Networking and connecting can be incredibly rewarding. And as you get the hang of it you may determine that the time has come for you to start your own networking group. While many who choose to will succeed, the risk involved should be measured against the potential reward before jumping in.
Disclaimer here: I don’t care for these types of groups. It feels too much like the dating and bar scene. Everyone’s seems to be scrounging around for business and not interested in anything deep or meaningful. Plus there are tons of the same types of persons at these meetings so you have lots of competition and not a lot of differentiation. What happens is your services become commodity services instead of personal-it becomes about your price instead of your inherent value.
To me, being efficient means working smarter. Here are Five what is networking in business that will increase your brand exposure and overall business health immediately.
You have a down line, people that you brought into the business to help you make more money. What are you doing to help them make money and become a success in the company. You have to give in order to receive, and really there is no greater sense of success then helping another person meet and achieve their goals. I have worked “with” many different MLMs and Networking companies and all of those people were great recruiters. They convinced me to come on board- but when I needed help to make a success of what I was doing, they were no where to be found. So why would I waste my time trying to make a business work, where those people got paid off what I was doing and they weren’t there to help me.
Which company can deliver a combination of speed and consistency? You’ll do yourself a favor early on in the process by finding out which company can deliver on the most important counts. In satellite internet service, that would probably be speed and consistency. See which company can straddle the border between these two essential items and do it effectively on a daily basis. You may need to consult customer reviews to get the most definitive answer.
Possible choices: networking and/or business groups; business journal, chamber advertising, web based networking groups – such as BlitzTime, newspaper, direct mail, inserts, trade shows, e-marketing, billboard, radio, TV, internet advertizing, blogging – such as Ezine, website optimization, sponsored links on search engines and social networks such as LinkedIn.
Remember, all conversations must end at some point so don’t be afraid to politely excuse yourself and thank the person for her time. Reasons to wrap up can include going to get another drink software defined networking something to eat going to the restroom or needing to talk with someone before they leave. Whatever the reason, be honest and be genuine.
Join MeetUp.Com groups that are related to your industry. You can meet many like-minded individuals who could be potential clients or possible partners with a joint venture.
Taking a long term, relationship approach to your networking will reap countless benefits, including the creation of future career opportunities. What’s not to like about that?