Get to the point.
The best lobbyists get to the point immediately. They don’t waste other people’s times. They ask what they need to know, get the answers, and thank the person they are meeting and leave.
A former boss in DG Environment taught this No.1 Rule to me many years ago. He always accepted a request for a meeting from one lobbyist. One day he explained to me why he did.
He explained “X, he just comes in, says who his client is, mentions the issue, and asks what the client needs to know. He is always polite and straight to the point. As soon as he has his answer, he thanks me for the time and leaves. He is always polite. I usually find myself having rare spare time in my agenda”.
Powerpoint – Modern Day Corporate Board Waterboarding
Most of the time people try an alternative approach. They bring out the 62 page powerpoint, and start a slow and painful process that is akin to corporate water-boarding. Around page 57 they will get to the point and ask the question.
The politician or senior official will wonder why they ever accepted the meeting and will be begging for the meeting to end. Fortunately, as the 62 page powerpoint was not rehearsed, the clock has timed out before the key point and questions and have been reached.
An hour of peoples’ lives has gone up in smoke. No answers will be have been secured. The official or politician is perplexed what the meeting was all about.
Get to the point before hand
I find the following extra two steps helpful.
Send a briefing before hand.
I send a 1 page briefing a few days ahead of the meeting. It lays out the issue, from the client’s perspective, and the questions to be raised. It helps avoid any doubt about what the meeting is for. I find it ensures the answers to the questions are secured. I find that my briefings are similar in style, tone and content to any standard civil servant briefing, so not more than 1 page.
Don’t send it on the morning of the meeting. Send it a few days ahead to give them time to read it.
Speak to their advisor
A call a week in advance to one of the officials at the meeting helps. Letting them know what questions will come up from the client’s side allows them time to find the answer. The whole point of a meeting is just to get the answers you need and nothing more. So, it makes sense to prepare the ground to get the answers.