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.
If you feel uncomfortable with the thought of networking, then change the way you think about it. Most of us think that networking is an activity, an event to attend, or a “thing to do”, in order to market our business. Rather than think of it that way, look at networking as an attitude, or a skill to be developed. It’s something that can become a part of us every day, and can be shared with everyone we meet.
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!
If a colleague is helping you with introductions or assistance, make sure you are reciprocating. If there is nothing that you can do at this time, be sure to tell others of this good deed.
How does a professional speaker develop a speech? They have three basic parts that they work on in a prepared presentation: structure, content and delivery. Think about these questions before your next business to business networking event and you’ll never be at a loss for what to say (and how to say it). Here are three sets of cisco sdn based on this presentation format. Next time you are wondering how to network, start with this basic set up and have answers ready to these questions.
When I talk about networking, it is more than just going to networking groups. It is about sharing your message with people you know and scheduling individual meetings too.
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.
Think of the meeting as you would a workout at the gym. What’s the point of going if you’re not going to make the most of it? Arrive early, stick around, collect cards, and commit to calling for follow-up meetings.
Whittle down to your favorite(s). You can stick to one group, three groups, or all groups you attended–but make sure to remember that what you get out of each group is what you give to it. Invest your valuable time in a valuable group, and you will see great results for you and your business. And you’ll make some good friends along the way, too.