Networking Strategy, What’s yours? – Paul M Johnstone

These days so many people go to networking meetings, but how many go with a strategy?  

A Networking strategy is vital if you are to get the best out of your business to business networking.

However it’s probably best to start with a couple of No-No’s. When you find a networking club, at least you'll have a heads start.
Far too often I see people hit the room with one intention and that is to SELL.  Refreshingly I have been to an event recently, where people who engage in those in the Sell, Sell, Sell tactics are asked to leave! 

Networking is about building relationships.  These may deliver business to you, but will first they enlarge your connected network.  And by offering people help first you will find you are able to help people find what they need through your introductions. This often leads to you getting significant business down the line.

The other mistake I see all to often, is people not respecting others enough.  By this I mean that any conversation they are involved in is always one way, theirs.  OK you may not be selling but others like to feel they have at least contributed to it.  

Frequently these people look back on an event as successful, because they remember most of the information they have given away.  But what did the other people say?  Often you cannot remember a word that they said.  

I’m not throwing stones here.  Because I made that mistake more often that I can remember when I started out networking.

So networking success means you have to put the work into network.  Have a plan, a plan that you can achieve (apologies to David Hyner) When I go to a networking group for the first time I target 7 people I have never met and have a 5 – 7 minutes conversation with.  Amazingly I have got more business that way than with any other new connections I have made. 

All that takes is 40 mins and you are able to start a relationship with people you have never met before.  OK some people I meet are not appropriate for my business but lots are.  And if I had stood back and talked to people I knew, or people I had seen elsewhere that business would never have happened.

Ask yourself what other business to business networking strategies there are?
Then implement them.  More networking strategy tips next time.  Happy Networking

Please comment on this or any of my earlier Blogs. All feedback is great feedback

About the Author

Paul M Johnstone is a Professional networker, and executive coach.  He has build two businesses by using the power of the network and with almost no other marketing. He has worked for 3 of the largest networking organisations in the UK and is a network mentor. He can be reached at +44 (0)7711 324362or through his website at http://www.paradigmshakers.co.uk/ and http://www.pmjohnstone.co.uk/

Helping Real People do Real Business Through Real Networking

©Paul Johnstone

What does Powerful communications in business mean?

Our Guest Blogger This week  Is Rosemary Cooper-Clarke

When asked to put a guest blog together on business, communications,I was a little stumped. When we think about communications in business, it is often around speaking. We learn about body language, preferred communication styles of our audience, verbal delivery and content.

Communication is made up of a myriad of skills, settings, formats and delivery methods. Verbal alone includes narrating, questioning, listening, reflecting, analysing. If you run a search on the word communication on the internet, you will receive everything from personality styles to writing effectively. So I thought back to my experiences in communication (written and verbal) and particularly when I need to make an impact. In change management there are two dimensions of content creation.

Firstly, the business case. That is the rational summary of facts. The proof, evidence and detail of what we are trying to convey. The second is referred to as the "WIFM" what’s in it for me. If a marketing piece (written or verbal), this second dimension is the emotional interpretation of the facts, including benefits from your audience's perspective.

The other effective element for any long-lasting communication is the creative "take-away" reminder. This may be the brand, your logo, the memento. This third lesser-known communication style is what Harvard Business School author Theodore Kinni refers to as the "symbolic". That is, the translation of the facts to a representation that the audience can relate to, and carry away with them. Kinni refers to three styles of effective communication as being factual, emotional and symbolic.

If the huge bulk of empirical research proves the variety of personality styles, behaviours, emotional preferences, archetypes and so on, we can only conclude that effective communication is more about delivering content in a way that is most positively received by a diverse audience. This is achieved by using a balance of factual, emotional and symbolic communication styles. You may tailor the balance if you know that your audience is more aligned to the factual. Dare I say it, to a firm of Accountants or Lawyers, however including the emotional and symbolic increases the chances of success. So what do we mean by each of these terms?

1. Factual of course means the data. The evidence. The what, how, when, who and where. Also some why in terms of hard data. Perhaps costs, time, resources, market share etc.

2. Emotional. Interpretation of the facts. What does this mean? Who will it affect and how? The "so what" aspect of the facts. Storytelling interprets the data in an emotional way and can connect the audience quickly with the point of the communication.

3. Symbols bring meaning to both facts and emotions. One leader in Shell was renowned for his use of metaphors and logos, drawings and other designs are also powerful creative reminders. Awards and events are also symbolic reminders. Is there a saying, quote, strapline or song that you can use which will carry the message after the communication has ended?

Rosemary Cooper-Clark is a Leadership Coach and Consultant. You can read her blogs at http://highflyingdivas.wordpress.com or visit her website at http://ccconsulting.org.uk

This is just one in a list of Blogs written by guest bloggers. To be kept informed with all the guest bloggers and the Blogs Paul wrotes, please follow the 'join this site' link which you can see on teh right hand pannel, Thanks


Please comment on this or any of my earlier Blogs. All feedback is great feedback

Paul can be reached at +44 (0)7711 324362or through his website at http://www.paradigmshakers.co.uk/ and http://www.pmjohnstone.co.uk/

Helping Real People do Real Business Through Real Networking

Also you may like this blog on communication skills http://paradigmshakers.blogspot.com/

©Paul Johnstone

Are you sure, are you really sure? Paul M Johnstone

How sure are you that every person you give a referral to does the best job possible! 

Business networking is often dependant on your ability to refer people and business to others; it's on of the cornerstones of face to face networking and its why people look for and find a networking club.

  

 I just finished a survey of more than 1,000 businesspeople from the UK on the subject of networking. 

One of the questions we asked was "Which of the following is most important to you when referring business to others?"  The choices were:

1. Understanding a person's character.
2. Understanding how competent a person is.
3. Being a user of the person's product or service
4. Understanding a person's success.

Hardly a surprising result, "Understanding a person's character" was most peoples first choice in the survey. "Being a user of the person's product or service,” came third out of the four choices!

This is important to understand when building your network of referral sources; it shows that they are looking at more than just the quality of your products and services.

Often, we think that the best source of referrals must be our clients.  And many times they are.  But they are not our only source of referrals.  In fact, based on this survey, personally using and experiencing another person's product or services was not as important as other factors.

To build your credibility with people who know you, whether they've used your business or not.  It’s a fact that if people trust your character and feel you are competent, they are likely to refer you regardless of whether they've actually used your products or services.

This is an important paradigm shake. It means that many of your referrals may actually come from people other than your clients, once you learn how to network effectively.

Face to face networking is a great example of how this works.  It is a suggestion that you use the services of the other business owners you meet out networking.  This is not absolutely necessary. Ask for testimonials as this show what other people have experienced and how others have found the service.  Make sure you have up to date testimonials to share, as well as on your web site. 

Make it easy for people to get information on you and your company, every little helps

I'd love to hear your thoughts.

About the Author

Paul M Johnstone is a Professional networker, and executivecoach.  He has build two businesses by using the power of the network and with almost no other marketing. He has worked for 3 of the largest networking organisations in the UK and is a network mentor. He can be reached at +44 (0)7711 324362or through his website at http://www.paradigmshakers.co.uk/ and http://www.pmjohnstone.co.uk/

Please comment on this or any of my earlier Blogs. All feedback is great feedback

Helping Real People do Real Business Through Real Networking

©Paul Johnstone