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Added for You - Is Networking REALLY Worthwhile?
The discipline of marketing can often be complex and confusing. As a marketing veteran, I have seen countless marketing professionals get hung up on various aspects of marketing which have little impact on actual marketing results.Based on my experience, there are four critical elements to an effective marketing campaign. Whether you’re looking to improve your search engine marketing results, internet marketing, or marketing in general, be sure to follow these simple guidelines which I refer to as the A.T.O.M approach.A.T.O.M – Audience, Timing, Offer
Why is this so important? Because after your conversation is ended, you should have learned at least one thing about the other person so that, when you follow up with that person, you can reference that aspect of the conversation. (Wherever possible, jot down a few notes about the new contact – e.g., her children’s names or ages, phrases to describe her ideal client, etc.) on the back of each business card you acquire during the event. This will help trigger your mem
Why would you want to research your next employer? What is the purpose of knowing about the employer before even writing your resume? Well, in today's competitive job market, you have to be more astute and more creative than other job candidates, especially if they have more work-related experience than you do.Whatever they do, you have to do better.Being able to create a resume that targets one job at one company is the most effective way to beat out your competitors. Doing so may land you an interview. Then, knowing as much as possible about the c
Last week, I attended a networking event – it was a DISASTER! I am shy to begin with, so I knew I wouldn’t feel comfortable. But I had no idea how hard it would be. Everyone seemed to already know everyone else. I didn’t know when to interrupt a group and introduce myself. When I finally did, I got all tongue-tied and was not at all impressive. Can you give me some advice on how to better handle my next networking event? In light of my shyness, should I continue going to networking events? Could it really make a difference in my business?
In answer to your last question: ABSOLUTELY! Getting out in your community, meeting people and getting to know them, introducing others to your business, etc. are all VERY important to your long-term success. Believe me, you are in the majority where comfort levels are concerned. It’s rare to meet someone who “couldn’t wait” for their first networking event. More commonly, networking brings with it fear, uncertainty and anxiety. Here’s some advice to maximize your networking efforts:
* Understand your purpose. Networking is NOT about sales. Networking is NOT a place where you “push” yourself and/or your products and services on everyone you meet. To the contrary, networking is an opportunity to build relationships with others. This means that your purpose in attending is to meet people and begin to build a genuine, caring relationship with them. Getting to know other people – taking a sincere interest in them – is priority #1!
* Quality v. quantity. So many business owners make networking into a “contest” – to see how many business cards they can collect. That’s their goal: to collect as many cards as possible. My reaction to that: WRONG! Remember, your purpose is to meet people and get to know them in order to establish rapport with them. As a result, I advise my clients to meet as few as 5 people, but spend enough time with them to enable you to begin to establish a true relationship. Think about it: what good is leaving an event with 50 cards? You could get business owners’ contact information in the yellow pages. What makes a networking event successful for you is building quality relationships with people – be they prospective clients or others who can assist you in moving your business forward.
* Listen ACTIVELY to other people. When conversing with people at the event, be sure to do more listening than talking. (Remember: you have 2 ears and only 1 mouth – use them in that proportion.) Truly taking an interest in the other person requires that you not only ask questions (such as “how is your business going?” “what is your greatest challenge?” or “how long have you been in business?”), but that you LISTEN to their response. Some networking events are extremely loud, making it difficult to hear what the person next to you is saying. But you must make active listening a priority.
Why is this so important? Because after your conversation is ended, you should have learned at least one thing about the other person so that, when you follow up with that person, you can reference that aspect of the conversation. (Wherever possible, jot down a few notes about the new contact – e.g., her children’s names or ages, phrases to describe her ideal client, etc.) on the back of each business card you acquire during the event. This will help trigger your mem
"Culture is a like dropping an Alka-seltzer into a glass – you don’t see it, but somehow it does something," Hans Magnus Enzensberger.Culture affects everything we do. This applies to all areas of human life from personal relationships to conducting business abroad. When interacting within our native cultures, culture acts as a framework of understanding. However, when interacting with different cultures this framework no longer applies due to cross cultural differences.Cross cultural communication aims to help minimise the negative impact of cross cul
In answer to your last question: ABSOLUTELY! Getting out in your community, meeting people and getting to know them, introducing others to your business, etc. are all VERY important to your long-term success. Believe me, you are in the majority where comfort levels are concerned. It’s rare to meet someone who “couldn’t wait” for their first networking event. More commonly, networking brings with it fear, uncertainty and anxiety. Here’s some advice to maximize your networking efforts:
* Understand your purpose. Networking is NOT about sales. Networking is NOT a place where you “push” yourself and/or your products and services on everyone you meet. To the contrary, networking is an opportunity to build relationships with others. This means that your purpose in attending is to meet people and begin to build a genuine, caring relationship with them. Getting to know other people – taking a sincere interest in them – is priority #1!
* Quality v. quantity. So many business owners make networking into a “contest” – to see how many business cards they can collect. That’s their goal: to collect as many cards as possible. My reaction to that: WRONG! Remember, your purpose is to meet people and get to know them in order to establish rapport with them. As a result, I advise my clients to meet as few as 5 people, but spend enough time with them to enable you to begin to establish a true relationship. Think about it: what good is leaving an event with 50 cards? You could get business owners’ contact information in the yellow pages. What makes a networking event successful for you is building quality relationships with people – be they prospective clients or others who can assist you in moving your business forward.
* Listen ACTIVELY to other people. When conversing with people at the event, be sure to do more listening than talking. (Remember: you have 2 ears and only 1 mouth – use them in that proportion.) Truly taking an interest in the other person requires that you not only ask questions (such as “how is your business going?” “what is your greatest challenge?” or “how long have you been in business?”), but that you LISTEN to their response. Some networking events are extremely loud, making it difficult to hear what the person next to you is saying. But you must make active listening a priority.
Why is this so important? Because after your conversation is ended, you should have learned at least one thing about the other person so that, when you follow up with that person, you can reference that aspect of the conversation. (Wherever possible, jot down a few notes about the new contact – e.g., her children’s names or ages, phrases to describe her ideal client, etc.) on the back of each business card you acquire during the event. This will help trigger your mem
Keeping in touch can dramatically increase business, when done properly.It’s a fact that your customers are your best leads. This means that the most likely people to purchase your products and/or services are the ones who have paid for them before. It’s also a fact that it costs far less money to keep a customer than it does to go out and get a new one. These are the two reasons that using direct mail to keep in touch with your customer database is a must. There are a few principles to follow when marketing to contacts in your company database that can maxim
* Quality v. quantity. So many business owners make networking into a “contest” – to see how many business cards they can collect. That’s their goal: to collect as many cards as possible. My reaction to that: WRONG! Remember, your purpose is to meet people and get to know them in order to establish rapport with them. As a result, I advise my clients to meet as few as 5 people, but spend enough time with them to enable you to begin to establish a true relationship. Think about it: what good is leaving an event with 50 cards? You could get business owners’ contact information in the yellow pages. What makes a networking event successful for you is building quality relationships with people – be they prospective clients or others who can assist you in moving your business forward.
* Listen ACTIVELY to other people. When conversing with people at the event, be sure to do more listening than talking. (Remember: you have 2 ears and only 1 mouth – use them in that proportion.) Truly taking an interest in the other person requires that you not only ask questions (such as “how is your business going?” “what is your greatest challenge?” or “how long have you been in business?”), but that you LISTEN to their response. Some networking events are extremely loud, making it difficult to hear what the person next to you is saying. But you must make active listening a priority.
Why is this so important? Because after your conversation is ended, you should have learned at least one thing about the other person so that, when you follow up with that person, you can reference that aspect of the conversation. (Wherever possible, jot down a few notes about the new contact – e.g., her children’s names or ages, phrases to describe her ideal client, etc.) on the back of each business card you acquire during the event. This will help trigger your mem
The second industrial revolution: reinventing your business on the Web, is a book that I received from (former) professor of MIT John Donovan when I attended his conference in Paris in 1999 about the same topic.I recently re-opened the book accidentally and found an interesting part about change management, especially a passage I remembered about the word crabs although I had forgotten the origin of this metaphor.Donovan uses the metaphor of the crabs as one of the ten impediments to change. Another impediment is culture on the ‘road map’ to change.
* Listen ACTIVELY to other people. When conversing with people at the event, be sure to do more listening than talking. (Remember: you have 2 ears and only 1 mouth – use them in that proportion.) Truly taking an interest in the other person requires that you not only ask questions (such as “how is your business going?” “what is your greatest challenge?” or “how long have you been in business?”), but that you LISTEN to their response. Some networking events are extremely loud, making it difficult to hear what the person next to you is saying. But you must make active listening a priority.
Why is this so important? Because after your conversation is ended, you should have learned at least one thing about the other person so that, when you follow up with that person, you can reference that aspect of the conversation. (Wherever possible, jot down a few notes about the new contact – e.g., her children’s names or ages, phrases to describe her ideal client, etc.) on the back of each business card you acquire during the event. This will help trigger your mem
Core value investing in your careerMany people walk through their lives never, ever being better at something than anyone else. What is it that you know or do better than almost anyone else in the world? What is it that you do uniquely well? Do your core values for yourself and your family fit with what you are doing, where you are putting your energy, what you are developing, and where you are focusing/immersing yourself?In your career, as well as in your life, to achieve full capacity and happiness, all of you must be going in the same direction.
Why is this so important? Because after your conversation is ended, you should have learned at least one thing about the other person so that, when you follow up with that person, you can reference that aspect of the conversation. (Wherever possible, jot down a few notes about the new contact – e.g., her children’s names or ages, phrases to describe her ideal client, etc.) on the back of each business card you acquire during the event. This will help trigger your memory when following up later.) The other person WILL be impressed. And that may very well get you one step closer toward your next sale.
* Follow up! Follow up! Follow up! Shortly after the event, be sure to follow up with the new contact. Ideally, you should have mentioned your reason for being back in touch at the networking event (For example, when saying “good-bye” you may have stated: “I’ll be in touch soon to set up a lunch appointment.” or “I’ll be sure to send you that article . . . I know you would find it interesting.”) At a minimum, within a day or two following the event, take the time to write a hand-written note expressing how much you enjoyed meeting the new contact at the event. Staying in regular contact is the first step toward building a lasting relationship – a relationship that should be approached as a win/win for all parties involved.
Good luck!
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