Industry Spotlight: Q&A with Master Connector, Jordan Clemons
For this spotlight, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jordan Clemons, Senior Investor Development Manager at GLI.
Jordan is a professional connector with an innate ability to craft a relatable, insightful, and downright charming personal brand. He’s cracked the code on how to make networking feel genuine … and fun. Let’s just say he’s a master salesman, minus all the things you hate about sales.
Learn more about his approach to networking and how he successfully leverages LinkedIn to extend reach and build relationships.
JM: You were just ranked as the #12 top sales professional by the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives. Congratulations! What do you contribute to your success?
JC: I've only been trying to be good at sales for nine years now, so it's about time that it started working. I didn’t go to school for sales, I had to learn how to network, sell, and basically, all the stuff that makes someone successful in my role slowly over time.
Being the sole breadwinner with two kids and a wife at home means I gotta make it work. There's no going to the office and playing solitaire, kicking my feet up, and taking it easy.
But most importantly, Louisville is an amazing community of people that are accessible and willing to help. I owe all of my success to that fact. I love where I work because I get the opportunity to meet so many great people. Everyone that I talk to is somebody that I can help in some way, shape, or form.
JM: At GLI, it’s part of your role to meet and engage with professionals. What strategies do you use to make connections?
JC: LinkedIn is a huge part of my strategy because of its low overhead and large reach.
I connect with people all day long. But I don't like to request a connection and never start a conversation. There's a reason you connect; sometimes those conversations can go places. When it comes to a social media platform like LinkedIn, you can do that on a massive scale, right? You can do that with 15-20 people per day organically. You can plant so many seeds every day, and it only takes 5-10 minutes in the morning.
JM: How do you build meaningful relationships and make sales and networking feel more personal on a digital channel?
JC: I post content that’s related to Louisville – music, food, economic development, etc. From a content perspective, if you’re in the Louisville business world, there's a good chance that you're going to find it interesting. I’m fortunate that it doesn’t have to be about a niche subject or industry.
When I see someone is a 2nd-degree connection and they react to one of my posts, I always reach out and say, “thanks for liking my [insert whatever the post was about], would you like to connect?”
Bypass the easy button with the standard LinkedIn request message. It’s a low bar that you can easily hop over. It just takes one click, write a short message, and you’re going to stand out from everyone else.
Show them that you’re a person – ask an open-ended question. If they feel like playing ball and chatting for a minute, they will. And if they don’t, they won't. Either way, you’re connected at this point and there’s the opportunity for it to come back around. Connecting is a great way to stay top-of-mind.
Steer the conversation to an organic place and avoid having commission breath. People know when you’re trying to sell them something and they can see right through that. You can avoid that by having these conversations at scale and working to fill the pipelines so that you can come across as more genuine and really look out for people's best interests.
JM: What best practices can you offer to LinkedIn rookies looking to increase their engagement?
JC: Intentionally make it a habit to post and engage every day. Book time on your calendar, so you don't forget. Try to have a ritual or routine. I always tell people to do it while they’re drinking their morning coffee, warm up and open the platform. See if there's something you can engage with, try to think of something to share with your network, and just do that every day. Or if that's too intimidating, do it Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Or if that's too intimidating, do it one day a week.
Here’s the process I follow:
Post once per day
Connect with people who have engaged with your posts
Once your invitation request is accepted, start a conversation
When I first started out as a financial advisor, my content wasn’t engaging but I was working on building a habit. I was making sure I used the platform to stay connected to people. I usually only post once per day in the morning. I look at it like I’ve got five shots a week … I cast a net every single day.
I look at my engagements religiously. I don't really sweat over it, but I know what tends to work and what doesn't.
JM: Networking and networking events can be awkward. Do you have any tips to make it feel more fun and natural?
JC: I think back to my early days and if I managed to even make myself drive to a networking event, then I had to talk myself into getting out of the car—and it didn't always work. I vividly remember those experiences. But I would always find that in those scenarios when I did go in, something great always happened. If not only for the fact that I got more confident and comfortable in those situations.
As far as gamifying it, I always suggest that people go to networking events and aim to get a certain number of business cards. It gives you a goal to try to reach so you know that you were productive with your time. Number two, it keeps you from finding that one person who's nice to talk to and clinging to them as your security blanket.
Be intentional with what you’re doing and whom you’re trying to reach.
JM: Beyond the initial meeting or conversation, how do you follow up and stay connected with a contact?
JC: I rely heavily on a well-organized CRM – categorized emails, notes from initial meetings, shared resources, etc. If you’re in sales and don’t have a CRM, you’re going to have a bad time.
More importantly, caring about people and really listening to what they're doing, and understanding them on a personal level is what sales is all about. It’s about relating to another human.
JM: Is there a secret sauce to creating a personal brand that attracts others?
JC: Growing up, I was more introverted and quiet. When I started networking as a financial advisor, I was in this very uncomfortable position of wearing suits and talking to people way older than me about things I didn’t really know much about. It was hard. I had a pit in my stomach when I woke up every morning. I had to do a lot of coaching myself to just do the basic stuff that the job required.
But I went out and just tried to be genuine. I met people by being present at places that I was genuinely interested in. I volunteered with LIBA, Forecastle Foundation, Louisville Public Media, and YPAL. These are things that I like. My approach was to show up as who I am and have people get to know me as a person. They’re going to see that I’m dressed nicely and learn what I do vs. coming at them first with my angle and goal.
My LinkedIn strategy has really helped to form that brand, because it’s a platform for me to share with a community and an audience the cool things I’m doing and what I care about at a large scale. My intention was never to be known for this, but that's sort of a byproduct of being authentic, open, and real.
JM: What advice do you have for Louisville businesses looking to create awareness and get more plugged into the professional community?
JC: You have to get out there and tell people to their face about what you do. You can't be stuck behind the computer all day. Just because you're busy, doesn't mean that you're being productive. Put yourself in situations where you're uncomfortable. If you're uncomfortable, you're probably doing the right thing. Louisville is a really open and accessible community, so you won’t be uncomfortable for too long
It's a testament to what I do now, but as long as you just go out there and are friendly to people in this town, you can get people to know, like, and trust you, which is the basis for any business relationship. If that's what your goal is as a business, invite people to coffee, follow up with them, and ask for their help.
