There Has Never Been a Better Time to Check Out NetWorks! Boise!

Since March 18, in response to the health crisis, NetWorks! Boise has moved to a virtual setting. I am pleased that our meetings, while different, have remained powerful and they have allowed us to explore new avenues that have resulted in some innovative long-term additions to our already full suite of services.

Once things get back to normal, our weekly lunches will resume. Until that time, we have reduced our dues schedule to reflect this. It seems like a good time to review what our standard and enhanced services, part of your dues structure, includes …

  • 48 meetings annually – Virtual for now, but the weekly lunch is included when it becomes once again feasible

Continue reading “There Has Never Been a Better Time to Check Out NetWorks! Boise!”

Becoming a Master Networker – Step #12 – Wrapping it Up

Our final post in this series will be a little bit recap and a bit more for some additional tips …

Starting out

Remember that this is not a race. You will need to get to know your fellow networkers, and earn their trust, prior to seeing any real returns in terms of referrals. Be visible, learn about others, and always remember that givers get. Nothing will sink you faster than trying to circumvent, expedite this process. 

How much time is needed to see a return?

How much time do you give an opportunity? Time is important but effort is even more important. If you don’t put in the effort … no amount of time will be adequate. I would allow a year minimum and during that time you should be constantly evaluating your own effort. Are you doing everything that you can do to maximize your returns? 

Taking it to the next level

Most people that I know, and even those that I associate with in a networking capacity, are what I would call passive networkers. They show up, share a few leads, and will give out referrals when the chance to do so arises. Very few will follow-up on warm leads or seek to interact with others outside of a planned setting.

That’s a shame because they are only receiving a fraction of the potential benefit from any networking relationship. They do just enough to get by. If that works for them … who am I to say.

For those of you who are seeking the maximum return, and those of you who are willing to work for it, here are some tips …

Effective networking does take work and no amount of pixie dust is going to change that – Your one overriding goal is to develop mutually beneficial relationships and these take time. Real relationships are also real-life and that means, that if it is at all possible, you need to get face-to-face. Ditch any device that glows.

You can control the networking narrative – I figured this out early on. I built a number of power partner relationships but, as previously stated, most networkers are passive. As such, as much as they might like me, they rarely thought about me unless … I created an event that put us nose-to-nose. That event was called lunch.

Show genuine interest in others – I’ll let you in on a little secret. I absolutely hate talking about myself which is good because … rarely am I ever asked to do so. Rather, I spend my meetings having the other guy or gal tell me about themselves. Winner winner.

What can you give others? – This can sometimes be challenging and sometimes the best way to determine what value you can provide to a partner is to ask them straight out. Don’t be surprised if you hear … “All I want is someone who I can count on to take care of my customers.”  Being able to make quality referrals adds value to their, and your, services.

How else can you leverage these relationships? – Start by being proactive about your needs … Do you know anyone at firm “x”? I see that you are connected on LinkedIn to “x”, would you be comfortable in introducing us? 

Speaking of referrals and introductions, teach others how to do both for you and … you do the same for them! A solid introduction includes … name, company name, contact info, nature of the referral, they are expecting your call, and use my name. These are minimums!

This concludes our 12-part series and I hope that you have found it to be beneficial. If you have any suggestions for future articles or if you would like to learn more about NetWorks! Boise, please reach out to me at craig@adaptive-business.com.

Becoming a Master Networker – Step #11 – Tracking Your Results

Speaking for myself, I am all about R.O.I., Return On Investment. As such, I look at my networking activities as investments rather than expenses. While I can tell you that I can credit millions of dollars in projects directly to my networking efforts, you are going to want and need to track your own results.

It’s not difficult, there are only a few key metrics to monitor, and the tools to do so range from zero cost to whatever you want to spend. If this is the only thing that you want to track … free is more than adequate.  Continue reading “Becoming a Master Networker – Step #11 – Tracking Your Results”

Becoming a Master Networker – Step #10 – Power Partners

Let’s talk a bit about power partners. Power partners are the secret sauce of the networking world. They can and should be a subset of every networking type group that you belong to and particularly in any leads group. They also function as a standalone networking resource. I’ll start with a true story. 

In 2005 I resigned from my last management job. I had been in management positions, with a few short-term exceptions, continuously since 1979. I took about 6 months off to plan my next moves and came to the decision that I wanted to go back to selling only which was something that I had not done in a great deal of time. Additionally, I wanted to work on a commission only program. Continue reading “Becoming a Master Networker – Step #10 – Power Partners”

Becoming a Master Networker – Step #9 – Progressive Engagement

One goal in social networking is to connect with others, in a meaningful manner, and then to develop these relationships. Our primary goal should be to do this with the right people … those who we can best assist with achieving their desired results and vice versa. 

Twitter is fairly simple and straightforward. You follow somebody then see if they will return the favor. LinkedIn and Facebook require a more formal procedure of extending an invitation to connect or friend and then hoping that this is accepted.  Continue reading “Becoming a Master Networker – Step #9 – Progressive Engagement”

Becoming a Master Networker – Step #8 – Real-Life vs. Social

Dependent on a variety of factors, the dynamics of effective networking can substantially change. At the very least, certain behaviors will become more critical based upon these variables including whether we are operating within a small or large group setting, engaging one-on-one, or we are actively networking online.

Let’s start with the finish. Regardless of the setting, your one goal is to always develop one-on-one relationships, in real-life, with the right people. The goal in social networking is to move new relationships to some sort of a real-life status (face-to-face, phone, Skype). There are no exceptions. Continue reading “Becoming a Master Networker – Step #8 – Real-Life vs. Social”

Becoming a Master Networker – Step #7- The Fundamentals

Now that we have discussed some of the qualities that will help you to become a master networker, what about some actions? What will it take to become successful in any networking activity? 

Let’s focus on some fundamentals …

You don’t have to be a mad extrovert to be a successful networker – I am largely introverted. I can appear to be extroverted when needed, but only to a limited degree and not in every situation. I work best in smaller venues and I will avoid larger gatherings like the plague. 

Oddly, I am comfortable in front of large crowds but not in one.  As there are a ton of suitable networking opportunities out there, avoiding large venues becomes a non-issue.

Take it slow – Wherever you are, be sure to take your time to get settled in. You must get to know people before approaching them. More importantly, they need to become comfortable with you. 

I once joined a group and on the day of our first meeting, a member who was not in attendance called me on the phone and suggested that we exchange our email lists. All of them. Uh … no. It don’t work that way. 

Show up – You have to be active and be consistent. Only an idiot would make a monetary investment in any networking activity and then not make the necessary time investment in order to realize a return. It just makes no sense and it is an opportunity that has been fully squandered.

Learn to listen – People who are the most successful are those who genuinely show more interest in learning about others than they do talking about themselves.This is the time when the old adage … God gave you two eyes, two ears, and one mouth for a reason … carries absolute weight.

Do your homework – Performing your due diligence before reaching out is important. I expect people to do some research on me before getting in touch, With social networking and the internet in general, it’s not like it takes a lot of effort.

 If you don’t, I may view it as being rather insulting and especially if your assumptions about me are blatantly in error. On the other hand, if you do, I’ll be pleasantly surprised. You might even become R.U.M.

Refer others before asking for referrals –  Remember that givers get. Practice giving quality referrals and introductions to others. You probably want to know who, what, when, where, why and how and people you refer will want to know the same. 

Then teach others how to refer you – One of the most important steps to first take is to take advantage of opportunities to let people know who you are and what your offered value proposition is. You are going to be hard to refer if folks have no idea as to what the hell you do. 

When presented with a general opportunity, contact the giver for more info and ask  … “can I use your name?”. By the way, this simple action is a powerful way to build one-on-one relationships. Speaking of …

One-on-ones – Meet with others one-on-one and outside of the group setting. It’s a funny dynamic that is also critically important with power partners. When I was in the sign business, I had some extremely powerful power partner relationships. 

These people loved me as much as I loved them but, much to my surprise, they did not spend their days thinking … “How can I best take care of Craig??” Talk about selfish 🙂 However, when Craig was buying lunch it was “what can we bring!?”

Next month will be exploring this topic further as we dig deeper into group sizes as well as individual relationships.