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  technology, you probably can. And that would
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  be a game changer, I think. I think you're right.
• 14:21
  I think you're probably right. I'm listening
• 14:22
  to you and really how successful you've become.
• 14:26
  But can you give us one mistake that you've made,
• 14:30
  a really big mistake, and how you overcame it?
• 14:34
  I think procrastination has always been... following
• 14:38
  me most of my life and not really being more
• 14:41
  reactive than proactive in responding to decisions
• 14:44
  like writing a book, for example, was something
• 14:47
  I was debating and whether I should do it or
• 14:49
  not. And I decided that a year ago, this is the
• 14:52
  opportunity to do it. If I don't take advantage
• 14:54
  now, the competition will. And sure enough, I
• 14:57
  decided to move forward with this. And I was
• 15:00
  really impressed by the work that I've done.
• 15:02
  It really gave me an ability to become a thought
• 15:05
  leader and something that I don't regret. But
• 15:08
  for me, it was always procrastination because
• 15:10
  I said, I'll put it off to tomorrow. And that
• 15:13
  never works. And you won't succeed unless you
• 15:15
  really just take the chance and go for it. Good.
• 15:19
  Okay. So let's bring this podcast full circle.
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  And if you had to give one piece of advice to
• 15:26
  someone who wants to use AI to enhance, not replace,
• 15:30
  their networking efforts, what would it be? I
• 15:35
  would say that try to... Get information on the
• 15:40
  services or products that you're looking to do.
• 15:42
  Investigate that. I would say not to wait until
• 15:46
  it happens. You've got to embrace technology
• 15:48
  while it's coming because it's always changing.
• 15:51
  And you'll find that if you use it the right
• 15:53
  way, it'll be most effective and it will help
• 15:57
  your business grow exponentially. Very good.
• 16:00
  Yes, that's exactly right. Listen, I'm so glad
• 16:03
  that I had you on the podcast. You opened my
• 16:06
  eyes, at least up to AI. And I hope everybody
• 16:09
  listening would then also have their eyes opened
• 16:13
  up and buy your book. But how would somebody
• 16:16
  get hold of you if they wanted to ask you a question
• 16:19
  or have you coach them or anything else like
• 16:22
  that? How can they do it? You can go to my website,
• 16:25
  linkedvantage .com. And you can also access a
• 16:29
  lot of resources I have available. I have a free
• 16:31
  ebook for optimizing a profile. It's also available
• 16:34
  on the website as a download. You can connect
• 16:37
  with me on LinkedIn. I'm open to anyone who wants
• 16:40
  to connect with me, which is fine. Just remember,
• 16:42
  when you reach out to me, don't pitch slap me
• 16:44
  because I will definitely block you. Other than
• 16:48
  that, I'm happy to connect with anyone and looking
• 16:51
  forward to helping those out there who need this
• 16:53
  resource. I really appreciate you coming on the
• 16:57
  podcast, and I hope to speak with you soon. Thank
• 17:00
  you. Thanks for the opportunity, Michael. Have
• 17:02
  a good one. Well, hold on, folks. Don't go anywhere.
• 17:09
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• 18:00
  A huge thank you to our guests for sharing such
• 18:04
  insights today. And of course, a big shout out
• 18:07
  to you, our amazing listeners, for tuning in
• 18:10
  and spending your time with us. If you're interested
• 18:13
  in my digital courses, being coached or having
• 18:16
  me come and talk to your company, just go to
• 18:19
  Michael and fill out the request form. Remember,
• 18:23
  networking isn't about being perfect. It's about
• 18:26
  being present. So take what you've learned today,
• 18:29
  get out there and make some meaningful connections.
• 18:33
  If you've enjoyed this episode, please don't
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  forget to subscribe. Leave us a review and share
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  it with someone who could use a little networking
• 18:41
  inspiration. Let's keep the conversation going.
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  or my website, foreman .com slash podcasts.