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Casual Articles - 3 Easy Ways to Boost Your Business With Networking
Anyone can get the axe at any time. It happens to good people and bad ones...hard workers as well as slackers."We feel you would be happier working for another company.""Sorry, business is falling off. We no longer need your services.""Operations are being consolidated in Mexico. The Bedrock Plant will be closed Feb. 1."Sugar-coated or not, the message is the same: You're fired! You've been sacked. You are out of a job!13 Steps To Survive and ProsperTherefore, it makes common sense to know what to do to survive and prosper should you ever get the dreaded "pink slip".1. Keep in mind that in the current environment the idea of womb to tomb job security is as dead as a hammer. Be loyal to your present employer, but never develop a romance with the organization. Know that the relationship can end at any time. There is enough suffering in store for anyone over the loss of a job without adding the pains of an unrequite
Personally I prefer small events because I get more business out of it. That is why with Biba4Network most of my events are limited to 15 people. Even if sometimes I organize mixers - where I have 30 to 60 people - as a way of spreading the word and bringing everybody together. But small groups allow you to: start a relationship right away, have the time to really introduce yourself and your business, which is more efficient than speaking with somebody for 3 seconds, giving your card to
One of the things that make us all so unique and special is that we all have different personalities. Even those of us who have similar personality traits are slightly different to each other. But have you ever wondered how your personality is affecting your career? If not you should because the way that you approach tasks, the way that you interact with others and your general attitude can have a huge impact on your career. Your personality can impact the types of career choices that you make as well as how you fare in gaining career advancement opportunities.To find out how your personality is affecting your career complete the following quiz:During team meetings you are most likely to: a. Take charge, lead the direction of the meeting and walk out at the end of the meeting having achieved your desired result b. Contribute a dozen or so ideas each one more exciting than the other, feel disappointed if any of your ideas are rejected
Here are 3 easy and low cost ways to maximize your networking results:
1 - Follow-up
Usually, people like big events. They feel great when they enter a room packed with people. Big events are great if your goal is to get a bunch of business cards, but not if you are trying to get business. What do you do with all those cards? Be honest, most people put them on their desk or in a shoe box, eventually enter the information on their rolodex, but don’t do anything with them. Why? Because they collected so many that they are overwhelmed and don’t know how or where to start.. They just don’t have a follow-up system.
Statistics show that we need to hear or see a message at least 7 times in order to notice it. So if you follow up only 2 or 3 times you are losing business. A networking event is a way of introducing yourself and starting a relationship with the people you meet. It is definitely not a place to sell. That is why so many people are confused – they missed the point and wanted to sell right away. You may get a client after an event but usually networking takes time, patience and consistency.
That is why it is important not only to have a follow-up system but to have a 7 step follow-up system in place.
• Send an email in the next 24 hours.
• Send a thank you note (in this age of technology, sending a handwritten thank you note will make you stand out from the crowd).
• Send a postcard
• Send articles or information related to their industry
• Use direct mail
• Send a newsletter
• And of course, call them
Be creative in order to follow-up and differentiate yourself from others, especially from your competitors. Stand out from the average entrepreneurs. Be unique!
2 – Join a networking group. Choose the best format for you.
Personally I prefer small events because I get more business out of it. That is why with Biba4Network most of my events are limited to 15 people. Even if sometimes I organize mixers - where I have 30 to 60 people - as a way of spreading the word and bringing everybody together. But small groups allow you to: start a relationship right away, have the time to really introduce yourself and your business, which is more efficient than speaking with somebody for 3 seconds, giving your card to
Brainstorming: When you and your group or improvement team wish to generate as many ideas as possible in as short a time as possible.It’s Powerful It’s Quick It’s Fun It’s MisusedHowever simple we think this tool is, if we do not set the groundrules, or fail to follow them, we will be very disappointed with the outcome. Some team members may even be fearful to contribute fully – giving safe, guarded inputs.This is NOT what Brainstorming is all about!Before a project or improvement team can make decisions, it's important to examine as many options as possible. Brainstorming is one of the easiest, creative ways to generate a list of ideas through getting EVERY team member involved.Let's have a look at the structure and the process...Your TeamArrange the meeting for your improvement group or team - between 4 and 8 people is a good siz
Statistics show that we need to hear or see a message at least 7 times in order to notice it. So if you follow up only 2 or 3 times you are losing business. A networking event is a way of introducing yourself and starting a relationship with the people you meet. It is definitely not a place to sell. That is why so many people are confused – they missed the point and wanted to sell right away. You may get a client after an event but usually networking takes time, patience and consistency.
That is why it is important not only to have a follow-up system but to have a 7 step follow-up system in place.
• Send an email in the next 24 hours.
• Send a thank you note (in this age of technology, sending a handwritten thank you note will make you stand out from the crowd).
• Send a postcard
• Send articles or information related to their industry
• Use direct mail
• Send a newsletter
• And of course, call them
Be creative in order to follow-up and differentiate yourself from others, especially from your competitors. Stand out from the average entrepreneurs. Be unique!
2 – Join a networking group. Choose the best format for you.
Personally I prefer small events because I get more business out of it. That is why with Biba4Network most of my events are limited to 15 people. Even if sometimes I organize mixers - where I have 30 to 60 people - as a way of spreading the word and bringing everybody together. But small groups allow you to: start a relationship right away, have the time to really introduce yourself and your business, which is more efficient than speaking with somebody for 3 seconds, giving your card to
No, customers aren't bloodsuckers (well, maybe a few are!) and they don't come out only at night. According to legend, vampires don't come in until they are invited. And that's true of customers, too.You may think you've invited your customers. After all, you put up signs identifying your store, got a web site, placed ads, sent press releases, networked, put out fliers, etc.Those things can let your customers know you exist, but to be effective they should include invitations to customers. That doesn't mean sending actual invitations, it means creating a reason for them to come, and communicating that reason to them. We're talking about giving customers a 'call to action'.First, make sure you know what you want them to do. Do you want them to contact you for more information, pay a visit, make a first purchase, make larger or more frequent purchases? Once you know what results you want, you can tailor a call to action which inspires that rea
That is why it is important not only to have a follow-up system but to have a 7 step follow-up system in place.
• Send an email in the next 24 hours.
• Send a thank you note (in this age of technology, sending a handwritten thank you note will make you stand out from the crowd).
• Send a postcard
• Send articles or information related to their industry
• Use direct mail
• Send a newsletter
• And of course, call them
Be creative in order to follow-up and differentiate yourself from others, especially from your competitors. Stand out from the average entrepreneurs. Be unique!
2 – Join a networking group. Choose the best format for you.
Personally I prefer small events because I get more business out of it. That is why with Biba4Network most of my events are limited to 15 people. Even if sometimes I organize mixers - where I have 30 to 60 people - as a way of spreading the word and bringing everybody together. But small groups allow you to: start a relationship right away, have the time to really introduce yourself and your business, which is more efficient than speaking with somebody for 3 seconds, giving your card to
If you want to get consistent results from your marketing, you need to stay visible to clients and prospects. But, how do you do that?It's not going to do you a whole lot of good if you produce a bunch of great marketing stuff and nobody ever reads it. And, it's pretty hard to keep the ball rolling if someone hears about you once and then you disappear after that.Lots of people are "out there" getting that all important first visibility through networking, doing presentations, handing out business cards, and even getting a visit to the web site. But too often, there's no way to maintain the contact.Call It A Need To Be Loved.You see, for my business, I don't want my clients and prospects to forget me. When they have a marketing issue to be addressed, I hope they think of me first. When someone in their network of contacts has a marketing challenge, I hope they think of me first again.The best way I've found to maintain th
• Send an email in the next 24 hours.
• Send a thank you note (in this age of technology, sending a handwritten thank you note will make you stand out from the crowd).
• Send a postcard
• Send articles or information related to their industry
• Use direct mail
• Send a newsletter
• And of course, call them
Be creative in order to follow-up and differentiate yourself from others, especially from your competitors. Stand out from the average entrepreneurs. Be unique!
2 – Join a networking group. Choose the best format for you.
Personally I prefer small events because I get more business out of it. That is why with Biba4Network most of my events are limited to 15 people. Even if sometimes I organize mixers - where I have 30 to 60 people - as a way of spreading the word and bringing everybody together. But small groups allow you to: start a relationship right away, have the time to really introduce yourself and your business, which is more efficient than speaking with somebody for 3 seconds, giving your card to
The lead-inToday our world is completely different compared to the early years of industrialism or even in comparison to just ten fifteen years ago. Our modern society is more or less totally transparent and the consumers are in command. To be successful today you need a genuine interest to listen to them and to understand their needs by implementing engaged, humble and respectful conversations. Not by polluting the world with just another shouting advertising campaign. As a reminiscence, a short resume of David Report issue 4 – The credibility Loop:“Today advertising is a questionable effort both to build recognition and to build a brand. The academic elite as well as business professionals have a second thought how to do. It’s all about building a trustworthy and reliable partnership with your (future) customers. To become a part of their mind so to speak. And when most people are sick and tired of all advertising everywhere, there must be a bette
Personally I prefer small events because I get more business out of it. That is why with Biba4Network most of my events are limited to 15 people. Even if sometimes I organize mixers - where I have 30 to 60 people - as a way of spreading the word and bringing everybody together. But small groups allow you to: start a relationship right away, have the time to really introduce yourself and your business, which is more efficient than speaking with somebody for 3 seconds, giving your card to them and then going on to the next person.
Recently, I attended an event, where there were about 80 people. I thought I was actually joining a more intimate group but it was too late to leave. So I decided that my goal would be to speak with 5 people so that way I would have the time for a real conversation. While I was speaking with somebody, a woman came up to me, interrupted our conversation and said, “I just wanted you to have my card.” She put her card in my hand and left. She didn’t introduce herself, tell me her name or find out who I was or what I did. But apparently her goal was to give out as much business cards as she could during the event. Not only is this attitude very rude but it is also totally useless. However, I thought that maybe she was new to networking and didn’t know how it works so I gave her the benefit of the doubt. The next day I sent her an email to follow-up, to get a chance to learn more about her business. Guess what! She never returned my email and of course never called. So what is the purpose? No wonder so many people say that networking is not working.
To achieve better results in networking, join a minimum of two groups and commit to it instead of trying to go to every event and meet people only once. Being committed to a group will help you to build a relationship, learn about people, trust them and then do business with them. When you get to know and trust them you will either work with them directly if you need their products or services, or you will give them referrals because you know that if you send people to them they will be satisfied with the result. And you don’t want to be in a position to refer somebody to someone else whose work is bad, as this will have a negative impact on your reputation.
3 – Create strategic alliances
Would you rather meet a thousand people, one at a time, or meet a few people who will each introduce you to a thousand. Most people see networking events as a place to get contacts one at a time or make one sale at a time.
Now think about this. What about looking for people who have the same target market as you, but are not your competi
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