FRUSTRATED WITH YOUR NETWORKING RESULTS?
Network, network and network some more. That is what the experts have told you. That is what you are doing. You regularly attend networking events, razor-sharp pitch at the ready. You have met some interesting people – many not. You’ve collected hundreds of business cards. You have followed up with some; others are still sitting in your desk drawer. Your LinkedIn network is growing, but the names are random, and you can no longer attach faces to them. Your sales remain static.
Is your Return on Networking Investment in negative territory? Are you caught in an overwhelming frenzy of other people’s pitches and flurry of after-event spam? Are you tired of attending entrepreneur nights for like-minded people only to meet a stream of secure jobholders who have no intention of risking their jobs to follow their dreams?
You are not alone. Out of frustration, many miss the next event; bring their networking down a notch; and finally phase out of networking altogether.
If any of this rings true, your networking is in dire need of a paradigm shift. Networking is not broken. Your understanding of it is broken. The goal of networking is not to sell your products and services immediately; it is to create relationships – better yet, strategic relationships. Networking activity belongs in your Public Relations Department; not in your Marketing and Sales Department. It can eventually translate into huge sales dividends, but that is secondary.
WHAT HAS GONE WRONG?
Most people are fuzzy about the reason for networking. Their goal is to find potential customers. They are not interested in your pitch. They are at an event for one reason only: to promote their own pitch. A roomful of people intent on selling to each other adds up to a monumental waste of precious time and money.
The goal of networking is not to make your next sale; not to spam new connections. It is to build long-term strategic relationships with the potential to square your business or secure your career down the road.
CHANGE YOUR NETWORKING PARADIGM
Don’t give up on networking. Change the way you network. It is not a business choice. It is a business must. It is a personal must. Your network can catapult your business into success. It can carry you through business and personal downturns. Networking should be approximately ninety-percent adding value; ten percent promoting.
Move from general to specific networking. If you sell jewellery, pitching your designs to a roomful of entrepreneurs with little money is unlikely to be fruitful. A fashion fair is far more likely to lead to strategic connections and ultimate sales.
Become the chased instead of a chaser. Chasing connections is time consuming and has no guaranty. Become the keynote speaker instead of a paying listener. Create the networking events instead of attending them. Become the expert instead of the student. Look forward to accepting LinkedIn invitations, instead of sending them.
Become a strategic networker. Define your networking goals, know your target market, and be ruthless in only attending networking events where you will meet leaders who can help you meet your goals, interested people who want your services, strategic partners with whom you can leverage your business, like-minded individuals with whom you can share relevant ideas.
Networking without results is expensive. It eats up precious time and money. Shave down your networking events. Who you know, not how many you know will take your Return on Networking Investment into positive territory.
