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Added for You - The Hidden Power of Networking
Postcards come in a neat little package. These print materials are no more than 6 x 11 as its biggest size. The postcard is a highly recognizable print that is sturdy and popular. This print even dates back to more than a century ago and still persists today.What is it about postcards that make it enduring? Assuming that all we get in the mails are bulky bundles of bills and tedious letters, receiving postcards in the mail must be a refreshing and attractive thing to get once in a while. Postcards can be really interesting for in that small frame, we can treat our eyes to a feast of colors and images.Postcards nowadays have become more sophisticated and have become more flexible in its uses. Postcard printing has been in demand, not only for personal uses, but for commercial and business purposes as well.
· Government advice agencies – most countries have government bodies which have the remit of helping local small businesses, some of them may already hold network meetings where they bring together a batch of ‘new recruits’. Check out you country’s small business advice agency web sites to see what support they can offer
· Trade Associations – your industry may have an association which holds regular meetings. Although you are interacting with businesses in the same line you will still be able to find solutions to pro
"Doesn’t listening to this give you that "Big Mac' feeling? You crave it, taste it, smell it and just can’t wait til' you can bite into it. A little while later, after you eat it and get it down, you start feeling tired, bloated and real sick to your stomach. That's kinda' how I feel here ... a little sick and not right."One of my project managers leaned over and said that to me in a change meeting when the Senior VP of Human Resources had just hijacked our change plane. It was unbelievable but true. After all this time, with the old leader sitting nearby, this guy is delivering the goods on our work. Where has he been all this time?We were all called in for a project update when up steps our Senior VP of HR. The only thing missing from this charade was Gomer, from Mayberry saying, "Surprise, surprise." This guy
But what is networking?
In its most basic form, it’s word-of-mouth advertising but originated by you, not your customers. It involves taking every opportunity to raise awareness of your product or service amongst the people you meet. At a more sophisticated level, networking can be achieved by taking advantage of the formal networking groups or events that have been arranged purely with the idea of putting potential partners together.
But how can you, as a small business owner, become a more effective networker and take full advantage of the opportunities presented? We are going to give you some key tips and ideas on how to be a better networker.
What are the key advantages of networking?
Networking has some very good advantages over the traditional type of marketing:
· It’s free! Talking to someone costs nothing except your time
· It’s targeted marketing in that it’s likely the person you are talking to has a direct interest in your product or service. Consider newspaper advertising, which will mostly be read by people who have no interest in what you have to offer
· It’s face-to-face marketing unlike direct mail, adverts and telephone calls. You have the immediate opportunity to establish rapport and get an understanding of the person’s problems
· You have the chance to mix with business owners in other industries, which may open the door to new opportunities you had not previously considered
· It’s not only a way of creating business but also a great way to solve problems and seek advice. Why sweat over a solution when someone has probably already experienced and solved the same problem? Ask and find out who can help you
Where to find a network
Finding a place to network, where like minded business owners are present, is not that difficult. Whilst you should be networking all the time – taking the opportunity to promote yourself where ever you can – it’s more effective if you can meet people who are there to do the same thing; you can get onto the same wavelength that much quicker.
Here are some possible networking opportunities to think about:
· Your local Chamber of Commerce, BNI group or business club - as well as hosting their normal meetings (which are great networking opportunities anyway) they may hold regular networking sessions which are dedicated to putting business people together
· Government advice agencies – most countries have government bodies which have the remit of helping local small businesses, some of them may already hold network meetings where they bring together a batch of ‘new recruits’. Check out you country’s small business advice agency web sites to see what support they can offer
· Trade Associations – your industry may have an association which holds regular meetings. Although you are interacting with businesses in the same line you will still be able to find solutions to pro
In my humble opinion, the number one issue a company should be paying attention to is customer service. But it seems more and more that getting the sale is taking priority over making the customer happy. Below are several examples of poor service – how would your company handled each of these circumstances?I ordered file cabinets from Staples through their on-line store and was given a specific delivery date that their trucking company would deliver. The promised day came and went with no phone call to me to let me know there was a delay. The trucking company had very specific directions to my place of business, they had my phone number and I was sitting here all day waiting for them to show up. Even though Staples was using a local delivery service that was located less than 50 miles from my place of business and
But how can you, as a small business owner, become a more effective networker and take full advantage of the opportunities presented? We are going to give you some key tips and ideas on how to be a better networker.
What are the key advantages of networking?
Networking has some very good advantages over the traditional type of marketing:
· It’s free! Talking to someone costs nothing except your time
· It’s targeted marketing in that it’s likely the person you are talking to has a direct interest in your product or service. Consider newspaper advertising, which will mostly be read by people who have no interest in what you have to offer
· It’s face-to-face marketing unlike direct mail, adverts and telephone calls. You have the immediate opportunity to establish rapport and get an understanding of the person’s problems
· You have the chance to mix with business owners in other industries, which may open the door to new opportunities you had not previously considered
· It’s not only a way of creating business but also a great way to solve problems and seek advice. Why sweat over a solution when someone has probably already experienced and solved the same problem? Ask and find out who can help you
Where to find a network
Finding a place to network, where like minded business owners are present, is not that difficult. Whilst you should be networking all the time – taking the opportunity to promote yourself where ever you can – it’s more effective if you can meet people who are there to do the same thing; you can get onto the same wavelength that much quicker.
Here are some possible networking opportunities to think about:
· Your local Chamber of Commerce, BNI group or business club - as well as hosting their normal meetings (which are great networking opportunities anyway) they may hold regular networking sessions which are dedicated to putting business people together
· Government advice agencies – most countries have government bodies which have the remit of helping local small businesses, some of them may already hold network meetings where they bring together a batch of ‘new recruits’. Check out you country’s small business advice agency web sites to see what support they can offer
· Trade Associations – your industry may have an association which holds regular meetings. Although you are interacting with businesses in the same line you will still be able to find solutions to pro
Creating successful small business systems can have varying degrees of success depending on many variables. The size of the company, location, number of people, level of skills, company resources and various other items come into play. How do you manage to create a system that will be beneficial and able to be revised as changes in the market, industry or people resources change?This can be a delicate subject and involve a variety of stakeholders from business owners, to competitors, to HR Directors to government to your financial resources and assets available.But what does it take to design a system that can "re-engineered" at times, but match the goals your company sets or HR culture you want dependant on company profit margins etc. How can you balance these things so the costs do not outweigh the benefits?our product or service. Consider newspaper advertising, which will mostly be read by people who have no interest in what you have to offer
· It’s face-to-face marketing unlike direct mail, adverts and telephone calls. You have the immediate opportunity to establish rapport and get an understanding of the person’s problems
· You have the chance to mix with business owners in other industries, which may open the door to new opportunities you had not previously considered
· It’s not only a way of creating business but also a great way to solve problems and seek advice. Why sweat over a solution when someone has probably already experienced and solved the same problem? Ask and find out who can help you
Where to find a network
Finding a place to network, where like minded business owners are present, is not that difficult. Whilst you should be networking all the time – taking the opportunity to promote yourself where ever you can – it’s more effective if you can meet people who are there to do the same thing; you can get onto the same wavelength that much quicker.
Here are some possible networking opportunities to think about:
· Your local Chamber of Commerce, BNI group or business club - as well as hosting their normal meetings (which are great networking opportunities anyway) they may hold regular networking sessions which are dedicated to putting business people together
· Government advice agencies – most countries have government bodies which have the remit of helping local small businesses, some of them may already hold network meetings where they bring together a batch of ‘new recruits’. Check out you country’s small business advice agency web sites to see what support they can offer
· Trade Associations – your industry may have an association which holds regular meetings. Although you are interacting with businesses in the same line you will still be able to find solutions to pro
What if your customer service policy says one thing and your management says another? Recently a friend in the retail business told me of a number of cases when a customer would ask for something that was specifically against the policy of the store, for example, their money back after the 90 day deadline, etc. In every case, after the Customer Service rep said no, the customer complained to the Store Manager, who immediately overrode the policy and gave the customer what they wanted.What you need to do is COORDINATE YOUR POLICIES. Overriding the very rules you put in place only makes your front line staff look bad. Either change the rules or stop changing them every time someone whines loud enough.Now, I have no problem making the customer happy, but why have a policy you don't enforce? Would it not be b
Where to find a network
Finding a place to network, where like minded business owners are present, is not that difficult. Whilst you should be networking all the time – taking the opportunity to promote yourself where ever you can – it’s more effective if you can meet people who are there to do the same thing; you can get onto the same wavelength that much quicker.
Here are some possible networking opportunities to think about:
· Your local Chamber of Commerce, BNI group or business club - as well as hosting their normal meetings (which are great networking opportunities anyway) they may hold regular networking sessions which are dedicated to putting business people together
· Government advice agencies – most countries have government bodies which have the remit of helping local small businesses, some of them may already hold network meetings where they bring together a batch of ‘new recruits’. Check out you country’s small business advice agency web sites to see what support they can offer
· Trade Associations – your industry may have an association which holds regular meetings. Although you are interacting with businesses in the same line you will still be able to find solutions to pro
In business you must develop a strong team and to do this properly you must be careful whom you pick to be on the team. Vendors are part of that team. It is not as easy as you might think picking vendors. Let me tell you a story. I take issue with some of our vendors who do not walk the talk. I visited several vendors in TX this month and found that their lack of image and un-kept shops and attitude about image was quite inferior to ours. I found that they did not have the same value set when it came to quality of uniforms, signage and building. I am concerned that as the Optimist Club says, we should be work only for the best, associate with only the best and be only the best.Well, I must say we are the best and we have the best customers and therefore we must demand the best from our vendors. We want ethical and
· Government advice agencies – most countries have government bodies which have the remit of helping local small businesses, some of them may already hold network meetings where they bring together a batch of ‘new recruits’. Check out you country’s small business advice agency web sites to see what support they can offer
· Trade Associations – your industry may have an association which holds regular meetings. Although you are interacting with businesses in the same line you will still be able to find solutions to problems and pick up new ideas. Who knows, if you establish good rapport with another business, they may be happy to refer surplus work to you or tap into a unique specialisation you may have?
· Seminars – keep a look out for seminars being run for small business owners. As well as being informative, they are a great networking opportunity, especially over coffee and lunch when you have the chance to start a conversation going along the lines of, “How do you think you’re going to apply that point we learnt this morning in your line of business?”
In just this one question you will have found out what business they are in and one of the problems they are currently facing. If you’re lucky, you may be able to offer help as well – one extra sale!
· Anywhere and everywhere – remember to network all the time! Never miss an opportunity to tell people what you do. You may only get a successful hit in one out of a hundred contacts, but one sale may be enough to make it all worthwhile!
Where and when are meetings likely to be held?
Formal networking events can be held over breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast sessions are popular because it allows business owners to start the day on a positive note, leaving the remainder of the day free for ‘business as usual’. But how good are you at holding a sensible conversation at 7 o’clock in the morning? If you don’t look or sound your best in the early morning, then you had better find an alternative!
The best networking events are where you are free to ‘work the room’ and not be tied to a table with food being served.
What to prepare
As with any marketing promotion, networking should be thoroughly prepared for. Badly presented sales pitches lead to lost sales; the same goes for networking. So what should you do before attending a networking session?
Step 1: Know your products and services inside out. If you are only just starting out, make sure you are fully briefed on all the inn’s and out’s of your product.
Step 2: Write and rehearse an opening statement to the question “What do you do?” This may sound an easy question but try thinking an answer on the spot and at the same time making it some good! Not so easy. Write a clear and concise statement, which encapsulates everything about your business. Remember, this is your chance to impress! Having decided on your opening line, rehearse, rehearse and rehearse. It has to be word perfect and confident sounding.
Step 3: Make sure you have enough business cards. You don’t want to scribble your number on the back of a napkin! Not very
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