BBC2 had a very thought provoking programme on last night about how small the world really is and that if we all just made a little bit more effort we could get in contact with some amazing people. It was all about the six degrees of separation. If you didn’t see it take a look at the BBC iPlayer http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00kdtvv/Six_Degrees_of_Separation/

Most people know about the six degrees of separation i.e. we are only separated by six people or six steps to someone else here on planet earth.  Many people thought it was just an urban myth but they weren’t. Experiments done in the 1960’s by Stanley Milgram asked 300 random people to get a package to a stockbroker in Boston.  They couldn’t send it direct, they could only send the package to someone who they thought might know the stockbroker. Amazing 29% of the packages reached the stockbroker through 6 connections or less.

A similar experiment was conducted in the UK 2003 when 100 random people had to get a letter to an events organiser in Cheltenham. This experiment by Prof. Richard Wiseman had a similar outcome and proved that we are much closer than we think to people we want to get in touch with.

So how can you make this six degrees theory work for you business and use it in your marketing tool box. Its simple and it’s a technique that we use with our clients all the time

1. just take a few mintues to write down the names or company names of 10 ideal customers that you know would really benefit from your product or service, but you have been unable to get in touch with.
2. Get a large sheet of paper and put your name or company name in a circle in the middle of it. Then write down everyone you know,  and we mean everyone, from school friends to business colleagues to golf club members. You can group them in these categories if it make it easier. We call this exercise the Circle of Influence as it makes you see how many connections and influencers you really do have around you.
3. Now try and see which people could help you get in touch with each of your ideal customers. They may not be able to contact you directly, but they may work with someone who could or work in a company related to the type of new cleint you want.

4. Get in touch with the individuals and ask them if they or any of their colleagues could introduce you to your ideal client.
5. See what happens….

Trust us, you might not get introductions to all 10 ideal customers, but you might just get to talk to a couple. It will have cost you nothing but time, and who knows they might be very keen to work with you. It’s one of the cheapest and most effective marketing tools there is.