You had to dance

I remember an Uncle telling me about Saturday nights at the local dance hall. It was the night when young men and women would go to meet their dates or in the hope of finding someone to date. My Uncle told me that in order to get to know someone you first had to dance. This was easier when it was organised to ensure everyone got to dance with someone. Other times you just had to pluck up enough courage and ask a stranger.

I was reflecting with a couple of people yesterday that this is very similar to networking. You have to have the equivalent of a dance before you can get to know the other person and build trust in a business relationship. In networking that means having a meaningful conversation and creating a connection first.

The people I was chatting with all said they found it easier to do this at networking events where there is some facilitation and structure.

Good Networking!
Dave Clarke
Get 7 networking secrets for business success

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Keeping track of your referrals

I facilitated a networking breakfast on Friday 7 at the end one of the visiting members asked if she could say a few words. She shared that the NRG business networking group she belonged to had been a great factor in her success. Much of her business was a result of the relationships she had made in the group. It was not all, however, down to direct referrals. It was sometimes 2, 3, 4, 5 or even 6 steps removed, but by tracking back to the initial source she knew which relationships were critical to maintain & nurture.

If you don't keep track in this way you run the risk of upsetting your referral sources by not keeping them up to date with the results of the positive Word of Mouth they are generating for you. You could potentially miscalculate the return on investment on some of your activities and end up dropping some for the wrong reasons.

Good Networking!
Dave Clarke
Get 7 networking secrets for business success

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business networking | business networking events | business networking podcast

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Can you accelerate trust?

At a recent event someone posed the question "what can we do to accelerate the building of trust within the group?" It's a good question as successful networking relies on the building of trust. I think there are some essential ingredients for building trust in a group including leadership and facilitation. The members must also 'buy in' to the process and be proactive.

A few years back we conducted some research into the importance of developing trust in business relationships as part of networking. The article 'Have you unlocked the benefits of business networking?' includes a link to the full findings. It includes a breakdown of the trust building process in business networking. If you are proactive and follow this you can accelerate the building of trust, particularly if you join the right networking group for you.

As I wrote in 'How to build trust in business relationships':

Building a trusted business relationship in a networking context is a simple process:
1. Make contact
2. Follow up
3. Form relationships
4. Develop Advocates

Like many simple things that does not mean it is easy!

These previous blog posts also address the issue of building trust in business networking:

The killer app in business networking
Building trust in networking
Nothing compares to the power of trust
Building trust with a new contact
Behaviours that build trust
What’s your NRG? Part Two.

Good Networking!
Dave Clarke
Get 7 networking secrets for business success

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business networking | business networking events | business networking podcast

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Are you nervous about networking?

You have probably met people who seem perfectly at ease in any situation and talk effortlessly with people they have never met before. For most of us it is not that easy. I speak to many people who have had a bad networking experience which in some cases puts them off networking completely. This has often been at an event with no formal facilitation. I remember speaking to the organiser of events like this. He said "Yes we do networking. We put people in a room and let them get on with it".

Even seasoned networkers can get nervous about walking into a room full of strangers. A friend of mine shared recently that he had booked and paid for a Chamber of Commerce Open Networking Event. He traveled to the event at the appointed time and even got to the door. He then decided he couldn't face it, turned round and went home!

If you are nervous about networking then try a group that is facilitated to build your confidence and build those important business relationships in a safe environment.

Good Networking!
Dave Clarke
Get 7 networking secrets for business success

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business networking | business networking events | business networking podcast

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What's your story?

I facilitated a recent mastermind group where one of the issues raised was about communicating a difficult business proposition. The discussion led to the conclusion that a story would be a great way to do this. In 'Telling a story to illustrate what you do' I wrote about how useful a simple story can be in this regard.

One of the other participants shared a great tip for producing a good story. He had asked 2 clients that were representative of his ideal customers to share their stories of how they had come to choose his business. He then got a copywriter to produce these as short case studies. The stories have been instrumental in helping generate much new business.

Good Networking!
Dave Clarke
Get 7 networking secrets for business success

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business networking | business networking events | business networking podcast

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