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Connects Networking Stoke October 2015 - 9 Guaranteed Steps To Fail At Business Networking
1. 9 Guaranteed Steps To FAIL
At Business Networking
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Helping You Love Networking
2. “Networking done well is
consistently the best marketing tool
all business can use to boost sales,
opportunities and profits.
!
Do it badly and it can kill!”
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Helping You Love Networking
4. What You Will See
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• Who am I?
• Introduction
• Why Networking?
• 9 Steps To FAIL at Networking!
• Final Thoughts
Helping You Love Networking
5. Who Am I?
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• Chartered Accountant
• Social Media Addict
• + outside interests...
• Corporate Stooge
• Referral Marketing Specialist
Helping You Love Networking
6. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
• Social media junkie - Twitter, Google+, Instagram
• Blogging Junkie & now published author
• LinkedIn Fan - 40 posts, 2600+ connections, 100+
recommendations, 100s Endorsements
• Most successful RD in BforB history
• Helped hundreds of new business / start-ups /
established businesses
• Friend of other networking gurus including Rob!
I Am Not Rob Brown! But…
7. Introduction
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• Fact - Networking brings you a stream of new
contacts to make you more successful & profitable
• Fact - Networking help you better understand your
customers and marketplace whilst testing your
message and its effectiveness.
• Fact - But we all make mistakes Networking!
!
So what can you do to maximize your networking
return by avoiding these mistakes or failures?
Helping You Love Networking
11. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
The 9 Steps To Failure!
• Which ones you have tripped-up over in the past?!
• Which ones have cost you business?!
• How are you going to avoid these errors in the future?
Helping You Love Networking
12. 8 Things We Won't Be
Talking About Today!
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14. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
The 9 Failures
Not Listening Sell Sell Selling
Deadly Dull Pitches Going For The Quick Fix
Prejudging People Not Taking the Limelight
Being A 1-hit Wonder Not Talking Up The Benefits
No Clear Objective ++++++
15. STEP 1 - Not listening
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• One of the most important skills to have.
• Not about hearing what is said - it is understanding what people really
mean.
• Real listening requires your complete focus and attention.
• What are people really looking to achieve?
• What is really important to them about their business, job, personal
ambition, and family?
• People don't listen because they are too busy focusing on what they
want to say next in a conversation.
• 2 choices - be an interesting person or an interested person. You
decide!
• We are all at networking meetings to sell “ourselves”, but if we don't
connect emotionally people will run a mile in the other direction - so
LISTEN!
17. STEP 2 - Sell, Sell, Selling!
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• Business Networking is not about sell, sell, sell.
• The aggressive nightmares are easy to spot!
• The question is, areYOU ever guilty of talking when you should be
listening?
• Top networkers know how & do follow up + keep in regular contact.
• The people you meet at business networking are equals - they do not
want to be sold to and definitely do not want to be treated as
prospects
• Your objective is to build rapport and turn them into advocates of
your business - they may become customers or clients in time!
19. STEP 3 - Deadly dull pitches
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• Business Networking is not about telling the whole story of your
business.
• Brighten your 60 seconds up with humour, a picture or an interesting
statistic.
• The point of the pitch is to stimulate people's curiosity.
• Today we're all overloaded with too much information - even worse at a
Business Networking event.
• Give people as much information as they need at a later point.
• So do people a favour - FAVOUR simplicity over detail.
21. STEP 4 - Going for the quick fix
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22. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
• Business Networking is NOT where a sale occurs each time you
network.
• If everyone thought otherwise, who would we sell to - the catering
staff?!
• Networking is all about building relationships.
• People can make great connections the first time they attend a Business
Networking event but it is not something that you should expect.
• Real gold is in the long-term mutual beneficial relationships you form.
• You never know where where one conversation that you have in January
could lead - don't be surprised if it's made you thousands by the end of
December.
23. STEP 5 - Prejudging people
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24. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
• Some of the best referrals we see - come from people who we think
cannot help us or anybody else!
• You cannot afford to prejudge people
• You simply do not know who they know or who they can connect you
to.
• The saying is, never judge a book by its cover, but many of us do.
• Give people time and your attention by getting to know them via 121s.
• The flipside is that all that glitters is not gold, be open-minded and
don't rush into all relationships.
25. STEP 6 - Not taking the Limelight
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• Presenting - Public speaking scares many people witless:
• Grab any opportunity to present to get your message across & grow your
reputation.
• Confident speakers? They learnt this confidence by practicing. They too were
once scared!
• Talking to strangers - Normal to feel apprehensive:
• In business, talking to complete strangers is only way to generate interest and
contacts for your business.
• Only talk to the people you already know and deal with? You’re missing out on big
opportunities!
• Set targets before you attend any networking event. Decide how many new
contacts you want to make etc
• Make it fun and get out of your comfort zone with practice and
determination.
• What was I worried about....
27. STEP 7 - Being a 1-hit Wonder
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28. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
• You will get great results if you go back and get to know the other
members.
• You never know what JV or referrals will result from the trust that
grows out of regularly attending a networking group.
• Don't be a deal chaser in networking. Cannot afford to have an attitude
of What's in it for me. Replace this with the mantra - How can I help
you or How can I serve. Make a positive impact on someone's day!
• Effective networkers take a farming approach. They focus on cultivating
relationships for mutual long term benefit and they definitely do not
chase deals or instant sales.
• You may attend a networking forum and do business initially (The Law
Of Recency) but referral's work best if you develop a long term know
like and trust strategy with the people you meet.
29. STEP 8 - Not talking up the benefits
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30. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
• Talk about the benefits you deliver to your clients, suppliers and
contacts.
• Talk enthusiastically.
• What is unique about you? How do you deliver more value than
others in your sector?
• Don’t fall into the trap of saying that it is your service or quality
of your product that differentiates you. This is far too common
and generic.
• Everything you say should be relevant to the needs of the other
people in the room.
31. STEP 9 - No Clear Objective
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• Want quality business?Your objective MUST be to build relationships on the following
3 criteria: know, like and trust.
• *Know - getting to know your contact first is vital. Get the conversation going by asking open-ended
questions in which the person cannot easily answer yes or no!
• *Like- this is all about building rapport and getting on well.
• *Trust - mutual beneficial business relationships must be built on trust as it is your reputation - there must be
no hidden agendas.
• DO: Have a plan for what customers or businesses you want to meet or be referred
into.
• Other people can't guess what you want!
• Worse still they will waste your time with the wrong referrals if you are not CLEAR,
PRECISE & FOCUSED on what your top targets are.
• Let people know who you want to be referred to specifically, NEVER say anybody or
everybody. You will usually get referred to nobody !
• Nothing screams professionalism and "refer me with confidence" than having that
laser-like focus on your referral targets.
34. www.conspicuous-cbm.com
•Networking is a marketing tool.
•Not just an event that you go to!
•Good for business and fun too!
•Follow up without hesitation.
•Observe others’ successes & failures.
•Don't be afraid of making mistakes.
•There's always next time....
Helping You Love Networking