Networking ROI

A topic dare to my heart even more so now that networking has gone on line. So I have a question for you: If you were to calculate what your hourly rate is and the number of hours you have spend attending networking events/meetings in person and or online – have you got the 'return on investment', that you were looking for? My guess would be that you have not. 

It does not make logical sense to do the same thing and get the same result, yet in a high percentage of cases business owners continue to invest time, energy, and their hard earned dollars for little return. A percentage of the dynamic lies with the endless number of networking groups that profess you will get business if you join/attend their network meetings and the balance of the percentage lies with ourselves. Until we honour our worth and genuinely consider the ROI factor we will not change the dynamic. NB There is no standard formula for calculating ROI where networking is concerned, however, one needs to assess their own standards based on:-

TIME + ENERGY + CAPACITY + INVESTMENT (Joining fees, marketing materials, collateral, B/Fasts/Lunches/Coffee’s/Time allotted to networking, daily, weekly, monthly) etc = ROI

Precursor to this statement: Do not get me wrong, I am by no means discrediting the many networking groups that support business advancement. I do, however question those that over promise and under deliver, after all, good intention alone does not advance business success.

Here are 15 standard obstacles Business Owners face with networking and 25 lazer focused recommendations to become an effective networker! Trust you find these recommendations of value!

15 Obstacles To Effective Networking: (Note: CONTEXT: Applicable if in person or online)

(1)       PREPARATION/INTENTIONALITY: Not being prepared/Not researching in advance/Not being familiar with the events/groups objectives/Not being focused/standing for MUTUAL return when booking 1-1 meetings

(2)       LACK OF EMOTIONAL CONNECTION: Relying on business cards and or marketing materials/collateral to be the central enrolment vehicle versus being proficient in facilitating proactive emotional connection

(3)       PROFICIENCY IN COMMUNICATION: Not knowing how to navigate conversations with different personality types

(4)       ENJOYMENT FACTOR: Not enjoying the experience of networking – know this…… where you are resonating speaks volumes, if you are not enjoying the experience you can be guaranteed the recipient/s are not either!

(5)       NO FOLLOWUP - Not proactively following up post event/networking meetings - using busyness as the excuse??????

(6)       PASSIVE WALLFLOWERS: Networking the room passively, being a wall flower on virtual networking calls online, not participating or showing up! Observing but not participating!

(7)       NOT CONFIDENT: Feeling unconfident and not being proactive, not standing out

(8)       AGGRESSIVE/HOGGING A CALL: Networking the room aggressively, there is a fine balance or hogging the call, talking far too long on virtual online networking calls because you are unable to succinctly convey who you are and what you do and the services you provide!

(9)       HARD SELL : Doing hard sell without engaging in any level of genuine relatedness/emotional connection. Selling before enrolment!

(10)    INTENTIONALITY: Believing that you network for 'social reasons' and completely sabotage business opportunities. The social aspect is a bonus, unless you are INTENTIONAL about networking for business purposes you will not reap the return

(11)    ELICITING INTEREST/ENGAGEMENT: Have difficulty articulating (1) what you do (2) the problems you solve (3) The solutions you provide, in a way that ‘quickly’ elicits interest/engagement

(12)    BEING TERRITORIAL: Excluding people in conversation and/or being protective of your territory) which defeats the purpose of inclusive participation

(13)    COMPETITIVE: Being competitive versus welcoming and collaborative

(14)    EGOIC SELF INTEREST: Do not think for the common good, they are there for their own egoic motives

(15)    INSECURITY: Too self focused, needing to validate, substantiate who you are and what you do versus being client/prospect focused and secure in who you are

25 RECOMMENDATIONS TO EFFECTIVE NETWORKING

(1)       OWN YOUR PRESENCE: Those who do, stand out and experience extraordinary connections. These people are REMEMBERED!

(2)       GENUINE INTEREST: Genuinely be more interested in whom you are talking to than the sound of your own voice - Proactively establish an ‘emotional connection’ with whom you are conversing with

(3)       KNOW HOW TO ARTICULATE, SUCCINCTLY:-

1. What you do
2. What your point of difference is. USP
3. What your value proposition is
4. What your avatars problems are and the solutions you provide
5. Your ideal Avatar/s?

                                        i.    with ease and grace without the need to use your business card or social media links

(4)       HOLD YOURSELF TO ACCOUNT: Predetermine the outcome of what you wish to achieve as a result of attending said networking event/groups - be that in person or online

(5)       SPEAK YOUR PASSION WITH PASSION: No requirement for hard sell, speak your passion with passion and people will be attracted to listen to you

(6)       KNOW YOUR TARGET MARKET/DEMOGRAPHIC: Energetically claim the space and clearly identify who you are targeting and why

(7)       INCLUSIVITY/OFFER VALUE: Go out of your way to talk to anyone who is standing on their own, be inclusive at all times or in a virtual environment be proactive with who you wish to connect with/Be generous with offering value

(8)      HAVE FUN! Need I say more!

(9)      GET COACHED on any issues you have that are sabotaging your ROI where networking is concerned, ie

• Confidence
• Fear of networking environments
• Difficulty in relating to people/group
• Not knowing how to articulate your message/your point of difference
• Avoidance dynamics – using your business card as your primary enrolment vehicle – people will be enrolled in you and your passion not your collateral
• Knowing how to OWN your presence
• Honouring your worth
• Knowing how to hold an engaging conversations with difference personality types
• Learning how to master the art of ‘how to close’ – a key deficit in the sales process
• Learn how to become proficient in enrolling people into what you do
• Confidence with speaking in public at networking events, in person or online – how to conduct a 10 min presentation/1 hour-90 minute presentation
• Get some professional advice on your image, how you present yourself speaks volumes for your commitment to your business. Get your moxy on!
• To organise your backdrop (if online) ensuring it promotes your branding - looks professional

13. OFFERING HELP: Be proactive in offering help to others and they will be more inclined to help you – everyone knows someone that may be the right match for you and your business

(11)    WORK THE ROOM: Be intentional, make it easy for people to engage with you and if online 'get involved', if you are going to show up, show up! Are you memorable?

(12)    CALL NETWORKING GROUP TO ACCOUNT: If you are not experiencing the value you anticipated by investing your time and energy in attendance then proactively bring it to their attention – this is a contribution to the entire group

(13)    MAKE IT EASY FOR PEOPLE TO REFER YOU: Most do not know how to explain what you do. To assist them, explain that you offer a free consultation (for those that this applies) and that this is your job to manage the dialogue in a private setting, not theirs – this takes the onus off the person referring and makes it easy for them to refer

(14)    DO SOME RESEARCH: Be more proactive in advance of joining networking groups/attending networking events. Ask the inquiring questions, ie Investigate application fees in advance/Try visiting as a guest to assess whether there is the right fit/Inquire into what you can expect as your ROI by being part of the networking organisation/Inquire into opportunities to present to the networking forum – basically do your homework

(15)    ANALYSE YOUR RESULTS: Continuously analyse your networking results, that of yourself and your teams. Continuous improvement is key to transformative results

(16) KEEP TRACK OF YOUR LEADS: Ensure that you keep track of all leads, and what status they are in and monitor through the lifecycle from first meeting to close. Use color coding or abbreviated codes that assist with the tracking process, manual or automated

(17) FIRST IMPRESSION: From the minute you have the opportunity to speak make sure you are high energy, articulate, succinct, to the point, passionate, enthusiastic, enrolling, inspiring otherwise you will not be remembered! You have one opportunity to make a significant impact, take it!

(18) HONOUR YOUR TIME: None of us have the time to have a zillion coffee meet ups or numerous zoom calls online where you are servicing everyone else but yourself! Honour your time and ensure each 1-1 meeting is MUTUALLY rewarding (where possible) and that folks is up to you - you need to monitor who you meet with and why, be selective with who you connect with otherwise it will severely impact your effectiveness

(19) INTEGRITY: Be your word like gospel, nothing worse than agreeing to follow up, or agreeing to refer someone and you do not follow through. Show up on time, be prepared. Set world class standards of excellence and professionalism

(20) BE STRAIGHT: STOP being SO appropriate and be straight about what you need and what you want! Facilitate each 1-1 meeting in a way that gets to the point! Take charge, lead the conversation, understand who you are in front of and get to the crux of what benefits both parties

(21) HOW CAN I SERVE: Do not be stingy, self centred and self obsessed. Networking in a lot of cases is about 'servant leadership'. Always operate with an 'abundance mindset' and always ask how you can serve who you are in front of - the more you focus on them getting what they need the more they will assist you with what you need

(22) PROACTIVELY PARTICIPATE: Operate with a sense of urgency. Every minute you lose at this end you lose at the other end. If in a breakout room online or at a networking event in person, proactively participate, engage, offer value, inspire those in the group, show up, get noticed!

(23) GENERATE QUALITY CONTENT: As a thought leader, subject matter expert, you have a responsibility to generate good quality content consistently so that those interested in your unique philosophy can understand your point of difference - Stop posting other peoples material, what's YOUR viewpoint/perspective???? Learn to become a PROLIFIC content generator of YOUR intellectual property and upsell when you are networking that there is a body of work that they can access as a 'value add'

(24) BE MEMORABLE: It is a speakers responsibility to be remembered - how many speakers have you heard in the last 2-5-10 years, can you remember their name, and can you remember their message? What is the point of speaking if you are not memorable??? Learn to become an outstanding speaker if you are serious about producing exponential business results!

(25) BE MORE INTERESTED IN THEM: When you facilitate a 1-1 meeting ALWAYS be more interested in who you are talking to. Invite them to share first so that you can truly understand and appreciate who you are in front of. THEN when it is time for you to share match what you have heard so that you create an immediate bond of relatedness & trust!

If any of this resonates love to open up dialogue, feel free to take advantage of a 1 hour free coach consultation to explore what could be possible if you wish to improve your networking effectiveness for GROUNDED business results!

AND if you are interested in meeting the Guru himself of Online Virtual Networking & reaching a global audience with your service offering, look no further than Marc Jarrett - full details in this article:-  

https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/virtual-power-networking-invitation-sally-anderson-ceo-coach

Enjoy