There’s no technology needed for this one.  No fancy social media.  No mega-buck marketing campaign.

Just you.

See, I’m working on a new revival.

Not the musical kind. And not the 16 week kind with a Hollywood star.

I’m trying to revive . . . good ol’ fashioned, face-to-face, networking.

I was on a panel recently, and was asked a whole slew of questions about how I did things, from raising money, to selling groups, to getting press, and so forth.  While I was going through a list of some of my “greatest hits”, I traced 90% of them back to a simple and honest personal relationship that started with a handshake.

They weren’t all relationships that stretched back to college, or summer stock. Some were based on quick meetings that lasted no longer than 15 minutes.  But they did involve two people being in the same space at the same time.

Want some specifics?

• I met two of my largest investors at a performance of one of my shows.  They just looked like they were having fun, so we started talking.  And then they started investing.
• I’ve sold tickets to Godspell by talking to people on the subway platform, at a blackjack table, and on an Amtrak train.
• I convinced an actor to do a show of mine by flying across the country to have lunch.

Electronic communication is fantastic.  It allows you to reach more people, and allows you to reach them faster.

But the conversion rate of email, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and every other e-tool out there is a lot lower than the conversion rate of a request after you’ve met someone in person.

Because a real handshake beats an e-handshake 9 times out of 10.

(Got a comment? I love ’em, so comment below! Email subscribers, click here, then scroll down, to say what’s on your mind!)

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FUN STUFF:

– Win two tickets to see If It Only Even Runs A Minute!  Click here.

– Take the How To Market Your Show With No Money seminar on 3/20!  Click here.

– Take the Musical Boot Camp!  Click here for info and an application.

– Broadway Road Trip from DC on 4/28.  Click here.