Networking - How To Do It

Home
>
Networking
>
Networking - How To Do It

Networking - How To Do It

Networking is probably the oldest, easiest, most effective and least expensive way to get more business. It doesn't necessarily involve selling your product or service but it does mean selling yourself. However, that doesn't involve a lot of talking - it does involve a lot of listening.

Networking is about making connections with people and building a network of meaningful relationships.

Having good relationships means - these people will either do business with you and/or recommend you to others. These people are your unpaid sales-force and you've got to ensure that they do a good job.

Here are 9 steps to successful networking:

#1 Be prepared - Particularly if you're attending a formal networking event like the Chamber of Commerce.

#2 Think about whom you'll be meeting - Consider what your opening remarks or questions will be. And think about what you're going to say when they question you.

#3 Make sure you have lots of business cards, a small notebook, and a pen - These should be easily accessible and not involve a rummage through pockets or a bag to find them.

Reminder - NEVER go anywhere without business cards

#4 You don't necessarily need brochures - These can be sent when you follow up later. A networking event is not a place to sell your product or service. (This is not understood by the people who have bored the pants off me over the years)

#5 Think about what you're going to wear - I've seen people rush into a networking event in clothes that look like they've been slept in.

If it means having a change of clothes in the office or going home to freshen up - then do it. Remember, the image you present to other people is the image they'll have of your business.

Men should wear a bright tie (not cheap) and women should wear something bright. Remember, however - business dress, not sexy.

#6 Personal hygiene - Brush your teeth or use a breath freshener. I've met people at networking events whose breath would bring down a rhino at fifty feet. Avoid drinking wine or coffee; they can make your breath sour. Stick to mineral water or a soft drink.

#7 Watch out for the perfume - Both men and women, strong scents can be overpowering.

#8 Name badges - They'll probably hand these out at the event, however consider having your own produced. They're not expensive to produce and it means you can ensure that what's on the badge is what you want. (Conference organisers often get the details wrong on name badges) Pin the badge on your right lapel - it's easier for people to read. The majority of people shake hands with their right hand. As you lean forward to shake hands, it means that the other person can read your badge easier.

#9 Go with a partner - Take a friend or one of your team to a networking event. While you're there, alternately separate and come together. When you see your partner with someone or a group, walk up and let your partner introduce you. Your partner will introduce you using a pre-agreed benefit statement. Something like - "This is my friend Mary Smith - she helps business people find more customers by improving their networking skills." It's then easier for you to make more contacts.

Discover how you can generate more business without having to cold call! Alan Fairweather is the author of "How to get More Sales without Selling". This book is packed with practical things that you can do to get customers to come to you!

http://www.howtogetmoresales.com

In The News:

Bradford Networks Partners With Zycko for European Distribution
MarketWatch (press release)
CAMBRIDGE, MA, May 25, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Bradford Networks, the best choice to enable secure network access for corporate issued and personal mobile devices, today announced that it has partnered with pan-European distributor Zycko.

Phoenix networking calendar for week of May 25
Bizjournals.com
To submit networking meeting or event information, or to update these listings, email phoenixcalendars@bizjournals.com. Arizona International Growth Group, first Monday of the month, 7:30 am, SkySong, 1475 N. Scottsdale Road, Ste. 200, Scottsdale.

Networking as the Next Great Opportunity for the Channel in the Cloud
Channel Insider
The next great bottleneck is going to be the networking layer in the cloud. A recent survey of 1300 IT professionals conducted by Cisco finds that the one of biggest inhibitors to cloud computing adoption is the readiness of the network According to ...

Cisco Ends Investment in Cius Tablet in Face of BYOD, Cloud
eWeek
The networking and collaboration vendor instead will focus on growing its software efforts, such as the Jabber UC platform and WebEx online meeting solution. Cisco Systems' Android-based Cius tablet has become a victim of the rapidly growing ...

and more »

Kiwibox.com Enters Spanish and Latin Markets -- Launches Spanish Language ...
MarketWatch (press release)
NEW YORK, May 25, 2012 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The Kiwibox network proudly announces the integration of Spanish language versions on its social networking websites. The US based platform Kiwibox and the European KWICK! now each support Spanish ...

and more »

TIME
The Best Social Networks for Kids Under 13
TIME
By Jo McClelland (Tecca) | May 24, 2012 | + It's no secret that social networking is a large part of our culture. Facebook and other social networking sites have minimum age requirements that some kids get around by lying about the year they were born.

Big Switch Networks Releases Tool to Promote OpenFlow Interoperability
MarketWatch (press release)
PALO ALTO, Calif., May 24, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Big Switch Networks, the leader in Open Software-Defined Networking (SDN), released OFTest, a framework for testing OpenFlow switches to insure standards compliance and interoperability.

and more »

Smart Grid Networking and Communications
Sacramento Bee
As such, the communications networks and equipment used to construct them are shifting from the high unit volume and less expensive nodes used in smart meters, to somewhat lower unit volume, yet higher value, networking equipment and communications ...

and more »

VentureBeat
Microsoft's social networking site So.cl now open to all users
Computerworld
By John Ribeiro IDG News Service - So.cl, an experimental research project from Microsoft, that combines social networking and search to promote learning, is now accepting all users interested in joining the site. The social networking site, ...
Is this the next Facebook? Microsoft unveils so.cl social networkFox News
Microsoft silently launches So.cl, its attempt at a social networking siteVentureBeat

all 237 news articles »

IT Winners and Losers
Barron's
These names include Cisco Systems (ticker: CSCO), Juniper Networks (JNPR) and Polycom (PLCM). In our view, F5 Networks, Radware (RDWR) and Qualcomm are stocks with positive secular trends in application networking and mobile. For the defense industry, ...

Google News