Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last few years, you’ll know that I’m massively involved with a national business networking organisation called 4Networking.
And if you have been living under a rock – well, now you know.
I volunteer as a Regional Leader, which means I look after a team of Area Leaders, who between them look after about 20 networking groups all across my (very large) geographical region.
So – here’s the thing.
I’ve blogged before about the impact on your personal brand and business reputation when you just don’t bother to show up.
What drives me equally insane is the increasingly casual approach to business networking.
This is what Wikipedia defines as business networking:
Networking is a socioeconomic business activity by which businesspeople and entrepreneurs meet to form business relationships and to recognize, create, or act upon business opportunities, share information and seek potential partners for ventures.
What it doesn’t define it as is
Networking is a socioeconomic business activity that is utterly unimportant to the growth of your business and should be treated as a mild inconvenience, or something that is easily cancelled should something else turn up. In no way should businesspeople and entrepreneurs use it as an essential part of building their business and creating opportunities.
I often get asked, as a Regional Leader, ‘what the point is’ of networking.
There isn’t just ONE point. There are many, and they will be different for each business owner, but generally,I feel the top benefits are:
- Generation of referrals/Increased business. ...
- Connections
- Advice
- Raising your profile. ...
- Positive Influence. ...
- Increased confidence. ...
- Satisfaction from helping others. ...
- Friendship
Notice how Friendship is at bottom?
Don’t get me wrong – I have made great friendships through 4Networking – and I value them hugely – running a home based business can often be very lonely, isolated and drive you faintly stir crazy.
But I don’t network to make chums.
I don’t network simply to socialise.
I don’t get up at Oh My God O’clock to drive for over an hour to get to a meeting just to have a cup of tea & a cooked breakfast.
I don’t regularly travel over 500 miles a month to attend networking meetings and then not have conversations about my business.
I network to build my business.
I’m just lucky to do that within an organisation that encourages friendship. But that organisation starts every meeting by reminding us that it’s ‘50% business’ first.
Business. First.
Social. Second.
If you don’t approach your networking as an essential part of your business growth, but simply as a social occasion – something shocking is going to happen.
Noone is going to buy much of your stuff.
If you don’t value the business networking commitments you make enough to regularly show up – something shocking is going to happen.
Noone is going to buy your stuff – because you are NOT THERE.
If you don’t value the potential opportunities available to you at every business networking meeting enough to show up when you’ve said you were going to – something very simple is going to happen.
Your credibility as a business owner is going to fall through the floor.
Business networking is an essential investment of time & money to grow your business. You need to approach it that way. Be strategic about where and when you network. Plan your week to include networking as part of your marketing activities each week.
In 4N, we have meetings that run at breakfast, lunch and in the evening, so you can network at a time that works for you and for your business.
But you need to show up. You need to engage. You need to talk about your business and how you solve problems for other business owners. You need to create the right relationships with your fellow networkers where they want to buy from you.
You need to take it seriously.
It’s 50% business, after all. What you do with that 50% is down to you.