The Basics Of Networking

Following the theme of last week’s blog, you might have noticed a lot of networking clubs and meetings popping up? Demand for them is strong and it goes to show small businesses are searching for new customers or have recently just started up. The thing is though a lot of the people who attend such events, do it without the basic skills required for effective networking. Sometimes they are oblivious to the etiquette they should be following.

As a member of a weekly breakfast group, I regularly deliver educational content to members on networking skills. To the uninitiated, my advice (when attending an event) is to identify someone alone and approach them or alternatively look for two people standing at ninety degrees to each other. The reason being, a ninety degree stance reflects an open posture and invites a third person. In contrast, two people directly facing each other are discussing business and it is rude to disturb them.

Once you have approached someone, say ‘Hello’, make some brief small talk (to break the ice) and ask ‘who are you’ and ‘what do you do’? In a short space of time you should be able to establish what line of work they are in; whether they specialise in any particular field; how long they have been established and if you can put them in touch with someone useful who might need their services or could supply them with something they need.

Now the most important thing to achieve from the person to whom you are speaking is enough curiosity for them to ask for your business card. It is simply good manners to wait until you are asked because if you force your card it reflects badly on yourself and even more so on your business. Once you are asked however, it is an ideal opportunity to ask for their card in return. You should then be kind enough to let your new contact continue meeting other people and of course, you should move on and meet more people yourself.

Would You Give Your Keys To A Stranger?

Would you do business with someone you just met? Maybe you would, maybe you wouldn’t. How about a stranger who spoke very loudly at you while they were eating food? What if they never asked what you did? What if they forced their business card on you and all they did was talk about them self?

At one of my first networking events, an experienced businessman very kindly gave me some excellent advice. He explained how networking meetings should not be viewed as a quick fix to finding new business. In fact it is the opposite. It takes time, it takes patience and it takes persistence.

He went on to ask me if there was something in life I really wanted. Something I would work my whole life for? I said yes, I would love to own a classic Ferrari sports car. He then asked me, “If you had that car and it meant a lot to you, would you hand the key to a complete stranger and let them take it for a drive?”, you can probably guess my reply.

He went on to explain, it takes time to build a business and your customers are the same as the Ferrari. You would not let a complete stranger anywhere near them because of how precious they are to you. So if somebody approaches me today and asks for an introduction to a customer, do you think I do it within six months of meeting them?

Going Crazy About Being Touched

If you speak to someone in marketing they often try to pin point the relevance of doing something. One example is a Farmer selling free range eggs by using a wooden sign at the side of the road. They could hand-paint a message and customers would respond. In contrast would the same type of sign work if you were selling nuclear powered submarines with a new specialist technology?

Other marketing professional’s state that anywhere a customer encounters your service or product they should experience a continuity of your basic values. These are known as touch points. They include the obvious like a business card or a web site but there are less obvious things too such as a telephone call or a training manual. These should all trigger a sensory stimulation relating back to your basic values.

All of this is something we have to take in to account if we are going to establish DrivenByQ not only as an outstanding service but also as a recognised and respected brand. We have our logo ready to stamp everywhere and we have our nice business cards and even a social media presence but I am starting to question if everyone on our team is really in touch with our basic values - even me, the Managing Director!

We need to go right back to the start and re-examine why we do what we do; why customers love what we do; and why we want other people to know how much our customers love us to do what we love to do! So, before we can go crazy with understanding where to deliver our message, it’s time to understand why we are crazy about our message!

Growing, Times Two

Ten years ago, I attended a franchising seminar. The speakers discussed how to replicate a successful business and establish it in other geographic areas. Right now, we are questioning how to repeat DrivenByQ’s success in the same way.

Without the personal introductions we enjoyed in the past, our branding and corporate identity needs development. In particular it should stimulate the emotions that trigger a psychological response in a customer.

Admittedly, after the franchising seminar, it took me three years to devise a business model that would suit replication and up-scaling. It then took another six years to build and structure the management system and IT infrastructure that gives our business such a competitive edge. This year though, all that hard work and effort could come to fruition.

2012 may well be a tough year but it could also be the most successful of my entire life. This could be the year our second business grows rapidly; where the technologies we've already put in place get utilised to greater effect and the economies of scale get ramped up to such a level, our competitive edge is untouchable.