{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Analog-ish: Seeking low-tech ideas in a high-tech world","title":"How to Network like a Human with Brandon Drake","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":1946,"description":"In this episode, you'll hear from Brandon Drake, a relationship-driven CRM consultant who's built a 7,000+ person networking system that scores people on how genuinely reciprocal they are — not how useful they might be. Becky and Brandon dig into why \"networking\" makes so many of us cringe, the difference between go-giver and go-getter mentalities, and the exact red flags (and green flags) Brandon listens for in a first conversation. Brandon breaks down how he gamified his CRM with an engagement scoring system, why he refuses to work with CRMs that use \"stair-step pricing,\" and how automation actually freed him up to be more human with the people who matter. If you've ever felt weird about networking, or you're drowning in a LinkedIn list of 4,000 names you barely remember, this conversation offers a genuinely different way to think about relationship-building in business.\nTopics Covered:\n• Why the \"used car salesman\" version of networking feels so bad, and what relationship-driven networking looks like instead\n• The go-giver vs. go-getter mindset, and why corporate conditioning trains people to ask \"what can I get from this person?\"\n• The one question Brandon asks to instantly reveal whether someone is relationship-driven or purely transactional: \"Who are your strategic partners?\"\n• Red flags Brandon watches for in a first meeting, jumping straight to \"target audience,\" rattling off accomplishments, not respecting calendar/time boundaries\n• Green flags that tell Brandon someone is a match, asking how they can help him before he asks them, admitting a mistake and correcting course\n• How Brandon gamified his CRM with a points-based engagement score built from both human judgment (tags like \"community oriented\" or \"salesy\") and hard data (email opens, replies, referrals)\n• Why he has over 7,000 people in his CRM and how the engagement score helps him prioritize who to reconnect with\n• His argument that automation and AI, used well, don't replace human connection,...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/fPW6xaQdObbHuGsU5vjZ9UAqm4t6N4aArny6duTpePk/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9kN2E3/YWU0N2NiMGJlMjU5/ZmQ1OWRiODgyOWJk/YzRjYi5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}