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I've made a proposal to a prospect and he suggested we have a 'business lunch' and eventually continue afterwords in their office.

How should I prepare for it? Any DOes and DONTs?

P.S. This is not-off topic as while pitching their products many startuppers may end up in the same situation.

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Your question is too broad and doesn't fit the format. – dnbrv Jan 26 '12 at 20:44
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we need more information like what you hope to get out of the meeting, a general sense of what you're talking about, etc... – David Mokon Bond Jan 26 '12 at 22:12
Would be useful knowing. Gather info about who is he, what may be expecting. Try to understand why you have 2 meetings, perhaps if you provide more context we could be more helpful. As in any social gathering, be you self, know your limits and feel comfortable with what you are doing. – pdjota Jan 26 '12 at 22:49

2 Answers

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My best advise to you is keep the lunch social and the meeting afterwords business. Don't try to sell or discuss business at lunch unless he brings it up first and then be extremely careful not to be pushy.

The reason for lunch is to get to know you as a person. The reason for the meeting is to discuss your product and doing business.

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Great question! This is clearly an opportunity for you to promot yourself and tell more about who you are, why they should invest in you/your ideas, and have a relationship with you in the long run.

Keep it social, show Internet, listen, lough and push your agenda slowly. Don't be aggressive. If they like you, you just earned an extra point in your proposal.

Oh...good luck!

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