Most salespeople are sitting on a goldmine—but treating it like gravel.
You wouldn't waste time chasing a prospect without qualification. So why are you neglecting the qualified relationships you already have?
If you're like most professionals, you've built a strong network over years of events, jobs, and chance encounters. But when it comes to activating that network, your behavior shifts. Instead of a proactive plan, there's hesitation. You collect business cards, but you don’t follow up. You connect on LinkedIn, but you never message people. You finish a great client project, but you forget to ask for a recommendation or referral. In short: You’re not qualifying.
That’s not just inefficiency. That’s passivity.
Passivity vs. Ownership: The Core Mindset Shift
Passivity sounds like this:
“They probably don’t remember me.”
“I don’t want to bother them.”
“If they wanted to help, they would have called.”
Ownership sounds like this:
“I earned this relationship—I have a responsibility to nurture it.”
“It’s my job to guide them to the next step, not wait for it.”
“There’s no such thing as a ‘warm lead’ if I never follow up.”
So … go for the no. Just as with qualifying a prospect, your job here is to test for mutual interest, relevance, and willingness to act. When this is done correctly, you will separate active contacts from inactive connections. Qualifying your network by going for the no can be the most high-leverage part of your entire sales process.
Run a Relationship Playbook After Every Win
Every time you close a deal or complete a successful project, execute these four steps as a qualification checklist:
Connect: Make sure you’re connected on LinkedIn.
Ask for an Endorsement: Request a short recommendation. Public praise is proof. It also tests how strong the relationship really is.
Ask for a Referral: Ask a specific question—“I see you know so-and-so – would you mind making an introduction connecting the two of us?”
Post the Proof: Publish a short case study. Let your network see the value you’ve delivered. Track who engages.
These steps mirror the steps of qualifying a buyer: identify the need, establish credibility, explore their network, and create visibility.
Introduction Requests Are the New Prospecting Calls
Cold calling works. But warm introductions work better—when done properly.
Instead of blasting messages to strangers, start by engaging with your LinkedIn first-degree connections. Use tools like Sales Navigator to trace mutual connections to decision-makers. Then, qualify by asking for help. Ask one person at a time, clearly and specifically, if they’d be open to introducing you.
Don’t ask five people at once for help. You wouldn't email five decision-makers at the same company asking, “Who’s the right person to talk to?” You’d look unprofessional if you did that.
Treat your introductions with the same discipline you’d bring to a sales opportunity: make sure your communications are targeted, intentional, and outcome-based.
When You Must Go Cold, Use Pattern Interrupts
Don’t open with “Let me tell you about my company.” Instead, lead with a connection point—shared interest, mutual experience, or a relevant insight.
Use Sales Navigator, company pages, podcast guest lists, or event speaker bios to find something that lets you interrupt the default. Show you did the research. Show you care. That earns you the right to qualify the relationship.
Track Like a Pro, Not a Tourist
Top salespeople don’t let hot leads go cold. Top networkers don’t let warm relationships fade.
Create lists of high-priority contacts—past clients, referral sources, prospects—and engage with them consistently. Like their posts. Celebrate their milestones. Offer insight when they publish content.
Consider every interaction a micro-test: Do they still know you? Do they still trust you? Are they still responsive?
If the answer is “yes,” you’re not far from a conversation.
Own It, Don’t Wait for It
Most pipelines don’t break because of strangers—they break because of neglect, because someone didn’t qualify their network. Because someone was too polite, too scared, or too passive to ask for something. So here’s the challenge:
Stop begging for new leads.
Start qualifying the ones you already have.
Run a process. Test interest. Follow up. Stay visible.
You’re sitting on a goldmine. Assume your next deal is already in your world—you just haven’t asked the right way yet. And if you or your team ever find yourselves in need of a little support when it comes to qualifying your network …. contact us.
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