Karen Skidmore's Kick-Ass Blog | CanDoCanBe

Networking is not just for the quiet times

When you run your own business, it's easy to fall in to the feast and famine trap.

Spend 8 weeks marketing like crazy and then spend the next 3 months working on the projects that you generated during this time.  Then your diary is empty once again as the work dries up and you are out marketing like crazy again to get the cash flow going.

The feast and famine cycle is hard work and very stressful.

And this is why it's important not to let your networking happen just in the quiet times.

Networking is not an instant fix to increasing your sales leads.  Many big contracts and projects are awarded because of relationships built over several years.

Being visible 12 months of the year - little and often - is far more effective than the 8 week networking tour of every event in a 40 mile radius. 

Networking throughout the year will help you attract clients and customers naturally throughout the year, reducing the number of stressful *strapped for cash* months.

Is the cost of memberships for networking groups really worth it?

The availability of networking groups up and down the country is immense today.  When I first started up in business 4 years ago, I had the choice of a Chambers lunch, BRE, BNI or the odd Ecademy meeting.

Now you can network before and over breakfast most days of the week, go on to a coffee session with Ladies Who Latte or Cappucino Connections, followed by an array of lunches, post dinner drinks and evening sessions.

But what about the membership costs?  When some meetings are free to attend and others pay as you go, do you really need to be forking out a couple of hundred pounds for a membership?

Let’s put this in to context and give you a real life example.  Working with one of my clients this morning, we were working out the cost of joining 12.30, a women’s networking group in the SE.

£55 annual membership for a business less than a year trading, £35 joining fee and lunches at £11 each.  £85 upfront was a little hard to swallow at the moment for my cilent and she was unsure whether she could afford it.

But if she was to go to 6 lunches across the year, the total cost of her networking (across the year) would be £156.  She offers a one-off consultation for £75 so all she would need is 2 consultations as a result of raising her profile by networking at 12.30 and she’s (just) quids in!

Could you really expect to get 2 consultations from a £156 one-off advert?  Um, I think not!

My thank you gift for more than 300 comments!

Thank you to everyone who has been commenting, especially over the past few weeks, to get this blog up to 300 comments.  There are now officially 314 comments, and when we hit 300, I promised you all a little something out of my audio recording collection.

As networking is such an important topic and one that I know that many people always love to learn more and discover ways of improving their networking, I thought I would share with you this one:  Confident Networking for Women. 

Just right click on your mouse and choose the Save As option to download and save on to your computer.  Then listen at your desk, whilst running in the gym or out walking the dog (I know which one I prefer!)

Download confident_networking_for_women.mp3

Happy networking :)

4 Ways of Being a Confident and Powerful Networker

It's one thing being a networker, but entirely different if you are a not-worker.

It can be very easy to find yourself attending one networking event after another and wonder why you are there and what it is you are trying to achieve.  I can remember several weeks of networking where I managed to have several lunches, a few evening events topped off with a virtual online session.

(The one time of day I can't network - and to be honest don't like to network - is breakfast.  Too busy doing the school run and until I have had a couple of cups of tea, I can't verbalise sensibly anyway!!)

Too much networking without much of a thought of what, why, when and where and all you can achieve is a drain in your cashflow and no time in the office to catch up with all that client work you should have done last week.

So how can you ensure your networking is productive?

How can you make your networking confident and powerful?

There are many ways but the four main strategies that I work to are as follows:

1.  Network with a goal.  If you have a purpose in mind, you will be likely to pick up on clues to help you get there.  And your goal does not always have to be "find 3 new clients".  In fact some of your best client generation networking is usually when you are not focusing on that particular goal.

Other networking goals can be to find 3 recommendations for an accountant; to get to speak to someone who works in a particular industry so you can pick their brains over a cup of coffee; or even as social as asking around for anyone who has a villa in Spain they would like to rent out in August (any offers?)

2.  Be focused but open minded.  Yes, it is important to have a goal in mind and to keep your networking strategy focused around this.  But do keep an open mind when considering different networking events, speaking to different people and exploring online communities.  Other doors may open for you and opportunities present themselves if you let them appear.

3.  Follow up - ALWAYS!  I must admit to have been up and down with this and it is only recently that I realised I had let this slide.  Don't give an initial meeting the opportunity to fizzle out and disappear.  Networking is about building relationships and if you have exchanged business cards it is only polite to drop them an email within 24 hours of meeting them. No sales pitch, mind! Just a follow up to encourage the relationship to develop.

4.  Know that networking is like a pregnancy - it can take 9 months for you to see results!  Networking is not a quick fix marketing strategy.  Attend 3 meetings and then sulk because not one person called you to enquire about your services.  Networking takes time. You are building relationships and it is important to allow people to develop trust and confidence in you.

If you are just starting up, will you still be in business in 6 months time?  If you have been in business for a while, will you disappear again once your workload goes on the up? 

Take the time to build your reputation and you will reap the rewards for many years to come.

If you have another confident and powerful networking strategy that you would like to share, please share them by adding a comment below.

Confident Networking - Follow Up At All Times

Networking can be such a successful marketing strategy for a home business, but when done half-cut it can be more of a case of not-working rather than networking.

Following up on the people you met and business cards you exchanged is critical to starting the relationship building process. 

It’s all very well collecting business cards and shoving them in to a rolodex on your desk thinking you have a great network of contacts, but if you relationship hasn’t gone further than that initial handshake and first conversation, it is unlikely the person will be an advocate/client/contact for you in the future – they just may not remember you!

With everyone you meet, follow up with an email – preferably within 24 hours.

“Hi Jo. It was great to meet you at ABC lunch yesterday.  I really enjoyed our discussion on XYZ and liked the approach of your business.  I will certainly pass on your contact details to anyone who may need your services.  By the way, if you or anyone in your network needs help with 123, then do pass them my web address.  Look forward to seeing you sometime in the future, Warm regards Alex”

Leave any “selling” out, include a link in your email signature to a particular product if appropriate and that’s about it.  How hard is that?

Confident Networking: Who is you want to meet?

Networking can be a very relaxed and informal marketing plan for your business.  Turn up for an event, bring along some business cards and start a few conversations.

But like all “good” marketing, the more you think about what it is you want to achieve in your marketing, the better your planning will be and the more likely you are to see results come out of those lunches you attend.

Asking yourself “who is it that I want to meet?” is a great place to start.  And it may make you realise that it isn’t always your ideal client that you want to meet, all of the time, either.

• Do you need help with your marketing and would it be useful to you to find some brains to pick on what you could do?
• Are you having problems with your PC and do you need some recommendations for an IT expert to come and have a look?
• Do you want to secure a contract with a particular type of business and would speaking to people who already deal with those businesses be useful to talk to?
• Are you wanting to deliver workshops or a programme but need someone to help you deliver the material?

“More clients” is always on the agenda when marketing, but it isn’t necessarily always the “goal of the moment”.  Knowing exactly who it is you want to meet, whether it be an IT expert or potential collaborative partner, helps you make the most of your networking time.

Where do you find the person you want to meet?  Get subscribed and look out for next week’s confident networking posting.

Confident Networking - a festive guide to networking

Kelly Stevens, Founder of The Women’s Networking Company, spoke at the Kingston Women’s Network this week.  Kelly always gives her honest opinion and was full of great tips on how to get the most out of your networking.

She didn’t have any handouts but has written some fab tips on festive networking which I thought I would share with you here.  On the phone this afternoon she told her biggest tip for festive networking which was not to get p****ed   – you still have to do business with your customers when you sober up!

Read on and I hope you enjoy her wise words.

Confident Networking - Got the right handbag?

A networking problem that is limited to us ladies (I hope!) is the networking handbag problem.

Have you ever found yourself digging deep in to your bag to find your business cards?  Or managed to knock over a table of drinks as you turn round to say hi to someone?  Or even not been able to shake someone’s hands because your bag is in one hand and a drink is in the other?

Let me share with you the perfect handbag to have with you at networking events.

• Flat bottomed – flat bottomed bags stand up and don’t fall over when put on the floor.  Essential when talking in a crowded room and handy when you need to reach down to get your cards out.
• Shoulder straps – a handbag that tucks neatly under your arm and can even be pushed around behind you gets it out of the way.  You don’t want your handbag to be a barrier that gets between you and people that you want to meet.
• Side pockets – either inside or outside side pockets allow you to keep your business cards at easy reach.  No need to fumble around the bottom trying to find your cards in amongst your makeup, keys and mobile phone.
• Handbag size and not suitcase size – the fashion now is BIG bags but you don’t need to take the kitchen sink with you to a networking event.

Confident Networking Top Tips - always have your business card at the ready

There is nothing worse than scrabbling around at the bottom of your handbag when you want to exchange business cards with someone.  Be prepared.

If you are wearing trousers or a jacket with pockets, then keep your business cards in your left pocket.  This will allow you to shake hands with your right and calmly put your left hand in to your left pocket and pull out a business card.

If you don’t have any pockets then either keep your business cards in a small business card case in your hand or have a handbag with an easily accessible inside pocket.

And remember to put other people’s business cards in your other pocket, separate from your own!  You don’t want to be handing out other people’s business cards, do you?  

Making Presentations - Take a Deep Breath

My thanks go out to Lyndon Hughes, a trained Actress and public speaking expert, who gave the CanDoCanBe Guildford Women’s Network a fabulous presentation on how to speak with confidence. 

It certainly made me realise how fast I can talk when presenting .  For those of you who couldn’t make it but are interested in learning her top tips, Lyndon has kindly provided her breathing techniques to share with all of you.

Over to you, Lyndon.