Attending local networking events helps drive clients to your door, literally and virtually? These official events have helped my business grow and prosper. Finding the perfect networking event that suits your business just isn’t that easy or convenient enough to always match your schedule.
I have another suggestion. One that you can adjust to meet your schedule, without the stress or high pressure you are put under at those formal events.
I call this strategy - Personalized Networking Events.
• I create a list of businesses that might benefit from my services
• After researching them and deciding just how I can help improve their lives, I stop by unannounced, or even better write them a letter.
• I introduce myself and briefly touch on a few details of how they would benefit from using my service. I give them a business card and schedule a follow up business meeting.
• At the follow up meeting I present an outline of solutions that I think would interest them and talk further on the challenges of running their business.
Most of my meetings take place in a virtual environment and we rarely meet face to face. But we do communicate by phone, skype, email and message boards. It has become a very personal and quick way of doing business, which more and more people are choosing. The savings in time alone are tremendous and of course the expenses are kept down to a bare minimum.
First: Do your research and don’t forget to check these people out in Google News articles. Their company may have been featured or received an award or had some noteworthy event that has been reported recently. Company websites offer a wealth of information and conversation topics.
Second: Save your notes and carry them with you. The Evernote App is fantastic for this. You can have links to the website and have contact information and your notes at your fingertips. If you don’t have a smartphone then use a notebook or a daytimer.
Third: Find a reason to contact them. Share some interesting information or a news article that you feel would be useful to them. Your aim is to make a personal connection with these people and establish a good rapport.
You may find that, this personable, relaxed approach to networking is more to your liking. I enjoy it immensely and have been rewarded with several new and long-term clients.
I have another suggestion. One that you can adjust to meet your schedule, without the stress or high pressure you are put under at those formal events.
I call this strategy - Personalized Networking Events.
• I create a list of businesses that might benefit from my services
• After researching them and deciding just how I can help improve their lives, I stop by unannounced, or even better write them a letter.
• I introduce myself and briefly touch on a few details of how they would benefit from using my service. I give them a business card and schedule a follow up business meeting.
• At the follow up meeting I present an outline of solutions that I think would interest them and talk further on the challenges of running their business.
Most of my meetings take place in a virtual environment and we rarely meet face to face. But we do communicate by phone, skype, email and message boards. It has become a very personal and quick way of doing business, which more and more people are choosing. The savings in time alone are tremendous and of course the expenses are kept down to a bare minimum.
First: Do your research and don’t forget to check these people out in Google News articles. Their company may have been featured or received an award or had some noteworthy event that has been reported recently. Company websites offer a wealth of information and conversation topics.
Second: Save your notes and carry them with you. The Evernote App is fantastic for this. You can have links to the website and have contact information and your notes at your fingertips. If you don’t have a smartphone then use a notebook or a daytimer.
Third: Find a reason to contact them. Share some interesting information or a news article that you feel would be useful to them. Your aim is to make a personal connection with these people and establish a good rapport.
You may find that, this personable, relaxed approach to networking is more to your liking. I enjoy it immensely and have been rewarded with several new and long-term clients.
RSS Feed
