|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Small business planning. 22 listings remaining next update
in
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Featured Listings
We are the Mecca of online business development.
Step by step business startup guide only $20.60
www.morganaccords.com
|
|
|
|
Stop Being
a Pathetic Loser and Start Making Millions. Top
Affiliate earns $30k+month. Get a Free Adsense
site
www.therichjerk.com
|
|
|
|
Are analysts expecting the New Orleans real estate
market to explode?
www.norealestates.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Business networking
Free business networking
Get free access to our business networking
community. Our blog forum allows you to get
tips, marketing strategies and first hand instruction
from world's leading Internet marketing gurus. Click
here
.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Business networking
Strategies for Successful Business Networking by Stephen
Labuda
Networking is a popular buzzword these days. Every blogger seems
to be talking about Networking, Buzz Marketing and Word of Mouth
Marketing. However, not many of them seem to be presenting specific
strategies for making the most of local networking groups. This
is why I decided to write this article.
There are a variety of organizations that run networking groups
across the country. The largest group is probably BNI, which offers
members the chance to attend weekly meetings and develop new professional
relationships to help them grow their business. some chambers
of commerce are now organizing "leads groups" for their members
as well. These groups are intended to offer members a way to connect
with each other and potentially refer each other business.
In most "leads groups" each group allows no more then one representative
from any industry, so if the group has a mortgage broker other
mortgage brokers have to join another group or wait for the seat
to open up. The idea is that by restricting membership, you eliminate
competition within the group.
The agenda at most structured networking meetings is pretty straightforward.
Each member is given an opportunity to introduce themselves, then
there is a short presentation by one or two members (each member
gets the chance eventually). The meeting ends with members discussing
potential referrals for each other. This means that most of the
members get about one minute to present who they are and teach
the other members of the group how to refer to them.
Most people do a great job of presenting themselves. However,
most people do not think to ask for referrals. At most networking
events, you are not expected to ask for a referral or explain
what a good referral for you is. However, at a leads group it
is not only acceptable, it is expected!
I am involved in a number of networking groups and have used the
simple outline below to create my elevator pitch (quick introduction).
When I deliver my elevator pitch to a leads group, my goal is
to educate everyone in the room about my company and what I do,
as well as to teach them the best way to refer others to me. In
addition, I want to make sure I actually ask for a specific referral.
I will go through each piece of the outline in detail, but here
are the basics.
* Introduction
o Name
o Position + company name
o Location of the company
o Overview of services
* Tell a story
* Call to action
The introduction piece of your presentation should stay the same
every time you give it. You might say something like, "My name
is Joe Smith. I am mortgage broker at ABC mortgages in Anytown,
USA. We offer a full line of residential and commercial mortgage
products." You can add some additional detail, but you should
really focus on keeping this short and on point.
At each meeting, you will have the chance to differentiate yourself
from the competition by telling a short story during your presentation.
The story can be related to a specific challenge you helped a
client overcome, a unique feature of your product or service,
or you can simply talk about a new development at your company.
Consider writing out your stories in advance so you know what
you are going to say at each meeting. In addition, you can schedule
the content so that the other members of your group learn more
and more about you at each meeting. You need to focus on educating
your group a little more each week.
The "call to action" is very important and the piece that most
people overlook. You need to tell the other members of your group
exactly what type of referral you are looking for. For example,
our mortgage broker, Joe Smith, might say, "Today a good referral
for me would be a Realtor at XYZ real estate company." Joe may
also say, "Today a good referral for me would be anyone who purchased
their home more then 10 years ago."
I alway recommend that your "call to action" is as specific as
possible. If Joe stands up and says that a good referral would
be anyone who needs a mortgage, the rest of the group will have
a harder time thinking of people to refer. If Joe asks for an
introduction to a specific person at a specific company, someone
in the group may know that person or know someone at that company
who can facilitate Joe's introduction. The more specific the request,
the more likely it is to trigger someone else in the group's memory.
A last minute hint:
Keep focused on the networks of the people in the group, not on
the people themselves. In other words, when you are participating
in a networking or leads group, you should not focus on gaining
the business of the people at the table. Instead, you should focus
on gaining their trust so that they will refer you people in their
network.
More information about Stephen can be found on his blog at ArticleRich.com
|
|
|
|