Here’s 3 things you can do to improve your results – try them this week!

Ask how you can help

The fastest way to build relationships is to try and help people. The more people you help the more credibility you have. A network event where everyone is trying to help each other is a great place to be. It’s rare but wonderful. So find a way to ask how to help; open questions starting with how, what, why usually lead to more information. E.g. “what are you hoping to find here?”

Collect cards

There is a school of thought saying you shouldn’t do this. I disagree because it’s what you do with them that counts. You should follow up with anyone you can help and with anyone you promised to follow up with. If you allocate time you can follow up effectively. If the information you want to send them is not useful (especially if they expressed no interest in it) it’s probably best to keep it out of their inbox.

Listen and take notes

Ears and a pen are the main tools when business networking. Adding notes to someone elses card will help you later determine who you can help and who has useful contacts for you. You could use your phone to take numbers and notes saving all that data inputting when you collect cards. The iphone has an app that scans the information straight into your contacts. Without this detail you cannot follow up.

Wrap up; To bond with people you meet at events you should find ways to help them, collect or share appropriate information and agree to maintain contact if you have anything useful to offer each other.

Beyond Networking is a networking results company. It will take five minutes to determine if anything they do will save you time and effort when networking.

Sign up to our RSS at the top right of the page to receive details of events and promotions that could help you or your network improve results.

Thanks in advance for your promotion of my blog to others. I believe the information I provide is of great value so please let me know if you feel differently. There’s very little self promotion in the blog so please forgive this short and honest promotion of my stuff.

The sharing of this quality information is to give you an inkling of the things I can help you with. To find out if anything I do will save you time and effort with very little risk click here to learn more. In return I promise not to try and sell you anything you don’t want and improve your networking results.

3 things not to do and their fixes -

Last week we discovered the secrets of a natural born networker. Once you’re comfortable asking questions, how do you fit more in when time is at a premium?

The time you spend business networking is important. Here are 3 things not to do, their fixes and a tip to help  improve your results.

Turn up late

It might be an early start if it’s a breakfast meeting yet what happens if most people leave as soon as it’s finished? You might not get to meet the one person that has what you want. The early bird does catch the worm and you can greet everyone as they arrive. At least they’ll all know who you are and that you’re friendly. Smile please!

Forget why you are there

Business networking is a form of marketing so prepare to give short clear messages about what you do; the end result for your would be clients is what is most important. Who do you want to be introduced to? You can’t be introduced to “anyone, someone or everyone” yet there are unlimited connections if networkers are specific. Note the word unlimited, there really isn’t a limit to what can be achieved through networking if time is spent wisely.

Leave early

Especially if you turned up late! If the most valuable networker in the room got there late and you’re leaving early you are not going to get the most out of the time you spend there. Your aim should be to say hello to a handful of people. Standing by the door may be a bit much! Yet you should hang around until you’ve spoken to as many people as possible.

Wrap up: Get there early, give clear messages and stay as late as you can. If the event is 2 hours long being there for an extra 6 minutes before and 6 minutes after adds 10% to the time you spend engaging people.

Top tip; This is especially valuable if the event includes a seminar.

Beyond Networking is a networking results company. It will take five minutes to determine if anything they do will save you time and effort when networking.

Sign up to our RSS at the top right of the page to receive details of events and promotions that could help you or your network improve results.

Thanks in advance for your promotion of my blog to others. I believe the information I provide is of great value so please let me know if you feel differently. There’s very little self promotion in the blog so please forgive this short and honest promotion of my stuff.

The sharing of this quality information is to give you an inkling of the things I can help you with. To find out if anything I do will save you time and effort with very little risk click here to learn more. In return I promise not to try and sell you anything you don’t want and improve your networking results.

There’s a more natural type of business networking – you can try it today.

I’m told that some people are born to be successful networkers. This guy swore he wasn’t yet he got exactly what he needed by asking questions. How can you ensure you get the results you want?

My mate in IT was working at a hedge fund where everyone was confused by the fact that the network settings kept falling away after they had been reset. The non technical explanation is that the computers would not work properly.

After much frustration he decided to take a break, clear his mind and think of a way to get to the bottom of the problem – so he decided on a cigarette. Like most reputation conscious businesses there was no room to smoke on the front steps so he decided to take a walk around the building.

It was a beautiful day and he noticed quite a few people up on a first floor area that looked lush with greenery. He fancied taking a look and asked a fellow “smoker” how to get up there. The reply was “you probably don’t want to mate – what with the electricity substation underneath”.

Eureka!

Armed with that knowledge he stubbed his cigarette out, waltzed back in the building and proceeded to act like he had the right to wear his underpants outside of his trousers. Fixing the network once and for all and providing an answer that swept through the building like wildfire. The problem was that the substation was responsible for some form of “magnetizing” of the IT system. Please don’t ask me to explain because I won’t be able to. 

Smoking and networking, my mate tells me “smetworking” was an accident yet felt OK because he had something in common (rapport) with the other “smoker”. The hedge fund was so impressed he could have asked to be introduced to everyone else in the building and they would have been happy to help. A missed opportunity perhaps?

The moral of this story? Business networking is about finding useful information and contacts that help you or others. You will not be able to do that unless you are regularly asking people questions to see what they want in order to build rapport. And don’t forget to ask for something when the opportunity arises. Then you can become “a natural”.

Wrap up; It’s not about smoking or telling people what their problem is and hoping they choose you to fix it. It’s about finding ways to help others. When you are able to help, ask for help in return. Then follow up.

Todays tip; Don’t take up smoking, resolve to ask 20 more questions per week, that’s four per day.

Beyond Networking is a networking results company. It will take five minutes to determine if anything they do will save you time and effort when networking.

Sign up to our RSS at the top right of the page to receive details of events and promotions that could help you or your network improve results.

Thanks in advance for your promotion of my blog to others. I believe the information I provide is of great value so please let me know if you feel differently. There’s very little self promotion in the blog so please forgive this short and honest promotion of my stuff.

The sharing of this quality information is to give you an inkling of the things I can help you with. To find out if anything I do will save you time and effort with very little risk click here to learn more. In return I promise not to try and sell you anything you don’t want and improve your networkingresults.