So, Networking is Not Working For You

One of the common complaints that I hear from business owners is that networking does not work for me and is a waste of time. In other words, they have not received any clients or customers from their networking efforts. Typically, they reach this conclusion after attending a series of non-strategic events with no plan and no follow up. In this article, I am going to address three ways that you can enhance your networking results.

1. Your networking should be targeted. You would not dream of setting up a marketing plan without a clear definition of your ideal customer or client. But businesspeople will network aimlessly without any thought about their ideal networking partner. Your ideal networking partner should be talking with the people that you want to meet on a daily basis. In essence, their clients and prospects should fit within your definition of your ideal client or customer. 

2. Your networking should be strategic. The 80/20 rule states that you will receive 80% of your referrals from 20% of your networking partners. The secret to making your networking more strategic is to concentrate most of your networking efforts on 10-12 people that are targeting similar types of clients and customers and share your commitment to strategic networking. Once you have identified this key group, you should establish a short business plan and strategies that will yield additional business opportunities for each of you.

3. Your networking should be triggered rather than general. Most networkers tell people what they do and potentially some of the benefits that their clients and customers receive. But they do not adequately address the psychological characteristics or factual circumstances that result in a need for their services. As a result, their networking partners have to work at matching up their conversations with the solutions that their networking partners provide. A solid networking plan educates networking partners about the triggering mechanisms that result in a need for your services.

Please email me back if you would like to receive our complimentary referral source diagnostic.

Brian Kerrigan