A friend of mine took me to a Chamber event this week. The Chamber has an excellent reputation, but I hadn’t been to an event yet. And now I probably won’t go back.

It wasn’t a bad event, a little crowded, but that’s more of a good thing than a bad. The reason I’m not planning to go back is that I spent most of the event fending off fairly hard sell “join the Chamber” conversations.

I use the word “conversation” sarcastically. I didn’t actually have any conversations that evening. Few people I spoke to asked much about me beyond a superficial “what do you do?” One person actually spent about 10 minutes trying to talk me into joining. And made it difficult to gracefully leave the conversation (yeah, I tried the advice I gave on Wednesday, but she didn’t take the hint).

So enough about venting. How can you promote your Chamber or other networking organization in a positive way?

The short answer is to promote your organization the way you’d promote your business. Ask questions. Listen for needs. When you hear them, position your group as a way to address those needs.

Selling an organization is exactly the same as selling a product. If you do most of the talking, you’ll blow the sale.

We know when you are sincere and when you are just going through the motions. Find some common ground. Perhaps talk about why you’re in the Chamber and specifically what the benefit to you has been.

Then ask if the other person would like more information. If he or she says no, back off. I told every person that night that I wasn’t interested in joining because the location was bad for me. They all tried to talk me out of thinking that way by telling me about other events (all at equally bad times.)

You need to realize that your organization isn’t for everyone, but if you leave a good impression, they may refer others to you. Ironically, I have referred a number of people to that Chamber. Not so sure I’m going to continue. Don’t leave that impression with other people about your organization, please.

I was at an event a couple of weeks ago, and I was approached about joining the hosting group.

I was interested after talking to the first person who approached me. It seemed that the group had synergy with me and might lead to some excellent contacts. I was mentally working out how it would fit in with my overall networking plan when member number two butted into the conversation.

He asked what I did. I told him I was a networking and social media coach. He asked if I were a member. I said, “No, but I’m thinking about it.” His response? “Shame on you. You should join right away.”

He then launched into a lengthy explanation of why I should join, starting with “we don’t have anyone in your profession who is already a member.” He went on for almost five minutes on the benefits of networking. (Did he miss what I said I did for a living?)

What all did he do wrong? More like, what didn’t he do wrong!

Attempting to “shame” me into joining. Obviously not listening to what I said I did and thinking I needed an explanation on the benefits of networking. His manner was generally obnoxious, and he didn’t shut up until (finally!) they asked us to sit to listen to the speaker.

Oh, did I mention that he tried to embarrass the speaker during his presentation?

Before you ask, no, this was not a BNI meeting or any similar type of group.

I’m sure none of you would be this obnoxious to a potential member of your networking group or professional organization, but I tell the story to remind you to always be aware when you are asking someone to join. Hard sell, obnoxious techniques don’t work. Listen to the other person. Find out his or her needs. Show how your group can address those. And then shut up and let the person think.

It’s too bad. I think the group would have been worth joining. But the thought of having to deal with him every month has definitely put me off.