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 “Networking” is becoming a dangerous term, misunderstood and misused by many. 

Some see it as akin to speed dating: how many people can I hit as I blow through?  Others go for the more-is-better theory: they belong to numerous groups and can be seen out networking all around town, all the time. 

Certainly there is something to be said for having diverse networks and meeting new people.  It’s a way for us to branch out and meet people outside our normal circle of acquaintances.  However, as in almost everything, moderation is recommended. 

At our monthly B2B Connections luncheon this past week, we had a classic networking drive-by: A sales representative who was firmly stuck in the “transmission mode”, never slowing down the sales pitch to get to know something about the people around him.  I guess that’s not entirely true.  He waited long enough for someone to say something that he could use as an opening to his finely honed spiel.  He dominated the conversation, turning everything in the direction of the value of his product.  Yoicks!  Where’s the door?

Most business/social networking events offer us the chance to get to know people enough to enable us to decide if we want to deepen the relationship.  Our B2B lunch is an environment of exploration and relationship initiation.  It’s a place where introductions are made and we decide if we want to move this relationship ahead. 

Jason Hager, Referral Institute West Virginia, offered an example of a different type of drive-by.  His was of the ambush variety.  Jason was invited to a lunch presentation and a “great chance to network.”  Seems like every event we’re invited to, no matter the real purpose of the event, attempts to add to its attractiveness by including the irresistible chance to network.  

Here, I’ll let Jason tell it:

I was invited to a “networking” lunch last week, held by a professional association, which turned out to be a sales pitch for one of their partners. Don’t get me wrong, the product was good (the food, not so good). My frustration is that I was invited to attend by 4 different folks, the association called every day for a week to remind me about this great networking event and their big draw was - it will be a great chance to network.

Upon arrival, I was asked to grab a lunch (cold-cut sandwich) and grab a seat. Then, I listened to a one hour sales pitch. I thought to myself: “Ok, at the end they will do some type of cool networking exercise, right?”

Nope. I heard lots of grumbling from participants about the event.”

 These kinds of behaviors and many other networking faux pas come from inexperience, lack of knowledge, desperation, or just trying too hard. As we hone our networking skills, such behavior becomes more obvious to us and more repugnant.  Experience has taught us that going into an event with an attitude open to meeting new people, seeking common ground, and finding ways to establish a meaningful connection is more valuable than grinding through the crowd for a sale. Comments I received through our Linked In discussion group from Pat, Tom, Erik and Jason focus in on a fundamental element of networking that separates the successful and the unsuccessful in this arena: “how can I help you?”… as opposed to “what do you have for me?”

 

 

Monday evening in our Certified Networker Program session we got on the topic of branding.  The next morning we had a similar discussion in a small networking/mastermind group I attend.  Kind of interesting because we’re all small business and conventional wisdom says small businesses can’t afford to brand advertise.  Every advertisement should have an offer and/or a call to action.  You can’t afford to image advertise.  Hmmm?

For those of you who know who Dan Kennedy is, I’m sure the mere mention of his name brings up thoughts of “love him” or “hate him”.  For those who don’t know who he is, Mr. Kennedy has written a series of books such as No B.S. Direct Marketing, No B.S. Sales Success, No B.S. Time Management for Entrepreneurs, and a number of other great, to-the-point books.  He’s a pioneer of hard core, in your face, order before midnight, copywriting.  If you haven’t read Dan Kennedy, do it.  It’s an experience that will change a lot of your thinking about marketing and advertising.  Don’t tell him, but I think the guy’s a genius.  Anyway, Dan says if you’re advertising and it’s not direct response advertising, you’re guessing.  And I agree, if we’re talking about what we think of as traditional advertising.  However, when I think about branding, I’m thinking about something else.

As business people, everything we do contributes to our brand.  Dan Kennedy has created a brand for himself, as pointed out above.  You do it every day, with virtually every interaction you have; every email you send, every phone conversation, and meeting.  Think about your business cards, your elevator pitch, the way you answer your phone or say good-bye. 

But have you thought about what that brand or image should be?  Do the things you do support the way you want people to think of you? 

The other day I listened to a businessman talk about the difficulty he was having  in selling his product.  It’s a very effective product but relatively costly.  As I listened to him, it occurred to me that I, and the others listening, saw him as a salesman.  To overcome that and the price aversion issue, I believe he has to be more than that.  He needs to brand himself as an advisor, a solution provider, a resource for his prospects.  The idea of him selling this great product and walking away isn’t enough to make prospects take action.  He needs to rebrand himself from salesman to helper.  He’ll be there to help them solve the problem if they need him.  And everything he says, does, and hands out needs to support that. 

So think about your brand and what you are doing to reinforce it.  Ask friends and customers what they think of your brand.  Review your collateral and pitch and make sure you’re painting the picture you want people to see.

Communicate, collaborate, and share information with your LinkedIn network like never before. You’ll be able to work much more closely with your contacts on LinkedIn with tools such as file sharing, project management, business trips and many more.

The video below gives an overview of our application platform featuring many of the application partners mentioned above.

Linkedin, Smaller Indiana, FastPitch, BizNik, One Degree Connect, Ecademy, Plaxo, HiveLive, Facebook, MySpace, and any of the 500 different sites online are all available to you. However, how many and which ones should you belong too?

Today, I was asked if I could track back any income from one of the sites that I am on. Read the rest of this entry »

Are you getting all the referrals you want for your business?
Do you get referrals predictably and consistently or by chance?

Business owners understand the value of referrals but they don’t often have control over their referral business. Referral marketing is the most effective form of marketing for businesses with limited marketing budgets. If you are willing to invest the time to learn specific referral marketing strategies, tools, and techniques you can double, even triple your sales in months without spending additional marketing dollars.

We have an upcoming two hour class on how to make referral marketing work for your business.

If you don’t have a referral marketing plan for your business, this session is a must!

You will learn how to develop a strategic referral network, who should be in it, how to find them, and how to motivate those people to refer business to you.

This class will open your eyes to the possibilities of generating more sales in less time by doing business by relationship. Unless you can find more time and work harder than you already are, you can’t afford to miss this class. You will learn some specific techniques that will enable you to really work smarter, not harder.

What: Referral Success 101
When: 10/23/2008 11:00 AM - 1:15 PM (US/ Eastern)
Where: The Knowledge Shopp | 180 Cobb Parkway C24, Marietta, GA 30060 | 678-766-6666
Presented by: Emile Paradis

Hope to see you there!

I’ve been reading an advance copy of an interesting new book called Tuned In and then I got this YouTube video sent to me. Check out the video and then we’ll talk about the book.

VIDEO

In addition to being funny (at least I think so), this provides a good example of how products are developed and, eventually, marketed. In the book Tuned In, David Meerman Scott, Phil Meyers and Craig Stull provide a process that helps businesses understand and connect with what markets want. They make the point that product development should be driven outside in instead of inside out. The six step process helps you create products and services that “resonate” with buyers.This video could be a great example of application of the Tuned In process. I’m just sure Ed talked to folks and, using his interviewing skills, found that a major area of dissatisfaction with a segment of the pickup driving market was looking “lower middle class” because they saved a little by opting for the model with crank windows. Ed is now in the process; he has identified an unresolved problem: lower self-image as the result of looking lower middle class. (For a great discussion of the application of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to customer experience, see Marketing That Matters by Chip Conley and Erik Friedenwald-Fishman.) He obviously has great insight into his buyers’ personas, step 2. After quantifying the impact of this problem (step 3) Ed created a breakthrough experience (4) for them through the use of a handy item, the battery operated mixer. I don’t know about you but as far as I’m concerned, Ed nailed the “articulating powerful ideas” part (5). It just remains to be seen if he has created sustainable connections (ta da, step 6).

OR

Can you see Old Ed sitting there in his pick-up feeling lower middle class and wanting to do something about it. However, he’s a cheap SOB (I can relate), so wants to minimize expenses and use stuff he has at hand. Eyes light on battery operated mixer and….EUREKA! Great new product idea. He runs it by a couple of his beer buddies and they are knocked out by his genius. Being the articulate fellow he is, he puts together a compelling sales message and whips up a slick video that wows us with this great solution, filling us with the urge to order before midnight. Ed’s thrilled and so are his buddies. Brilliant….but not so brilliant.Ed’s product development process probably parallels that of most companies: from the inside out. It is based on his idea, and his narrow circle’s, of what’s good. His opinion is irrelevant, another point made in the book. It is unlikely that he followed the Tuned In process; he’s got a clever product but I suspect it won’t pass muster. When you run it through the Tuned In filters, Ed might come up short. Ed might find out that his dog won’t hunt; it doesn’t resonate. Introducing this product would be a big risk based on a guess.Watch for this book, which should be coming out soon. I’ll pass the word when it does.Contact us. We can talk about how the Tuned In process can help you promote your products and services.

Two weeks ago I was at the Referral Institute International Coneference in Scottsdale, AZ.  It occurs to me that in addition to learning new stuff, revisiting stuff I already knew, and get motivated and re-energized, I also had a plain old good time.  Who doesn’t like to travel, hang out with old friends, and relax a bit?  Especially in a beautiful part of our great country.  And to do it AND make an investment in my personal and professional development is a real bonus.

I work with business owners and observe a reluctance in that community to invest in themselves.  Most do not have a budget of time and money for reading, seminars, and conferences.  We’re always too busy and have too many other projects to spend our money on. 

There’s really little need for a diatribe here.  We all pretty well know it’s wise to learn, get inspired, and associate with people in our business or similar circumstance.  So, it’s still early in the year.  Check your budget and calendar for opportunities to make that investment. 

I need to sit down and share a few of the ideas I picked up at the conference.  There were 21 authors on the topic of referral marketing and sales in attendance.  Think there was any hot scoop being passed?

Biznik has launch a new networking feature today: video profiles.

If you have been on my monthly technology webinar then you know we use EyeJot.com to instantly record and send video emails. Now Biznik has teamed up with Eyejot.com to offer Active and Supporting subscribers up to 5 minutes of video, all from within your profile on Biznik. No need for editing software. No need to shoot first and upload later. No need to cut and paste the link from Youtube. All you need is a computer with a video camera and they’ll take care of the rest.

Watch this two-minute video to see how it works:

Dan McComb, founder of Biznik says, “As far as I know, Biznik is the first online business networking community to include recordable video from within profiles. LinkedIn didn’t even give users the ability to upload photos to their profiles until last September, so don’t hold your breath on seeing video there any time soon.”

Stay tuned …

Congratulations to our friend and Referral Institute colleague Hazel Walker for being the second most popular profile on the BNI company profile on Linkedin.

If you haven’t heard about the new Company Profile feature on Linkedin - Click Here to read their blog.

Now back to Hazel. She has demonstrated the power of participation in Linkedin. Through her use of a well crafted profile, adding strategic connections and asking and answering questions in Linkedin Answers, she is living up to her title as Queen of Networking. Only Dr Ivan Misner, Founder and Chairman of BNI ranks as more popular.

Way to set the example Hazel!