Fundamental Rules for Successful Networking
Back in the good old days of the Celtic Tiger, sales in business were easily made, there was plenty of money about and most people were spending freely, therefore most businesses just needed to open their doors and business came, for sales people selling in a product or service, very little sales skills were required as businesses were having little trouble selling on products. But now that the Celtic Tiger in well dead and buried many businesses seem to be stuck for ideas, unable to sell themselves or their product or service and therefore not keeping their business ahead of the competition, In this current climate there are many ways in getting to meet new prospects and customers and Networking is one very effective way.
NETWORKING is another word for prospecting and has become a vital tool for many businesses and has been critical to the survival of many businesses. It is inexpensive (often free), time effective/productive (you can often make 10-20 contacts in a couple of hours) and is very sociable and can be great fun.
If you question the value of Networking consider this: If there are lets say 50 people in a room and you have an hour or so to network, you might speak to maybe 50%, and make 15-20 contacts. How long do you think it would take you to make 20 sales in another environment??? Probably and few days!!
Successful Networking isn’t just about showing up and chatting to some person you know well, remember everyone else there are also there to make new business contacts also, so bring plenty of business cards, show an interest in other businesses and engage with other people. Get to know people and build friendships (remember people do business with people who they like and trust) and have fun.
Here are a few more tips:
· Arrive early
· Bring plenty of business cards
· Spend 75% of the time with people you don’t know
· Spend 25% of the time building existing relationships
· Don’t give out information too soon (after you give your 10-15 second introduction, ask the other person what they do before you start talking in depth about your business)
· Don’t sell your product or service, just establish rapport and maybe look for appointment.
· Be polite at all times.
· Avoid negative talk at all costs.
· Don’t spend too much time with any one person.
· REMEMBER you may have to become a buyer in order to get a chance to become a seller. You must be able to wear either hat, everyone there wants to sell!!!