10 Networking Mistakes to Avoid. Part 2
As mentioned in Part 1, One of the fastest ways to drum up business for is through networking. Networking gets you in front of people who either need your service or know someone who does. In other words it creates sales opportunities.
However many people make a number of mistakes during the networking process that keeps them from getting the most out of their efforts. I’ve made a lot of them! Here are 6 more of the biggest mistakes people make when networking.
6. Staying focused on your own self-interest. If you make the effort to find out how you can help someone else get what they want, there is a good chance they will reciprocate and give you what you want. Zig Ziglar said it best, “You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want”.
7. Inability to articulate how you can help others. You need to distill what your company brings to the table in easy to understand language (make it easy for others to grasp what you are all about). How exactly would you do this?
Basically this means telling people that you operate a cleaning company that knows how to get things done right the first time, you won’t make excuses if there’s a slip-up, you are fanatical about quality control and you will solve their cleaning woes if given the chance.
If you can leave them convinced you are that person, you are going to be one busy owner of a highly successful cleaning company. Oh and by the way, you will probably become quite wealthy in the process.
8. Not establishing any connections. To network effectively you need to connect with people. Though you will not connect with everyone you meet, you can improve your results by making use of a simple approach that is guaranteed to work wonders for you. I call this the A, B, C Technique”. If you master this method you will be ahead of the competition.
A. Make eye contact
B. Smile
C. Ask questions
Three easy steps: It all starts with great eye contact, followed by a smile, then finish by just asking questions and showing interest in the other person. You will instantly be among the best networkers by using the A, B, C technique.
9. Performing the “meet, greet and leave” strategy. Virtually every networking event has at least one person running around like a jack rabbit saying “Hi, here’s my card, nice to meet you”. Then they run off to the next person in their path.
This type of technique may let you give your card out to a lot of folks, but you will never build a relationship with anyone that way. You will get much better results by creating relationships instead of performing the meet, greet and leave.
10. Not following-up afterwards. What you do after the networking event is just as critical as what you did during the event. You need to follow-up with whoever you just met (this is part of the relationship building concept). Keep in mind that following up does not mean touching base three months later to see what’s going on.
Instead, you need get in touch while everything is still fresh. Here are two follow-up strategies to consider.
# 1 – When you meet a prospect, make plans to get in touch with them shortly after the networking event took place. Contacting them within 2-5 days would be optimal. Arrange a meeting at a time that suits your prospect’s schedule.
# 2 – When you meet someone at a networking event that is not a prospect, look for any opportunities to send some business their way. If you have someone that may need the services of the person you just met, either refer them ‘ASAP’ to that person, or give the contact info to the person you just met. Being a “giver” is a sure fire way to not only make friend, but to get some referrals coming your way when they reciprocate the favor.
Networking can have a dramatic impact on your sales providing you take the time to do it correctly. Avoiding these ten networking mistakes will make your efforts much more fun and profitable.
