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Welcome to 'Connecting is not Enough' - Tips and tools to help you make the most of your networking 
 

olympic torch 

For the sports lovers among us in the UK, this is an exciting summer and we're not going to let the constant rain dampen our spirits. We've had an enjoyable European Football Championships, our cricket team are teaching the Aussies a lesson (which is always good to see), at the time of writing Bradley Wiggins is making the Tour de France Yellow Jersey his own, we've seen Marray and Murray make Wimbledon finals appearances and now the Olympics are coming.

As the Games get closer even the less enthusiastic seem to be getting into the spirit of things. Unfortunately I'll miss the beginning of the Games as I'm returning to Vietnam to speak in Ho Chi Minh City and, for the first time, Hanoi, but I'll be back in time to take my seat for the Boxing finals on the last day of the Games.

In the meantime, I managed to temporarily get my hands on the Olympic Torch a couple of weeks ago after my good friend Richard McCann proudly ran (and highkicked) through the streets of Leeds with it as part of the Torch Relay.

If you're closer to Ho Chi Minh than Hackney, you can come and see me speak instead! Here are the details of my talks on Networking to transform HR Departments.

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The worlds of marketing and professional speaking in the UK both suffered a tremendous loss recently, with the passing of Kenny Harris. I've known Kenny for nearly ten years and he was one of the funniest and most generous people I've had the pleasure to know.   

Just a few months ago Kenny was on the phone to me within minutes of me posting up a link to my cousin's new book on Facebook. He had never met  my cousin but, having seen the post, he immediately called to ask if she'd like any help and some very high level introductions.   

 

My thoughts are with Kenny's family and the many people who had the pleasure to know Kenny and to work with him.    

 

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If you have any questions you'd like me to address either in this newsletter or on my blog, please either tweet me, post them onto ourFacebook or LinkedIn pages or email them to me


I always try to address as many as possible.  

 

Happy Networking!


Andy

If you like what you read, please feel free to forward it and invite others to subscribe.  


Building a positive referrals cycle
Networking Top Tip
 

Each successful referral you receive, where you have kept them in the loop, will further build the trust your Champions have in you. Make sure they enjoy a positive experience when they refer you and they will do so again. You'll see a move from qualified to unqualified referrals and to more and more business from the same source.    

 

referrals cycle   

So many businesses I meet have people who have referred them once or twice but have failed to establish a positive referral cycle simply because they're not feeding back. They've been reacting when referrals have come in but failing to recognise the potential rewards that are available by being proactive and building deeper relationships with the sources of those referrals.

 

When you first meet people and the relationship starts to grow they may test you out personally or with small referrals at first. As their confidence grows then the quality of the referrals may get better or the flow gets steadier. As long as you do the right things, there will always be a stronger chance of referrals in the second year of a relationship than the first.

 

If you want people to refer business to you, you have to get to know them first and win their trust.

 

 

Are you getting referrals from your clients?
Networking video tip
 
Many people expect referrals from their clients simply because they offer a good service. If only life was that simple.

In this video, I look at why our customers don't refer purely on the basis of the service we provide.

Why your customers don't refer or recommend you
Why your customers don't refer or recommend you
  
 
Bits & Pieces
 
A couple of weeks ago I appeared again as a guest on the US internet radio station Voice America, as a guest of Chris Cooper on his Be More Achieve More show.

For this show I was joined by the former Global CEO of Shell Aviation, Marianne Abib-Pech, who is currently writing The Financial Times Guide to Leadership. We talked about the role of influence in career and business development, the ethics around influence and how to successfully influence the people around you.

You can listen to the show recording here.

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The Guardian's Small Business Network have recently launched their Best Practice Exchange, for which they're looking for entries.


The aim is to collect as many examples of best practice from the SME community as possible, in the areas of: 

 

- Winning new business 
- Exporting to new markets 
- Cashflow 
- Starting up 

 

There are various entry dates for each category, with the Winning new business category open now. The top three entries in each category will appear in the business section of the Guardian newspaper.  

 

For details, click on the link above.  

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Two new books have hit my desk in the last couple of weeks which you might find interesting.

The first was the English translation of Dr. Jordi Robert-Ribes' book 'Connecting Forward'. Dr. Ribes' book is specifically for executives changing jobs, company, industry or country, an area where networking is becoming more and more important.

I did have the chance to have a sneak pre-publication preview of the second book I received, Gary Gorman's 30 Day Sales Challenge. Very much an interactive workbook, the author offers a sales-related challenge for each of 30 days, designed to improve the sales perfomance of the reader's business over the course of a month.   
 

 

Is it a bird? Is it a plane?
Just for Fun
 
Continuing the Olympic theme, British Airways have come up with a wonderfully innovative viral campaign  tied in with the forthcoming Games.

BA

Visit their site, enter your postcode (I assume this just works for British residents), press 'Go' and enjoy...

British Airways down your street 
 
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, or you are interested in booking me for a speech or training session for your team, find out more details on our website or you can contact me on:

 

Tel: 07930 417833
Skype: andylopata

 

I look forward to hearing from you.

 

Andy




� All material copyright H & A Lopata ltd 2011. All rights reserved.

 

IN THIS ISSUE
A positive referrals cycle
Are you getting referrals?
Bits & Pieces
Is it a bird.....?
Words of wisdom
In other people's words
Recommended
Recommended: How to sell through networking and referrals. 


and Death Came Third!
...and Death Came Third!
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 Andy's Musings...

A selection of Andy's regular online columns and coverage elsewhere:

 

From the archive....... 

 
Business Wings
 
Accounting Web
 
 
In other people's words...

"Having worked with Andy on many occasions as a keynote speaker, he has always delivered a fantastic and insightful presentation, to great acclaim and feedback from our clients, across a wide range of corporate and networking events. He is utterly professional, highly knowledgeable in the field of professional networking, but more importantly, knows how to connect and get through to people, whether for effective team-building within an organisation or in the wider context of keynote speaking at large corporate events. He is truly an expert in his field and can accommodate a small bespoke training session or large global projects for multinationals. Phenomenal value delivering far reaching results ... and connections, of course."
 
Franco de la Croix-Vaubois, Operations Director, World Launch Group

 

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