Who's There?
Networking Skill Tip |
One of the most common networking tips I hear is to ask for a copy of the attendee list in advance. There is some sense to this but I also think it is a very dangerous suggestion.
Feel free to use an advance list to:
- Remind yourself of people who will be there who you have met before. It will save you those embarrassing moments when they know you and you haven't got the foggiest idea who they are!
- Identify people you have been meaning to connect with, or people who are 'friends' on an online site but whom you've never met.
- Recognise certain people you really want to meet.
The dangers to avoid include:
- Only focusing on people on your 'hit list' and ignoring all others.
- Being so focused on ticking off the people you want to meet, you don't allow for random connections. Sometimes those connections are the most powerful you can make.
- Spending the whole event trying to break into conversations where your targeted contact are, rather than speaking with the other people at the event.
If you want to meet anyone in particular, email them in advance to see if you can grab a few minutes of their time before or after the event, or, if they are engaged in conversation, politely ask for their card and their permission to contact them in the next day or so.
By all means embrace the guest list in advance as a tool if available, but don't rely on it, or treat it as a 'prospect' list. Most importantly of all, don't firebomb everyone on it with a generic email either before or after the event without their permission.
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Brain Building
Networking Strategy Tip |
Have you identified the key areas you need to focus on for your self-development?
Networking groups don't just provide you with the opportunity to find customers and champions. The provide an excellent forum as a self-development tool. Many offer guest speakers while others guarantee that the attendees will share certain experiences and expertise.
Before going to such 'brain building' events, be clear about what you want to achieve from them. If you know exactly what to listen out for, you will get much more value from a guest speaker than someone waiting to be entertained.
Talking to people from your own profession? Know where your challenges are and ask them if they have had similar experiences. Not only will you potentially find a new solution, you are far more likely to enjoy an engaging conversation. |
Who, Where and Why?
Online Social Networking Tip
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If you join more than one online network, it helps to know what you want to achieve from each. Failure to do so will lead to you replicating the same networks in different places, without any clear idea of why.
I am constantly asked to connect on LinkedIn or Facebook by people already linked to me on ecademy or Xing. I get several Plaxo Pulse connection requests every day from people I know elsewhere, and I don't know what purpose is served by these multiple connections.
Have a role for each social network you belong to. It may be that LinkedIn is for you to recommend, and be recommended by, people you know, like and trust. If that is the case, perhaps you should only connect to those people.
Facebook may be an opportunity for you to deepen existing relationships which have already passed the basic connection stage, while ecademy allows you to connect to new people and develop friendships from scratch.
Having such a strategy will help you make so much more sense of your online networking than just accepting invitations and connections as they come in.
If you have comments or questions on this, please visit this blog.
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Beating the recession by sharing the costs
yourBusinessChannel.com Video Tip |
A business balance sheet is not just about the number of sales and a business's success is equally reliant on managing costs.
Similarly, networking not only helps you develop your revenues, it can be a great way to manage your supply chain.
In this video from yourBusinessChannel.com, I explain how getting together with fellow businesses can help smaller enterprises afford things which may otherwise have been out of reach.
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Get one of the final copies of '...and Death Came Third!' .......... for FREE!
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For a short time only, we have a very special deal for you! We have just thirty copies of the Amazon Number Two book '...and Death Came Third! The Definitive Guide to Networking and Speaking in Public' left. Normally priced at �14.95 (and currently fetching �42 on Amazon!), these copies are available for free for the next thirty people who purchase my new double CD set, Networking in Ninety Minutes. This CD set will give you simple tips to put effective strategies into place.
You can order the CD set here. Once you have completed your order, please send an email with the subject line 'Book Offer' to harvey@lopata.co.uk and we will include a copy of the book in with your CD set.
If you order the MP3 version of Networking in Ninety Minutes, please include an address in your email for us to send the book to.
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| Andy recommends... |
 Still struggling to understand how to make the most of LinkedIn? Heard everyone telling you how you should be on the site, yet don't know where to start? My good friend Jan Vermeiren, a networking expert based in Belgium, has just brought out this excellent guide, 'How to REALLY use LinkedIn'. I've been afforded a sneak preview and, as with Jan's last book, ' Let's Connect', it is well written, easy to follow and simple to put his tips into practice. Jan offers an short and effective three step plan to get results fast from LinkedIn, together more advanced strategies once you have found your feet. You can get a free 'light' version here. |
Smile! You're Networking!
The National Networker |
In this month's extract from The National Networker, I feature 'JetNetting' expert Heshie Segal from the States. Heshie is writing a series for The National Networker on The Impression Factor.
I don't focus too often on the intricacies of body language when networking, so Heshie provides a fresh perspective for you. In this article she looks at the value that lies in your smile.
You can read the article here.
Dave Clarke's monthly article on networking in the UK, Networking on a Piste!, can be found here.
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| Just for Fun |
A week after Comic Relief's Red Nose Day and I still keep hearing about the one sketch.
Apologies to our overseas friends......but at least David Beckham's in it!
Smithy's England Team Talk
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I hope you've enjoyed the newsletter and look forward to your feedback.
If you're serious about developing a networking and referrals strategy that can take your business to a new level, you can contact me on:
Tel: 07930 417833
Skype: andylopata
I look forward to hearing from you.
Andy |
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| Welcome to 'Connecting is not Enough' |
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I don't often touch on areas outside networking either on my blog or in this newletter.
I want to spare a mention this week, however, for an event I attended on Tuesday evening.
It was the first Big Issue 'Real Lives Real Achievements' awards. The achievements of five Big Issue Vendors were celebrated and it was humbling to listen to their stories.
When one homeless vendor talked about how watching a television show about Romanian orphans made him refocus and 'stop being so selfish', it made me stop and think.
At the end of the evening, Big Issue CEO Stephen Robertson said that we are now seeing a new generation of Big Issue Vendors as a result of the credit crunch.
It acts as a timely reminder that we need to be working together to ensure that we all beat the current downturn and come out of it stronger.
It's no longer a 'dog-eat-dog' society. Mutual support is something we are all in a position to offer, and to benefit from.
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If you like what you read, please feel free to forward it and invite others to subscribe.
Happy Networking!
Andy
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| Connecting...Live! |
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27th March
ISES Regional Education Conference
'Making Conversations Count. The importance of networking in a recession'
Disneyland Resort, Paris and Networking on Eurostar
Book here
Members prices available to readers of this newsletter.
31st March, 6.30-9.30pm
Swedish Chamber of Commerce Link Up
'Making Conversations Count. The importance of networking in a recession'.
SAS
Radisson Portman Hotel, Marble Arch.
Book here
2nd April
Careers Cafe for the Retail Trust
'Networking for a Career Change'
Mill Hill, London NW7
To book - call the Retail Trust Helpline - 0808
801 0808
20th April
The Association for Conferences and Events(ACE)
The Importance of Networking in the Conference and Event Industry
Caledonian Club, 9 Halkin Street, Belgravia, London SW1X 7DR
Contact me if you are in the events industry and would like to attend
25th April
Minority Lawyers Conference
'Your Network is your Net Worth'
The Law Society, London
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