Thursday, January 08, 2009
Networking – Avoidance or Powerful Marketing?
More networking meeting invitations are pouring through my inbox than ever. New networking groups are starting up and existing ones are expanding at an unprecedented rate. In a way it is quite good to hear that the networking message is being taken up with such enthusiasm. I could attend networking meetings morning, noon and night for the whole month but would it help me to grow my business?
It is only too easy for networking to become a way of avoiding business issues. The argument runs something along the lines of, “I’m taking positive action by attending networking meetings, by growing my contact base and by refining and developing my message.” It can be very seductive, but it can also be self deluding.
To be successful in networking, you need to have a plan. What is it that networking should be doing for you? It can be as simple as getting to know more business people in your area or business sector but it can also be a powerful business builder if you approach it in the right way.
Know what you want and what you can offer to the other people in the meeting. Be clear about who you are and what you and your business can do. Try to make it something that others can understand and remember. In networking it is you as an individual that others will relate to and your business depends on how you come across in meetings. By knowing what you want, you can pick up on cues in conversation to find the people who need your service and also the people who can advocate your service.
Be prepared to give to the group. When others give their introductions or explain their issues and needs, pay attention to them and, where you can, offer help and advice. Networking is a conversation not a selling pitch. Pay attention to the other people there. After all, if you don’t listen to them, how can you expect them to listen to you?
Understand your reputation and build on it. Your reputation is built on your visibility, your clarity and, most importantly, your generosity towards others. Your actions and your words build an impression of you in the others in the group. By taking a full part in the activities of the group and by being attentive to the needs and issues that others present, your reputation will grow positively. If you are tempted to start selling your goods or services, resist. Networking events are seldom a good place for the harder sell.
Build advocates by advocating others. Networking is a recipriocal activity and if you don’t recommend others, why would they recommend you?
Dismiss no-one. It is tempting to focus on those you think are the quality contacts in the group and ignore the others – but don’t. The defect in the oft-deployed quality argument is that you can never know who they know or when you can help them.
A word of caution - networking can take time to pay off. One major project of mine in 2008 began with someone I met in networking meetings in 2004 and had lost touch with. My Facebook profile prompted my client to contact me and the project developed from there. Not only did it take four years to happen, it also came through a network that isn’t my primary business focus.
Networking is not a stand-alone activity. It must be part of a wider marketing mix. From networking contacts, you can schedule meetings to understand each others’ businesses better and, from some of those, longer term business relationships may build. Your networking group may never be your customers – but their contacts may be.
Networking is not selling but it can and does lead to sales.
It is only too easy for networking to become a way of avoiding business issues. The argument runs something along the lines of, “I’m taking positive action by attending networking meetings, by growing my contact base and by refining and developing my message.” It can be very seductive, but it can also be self deluding.
To be successful in networking, you need to have a plan. What is it that networking should be doing for you? It can be as simple as getting to know more business people in your area or business sector but it can also be a powerful business builder if you approach it in the right way.
Know what you want and what you can offer to the other people in the meeting. Be clear about who you are and what you and your business can do. Try to make it something that others can understand and remember. In networking it is you as an individual that others will relate to and your business depends on how you come across in meetings. By knowing what you want, you can pick up on cues in conversation to find the people who need your service and also the people who can advocate your service.
Be prepared to give to the group. When others give their introductions or explain their issues and needs, pay attention to them and, where you can, offer help and advice. Networking is a conversation not a selling pitch. Pay attention to the other people there. After all, if you don’t listen to them, how can you expect them to listen to you?
Understand your reputation and build on it. Your reputation is built on your visibility, your clarity and, most importantly, your generosity towards others. Your actions and your words build an impression of you in the others in the group. By taking a full part in the activities of the group and by being attentive to the needs and issues that others present, your reputation will grow positively. If you are tempted to start selling your goods or services, resist. Networking events are seldom a good place for the harder sell.
Build advocates by advocating others. Networking is a recipriocal activity and if you don’t recommend others, why would they recommend you?
Dismiss no-one. It is tempting to focus on those you think are the quality contacts in the group and ignore the others – but don’t. The defect in the oft-deployed quality argument is that you can never know who they know or when you can help them.
A word of caution - networking can take time to pay off. One major project of mine in 2008 began with someone I met in networking meetings in 2004 and had lost touch with. My Facebook profile prompted my client to contact me and the project developed from there. Not only did it take four years to happen, it also came through a network that isn’t my primary business focus.
Networking is not a stand-alone activity. It must be part of a wider marketing mix. From networking contacts, you can schedule meetings to understand each others’ businesses better and, from some of those, longer term business relationships may build. Your networking group may never be your customers – but their contacts may be.
Networking is not selling but it can and does lead to sales.
