Have you ever noticed that some people can walk into any room
full of people and within the blink of an eye they are engaged in easy
conversation with everyone they meet? It can almost feel like their own private
event, or they are the special invited guest. At first glance, you think that
it is because they are experts at socializing, but, it maybe just that they have
likely pinpointed a few familiar faces in the room and gravitated like a magnet
towards them. The reason they gravitate towards their familiar comfort zones is
to avoid the awkwardness of speaking to someone they do not know (yet). If they
act that way, they may have forgotten the reason they decided to attend the
event in the first place. What is interesting about this behaviour is that most
of us fall into this trap because, let's face it, none of us learned in school
what has essentially become one of the most important life skills for building our
business.
People who walk into a room and begin to quickly connect
with people make it look natural and easy, but they might not be as brilliant
as you think. When they tend to gravitate towards the people, they already know,
then they are missing out on the possibility to build their business
opportunities network. The good news is that if you are not comfortable in a
networking situation you can learn. My goal with this article is to change your
perspective so that you will never
look at networking the same way again. Try thinking of it as a process of constant
gardening, let me explain.
Building a Network is about the opportunity to increase your
visibility and promote your business to a captive audience. It is a great way
to meet your weekly business development objectives. Think of networking as
socializing with your peers, because they are like-minded, and have the same
business focus, and same goal - to get business.
Let’s look at the concept of constantly gardening for
growth. First you must prepare the soil to create the right conditions for the growth
to take place. I equate this to attending the right types of networking
opportunities where at the event you can find enough of the right people who
may have an interest in what your do and vice versa. Granted, you never know
where your next sale or opportunity will come from, but remember, if you stay
in the office do not get out to network you may not grow as fast. So, select your
outings wisely. Then there is the seed and I call this planting the right ideas
in the mind that will stimulate interest and curiosity in your product or
service. Nicolas, a colleague of mine, once told me that we are all part of the
idea delivery system and that the sharing of ideas is key to building interest
in you and your business.
If the first rule in sales is that people buy products and
services from people they like, trust, and respect then you will need to create
the conditions for them to believe in you. One of the great things about
networking is the opportunity to connect with up to 50 potential clients within
a two-hour time frame, so this should give you enough time to practice the
ideas in this article.
Next steps
You have prepared your soil, planted the seeds and now you need
to follow-up, with some tender loving care. It is now time to do the follow ups
needed to set up a meeting that will enable the relationship growth process.
Note whenever developing a relationship always remember that it should be inter-dependant
and by that, I mean you must look for ways to assist the other person as well. Keep
in mind that they were also attending the same networking event for the same
reason as you. Give them a chance to explain their business and maybe introduce
them to other people.
As with any process some weeding will need to take place because
some of the people you meet, will not be a good match for you and your
business. While constant contact and follow-up is important I would encourage
you to exercise good judgement. Remember as well if you are out of sight you
are also out of mind. If you fail to nurture your network, it will dry-up quickly.
Be mindful as well that some weeds will grow, and you will need to work to
ensure you are developing the right mix of clients. The 80/20 rule applies in that
80% of your revenues could be generated by 20% of your clients whom you met
through networking or through the contacts that you met networking. This 20% group
people you met through networking could result in 80% of your reliable long-lasting
business that you can count on.
Just like seeds that are planted too close to the
surface they will not develop into a strong healthy plant if rushed into life. Relationships
are similar in that because growth develops over a few months or even a few years,
so learn to be patient, but very active.
In summary
One of the best ways to learn how to network is to get out there and do it. After all what is the worst that could happen? “Networking” is a word that has been known to send shivers down the spine of most people. If done with the same passion you have for your business, you might just find that it can be one of the easiest ways to connect with enough of the right people.
One of the best ways to learn how to network is to get out there and do it. After all what is the worst that could happen? “Networking” is a word that has been known to send shivers down the spine of most people. If done with the same passion you have for your business, you might just find that it can be one of the easiest ways to connect with enough of the right people.
As you move
forward consider asking yourself the following questions
1. What do you like about networking?
1. What do you like about networking?
2. What are
the benefits of networking?
3. What are the tools you need to effectively network?
3. What are the tools you need to effectively network?
In the end just remember that every business and social
event represents an opportunity to meet people, connect and expand your business
reach. Perhaps you are one of those upcoming budding brilliant networkers, but
if you’re not, take heart. You can learn! Good networkers are the ones most
likely to get ahead within their company, industry and community. These are the
people who get ahead, not because they are necessarily doing the best work but
because they are builders and the most visible network constructors to success.
Do you have the audacity to be the master of your destiny?
As always, we welcome your feedback and are just an email or
bilingual phone call away.