Finding success close to home

Published on Thursday, October 01, 2009

BY GLENN RITT

Four years ago, Erin Madden met the two founders of the Cape Cod Young Professionals, and was inspired by both their ties to the region and their commitment to professional development. Today, she is on the board of directors of the group, which has grown to more than 700 members.

Erin Madden watched her father leave IBM and successfully start up his own company from the basement of their home on Cape Cod. That experience convinced her she could follow her professional and personal destiny without leaving the peninsula.

After earning her undergraduate degree in communications from Suffolk University, she went from part-time work at Cape Cod Broadcasting to a full-time assignment selling advertising for its radio stations and online property, CapeCod.com.

“Throughout high school and college, I had so many people tell me that to be successful I would have to leave the Cape,” she says. “I never subscribed to that attitude.”

We spoke to her recently to explore her views on the local economy, the art of selling, business relationships and networking.

How did you establish your professional roots right out of college?

I never looked at what I do as a job, but rather as a career path. The best way I thought to get started was to meet as many smart people as I could and to develop mentors. I knew that I had to network. So I would take advantage of every opportunity I could to represent Cape Cod Broadcasting at chamber events or BNI breakfasts. That almost always was on my own time, but I knew that was an investment in a career.

Your job is to sell. How do you approach that assignment?

Selling can be a bad word. But I see myself as a salesperson who doesn’t really like to sell. I have met many people who go about sales from a very short-term perspective. I see it as a long-term investment in a client. I want to be a partner, to learn as much as I can about a business. Who are their customers? What is their business cycle? What makes them different in a competitive world? My job is to help figure out their strategy for success. That takes time, but it brings big dividends – and I see myself as a solution maker who uses sales tools to create success. I see my job as identifying what a business does best and letting that open doors to the right clients and customers.

What have you learned about how businesses can survive and thrive in a challenging economy?

I think businesses need to wrap their arms around their customers and take a good look at their own business and how it interacts every day with people. The best business owners make sure to touch their customers, or at least make sure that their staff is well-versed in the company’s mission and values so there is not a disconnect between the owner and the customer.

I was deeply impressed listening to someone who has been through economic cycles many times, David Kirkpatrick, founder of Plymouth Rock Studios. He told the CCYP last fall that ‘A crisis is a terrible thing to waste.’

That has stuck with me. If you can take a step back and ask yourself: What is the absolute best way I can serve a client or customer – and then do it beyond expectations, you can grow your business.

Another thing that is critical is to avoid selling your business short by cutting back your marketing during these tough economic times. Now, of course, my job is to sell marketing tools, but it is true: Any way you can keep yourself in front of the customer during the recession is critical, so you will be well positioned to grow once the market turns up.

In school, I studied how during the Great Depression, Kellogg’s continued to market while Post pulled back. At the time, they were neck and neck selling cereal. To this day, Post has never caught up with Kellogg’s.

How important is networking?

It’s important on many levels. For me, it lets me meet as many different business people as I can and learn about what they do and how they do it. If you simply ask people about their business and then stay quiet, you learn what they do best and how you can do that too.

Many people I encounter become mentors to me. As a young professional that is invaluable. In many cases, they introduce me to their network of colleagues. You never know where the next customer or client may come from.

That, of course, puts a premium not only on your own ethics and intentions, but also on those of the company you represent. I am very fortunate to work for a company and owner, Greg Bone, who is very honest and trustworthy. I always know I will be supported in supporting my clients.

Can you assess the opportunities for other young professionals in the region?

The ones I meet are doing pretty well. Of course, they are the ones attracted to a professional organization like the CCYP, so they are ambitious and outward thinking.

In some ways, the economy has been a gauntlet for many young professionals – some of whom have lost their jobs and others having difficulty gaining traction. But for many others, it has helped – especially on the housing front. Three years ago, I looked around for a home – prices then made it unattainable. Now, first-time homebuyers are driving the market. In that sense, there is growing hope that young professionals like myself will be able to remain here.

Do you have a last word?

Get out there and meet people. Ask questions. Get yourself engaged in the business community. I have found that the more people you know, the more doors will open for you. ■


Published in Cape & Plymouth Business October 2009