So you’re sitting at your desk thinking how busy you are but you hesitate working with a virtual assistant. Why is that? Is it the money? Did you do the math and figure it would be easier and cost effective to do the work yourself? I have to be honest with you. I’m sure you’re a smart person, but this isn’t one of your best decisions. Did you throw away 5 hours today doing administrative work? Or are you wasting time looking for some clever, inspirational quote online to add to your Facebook page instead of contacting prospective clients? Or maybe you’re on hold ordering business cards or other office supplies.
Can they get professional grade packages set up in your home? You may be at the point where personal satellite internet packages are no longer going to fit the bill for you. In this case, you’ll need some type of service that could be called professional grade. Ask about the software defined networking on the table, so you can have multiple computers going at the same time without having your bandwidth entirely sapped by one machine.
Make contacts. Build a network of influential people within the field you want to enter. Find creative ways to approach them and maintain the connection once it is made. For example, why not offer to write an article for a trade magazine or website? You can choose a topic which gives you a reason to contact key people within the industry.
Be on TIME. Perception is everything. If you want people to use your services or give you referrals it’s key to make a good first impression. Being tardy can give others the impression that you are not prepared or that you’re an amateur in the industry.
By not acting on a lead, you have two things working against you. One you are allowing for your software defined networking job prospects competition to get the jump on you. And two, you are giving your potential customer an opportunity to seek out somebody else to provide them with the product or service they are looking for.
Technique: One rule of effective cold calling is to get a “yes” or “no” at the end of every conversation. So, learn how to deal with the stalls, objections and put-offs when prospecting. For example, when someone says, “Call me in a month” say, “Sure, now suppose it was two months from now and I called you and we were on the phone, what do you suppose you’d be telling me then?” This technique effectively, and with finesse, eliminates the “call me in a month” put-offs. I call it the “take it to the future move.” Note that while asking what they’d say if you call them further in the future than they asked, it’s quite disarming!
Join networking groups comprised of individuals who are entrepreneurs or small business owners. Not only might you find some professionals that will help you develop and grow your business, it is also an excellent way to spread the word about your company. Local networking groups usually limit the membership to one person per industry, so you will not be competing with anyone else for referrals.
Join your local Chamber of Commerce, get involved in community events and activities, expand into surrounding communities! Pass out flyers, get business cards made up and hand them out to everyone you meet, talk to everyone you possibly can about your business.
But to which events? This can be very confusing, there are thousands of networking events and groups, and even more meetups, happening every day. Folks find their favorites and talk about them as though they’re the most important ones to attend. In order to wade through all that advice and those websites, here’s how to find the right networking event for you.
With the information that you have obtained from all of the members, decide on a venue/place of meeting. As a leader, this is your responsibility and once you have it narrowed down, inform everyone for confirmation. Begin your weekly meetings and supercharge your networking results!