People often think of ‘networking‘ as something that is only done at high-powered levels. Not so. Letting mothers at the school gates know about your services, swapping information with friends at the rugby club is all networking. ‘I found that other mums were my best customers,’ says Sarita, a beauty therapist. ‘When my sons were invited to tea with their friends, they’d often mention that I ran a beauty business and I got plenty of of clients that way !’
You cannot afford to be too indirect about offering your services. On the other hand, old contacts may be put off if you continually pester them for work. It is better to engineer a meeting about another matter and then explain what you can do for them, rather than endlessly cold calling. Persistence may pay off — but it can also put people off. This is why ‘forums’ for networking are so important. They can take the form of training days, professional conferences, charity breakfasts, even the village fete. A person who works from home and tries to sell their own skills without belonging to some form of networking organization either has brilliant contacts already or is storing up potential trouble.
Networking does take time, but it is normally time well spent. However, you do want to beware of spending so much time networking that you neglect your business. In choosing where to network, you need to apply the rules of market research as stringently as for actually producing your goods or services. Networking at the local school gates is ideal for someone producing childrenswear, or offering beauty treatments — it may not be ideal for someone who is an export specialist. Before you decide to attend a conference or meeting ask yourself:
- Who else is likely to be there? (Can you get a guest list in advance ?)
- Will they be receptive to your idea/product ? (Look at the agenda carefully.)
- Will there be time for informal chats and questions ? (A conference where you have to keep silent all day may be useful for training purposes but not for networking.)
- How many useful contacts can you expect to make at this meeting, and how much information can you expect to gather ? (Be realistic.)
When you start off, you may well find that you go to a few dud events. However, with practice you will soon learn where you are most likely to make useful contacts. What should you do if someone asks you to keep in touch, but does not offer you firm work ? Here the golden rule is to find some means of establishing a closer contact. Perhaps you might ring to suggest a lunch or drink. Or perhaps you could send something of interest to them — be it a catalogue or a piece about your business in the local paper — or better still, a piece that might be relevant to their business. The important thing is to make sure they don’t forget you.
You do need to beware of being too pushy. In the USA it is perfectly acceptable to pursue your quarry with unstinting zeal (it is even admired). Here, alas, we tend to fight shy of people who seem too keen — perhaps because it is easy to appear desperate. ‘I think that if you have confidence, that inspires confidence in the people you meet,’ says Joel Brizman, consultant. On the other hand if you are desperate, people sense that and it makes them wary.
Supplying a first class service is another excellent marketing tool. All the networking in the world will only land you a client once. If, that once, your service or craft is shoddy, they will never use you again. It is important not only to attract clients, but to retain them. Which brings us to method number three :
Caring for your clients and contacts is paramount. One of the cardinal mistakes people make when setting up is to run helter skelter after new clients forgetting that the most important source of work is actually those good old dependable clients who faithfully repeat their orders. It is important to look after your old clients for two reasons — firstly to ensure repeat business, but also because they are the most likely source of other work. ‘Once a year, sometimes more, I hold a coffee morning for all my regular customers,’ says Mary Ross, interior designer. ‘There are always some of my items on show and the morning is in my house, which is really my showcase. It’s both my way of thanking them and of reminding them that I’m still here and can do other things for them.’
If your clients are satisfied they will not only use you but will pass on your name to other friends and associates — and they may also give you a reference. Another variation on this theme is to team up with someone in a related area and offer to put work their way if they will do the same for you. For instance, a catering firm might team up with party organizers, a beauty therapist with a fitness trainer. Mary Ross, for example, frequently teams up with a carpenter, Roy. He makes hand-crafted cabinets — and she decorates them. Each supplies the other with work. ‘My only rider is that the person you choose must be excellent,’ says Mary. ‘Or it will reflect on you. I love Roy’s work and know just what a craftsman he is, so when I recommend him, it reflects on me in a very positive way.’
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Posted by: arlene
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