10 Tips for More Effective Networking

by Mark Bloom | Feb 18, 2015 | Small Business Advice

10 New Ways to Improve Your Networking Skills

If you network in your town, you likely go to Chamber of Commerce events. You attend weekly after-hours, before-hours and during-hours networking meet-ups. You drink cups of coffee. You drink mugs of beer. You smile and nod. All in the hopes of making more sales.

You’ve got it all wrong, baby.

Instead, here’s a networking tip: try a different approach. Attend only those networking events that give you the best opportunities to meet new people. Make small talk with more people and introduce yourself to as many people as possible. In the end, this approach will pay off in more sales.

network like Ray Access does

Leave the Pitch at Home

Networking is not the place to pitch prospects. If that’s what you’re doing, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. Eventually, you’ll join the ranks of naysayers who eschew shoulder-rubbing events for a cold beer and a ham sandwich at home — alone — where no one can get under your skin.

Networking is the place to meet interesting business people, learn what they do and who they do it with. It’s the place to see your peers and be seen as a helpful presence. With this approach, eventually you’ll start getting the calls asking for your professional help. People do business with those they like.

10 Tips to Take to the Bank

Get the most out of your networking by following this advice:

Arrive early
Make friends
Keep your cards handy
Leave a positive impression
Learn something new
Remember names
Tell a good joke
Laugh at a bad joke
Make introductions
Leave late

Intrigued? Remember networking tip #5 above and keep reading.

Arrive early
Sponsors, event coordinators and energetic networking nuts get to networking events early. As part of the “inner circle,” they often volunteer to do some task during the event. They know the benefits, and now you can too. Imagine how many more people you’d meet in an evening if you were the one pouring the beer. Think how popular you’d be if you got to hand out the door prizes. Networking is a participatory activity. Get involved. Get there early, and offer your assistance. You’ll come to be known for your generosity and willingness to help.
Make friends
People like to do business with people they trust — like their friends. Once you’ve seen someone around the local business circuit long enough, you realize they aren’t going anywhere. Introduce yourself. When you take time to get to know people — how many kids they have, for example, or what they do in their free time — you naturally feel a little closer to them. You develop a rapport. When they need something you offer, they’ll call a friend quicker than they would call a networking associate.
Keep your cards handy
While all the feel-good schmoozing is great for your reputation and friend status, your ultimate networking goal is to grow your business. We get that. So bring plenty of business cards to pass around. As a matter of fact, don’t leave home without them. Keep cards in easy-to-reach pockets or in the side pocket of your handbag where you can reach for them with ease and grace. Nothing blows an exit like making someone wait while you try to fish out a card from a messy handbag or a pocket stuffed with swag. For the best impression, always present your card so that it’s facing the person you’re handing it to.
Leave a positive impression
One of the best ways to impress people is to listen. When you meet someone new, apply a firm handshake and look the person in the eyes. Make a connection. Pretend the two of you are the only ones in the room. No one feels good talking to someone who constantly looks around the room. That merely says, “I’ll ditch you if someone more important comes along.” Hold eye contact and respond appropriately to the speaker. When in the middle of a group, nod and laugh when everyone else does, they’ll think you’re one of them — and like you for it.
Learn something new
Time is precious for everyone. Salespeople, small business owners and CEOs all have a million things they need to do. You’re not the only one using up your valuable hours in the local beer hall or event facility trying to network. Use your time wisely and make it a priority to learn about a new product, discover a new way to use your smartphone, find out who just moved into town or how many seeds it takes to grow a watermelon. Leaving networking events with newfound knowledge makes you smarter and makes the best use of your time. (Little secret: people like people who ask questions.)
Remember names
Remembering names can be tough, especially when you meet a dozen or more new people at a single event. But don’t give up. Instead, consider it a challenge. A good exercise for your brain health is to try to remember at least 10 names during each networking event. The impression you’ll make the next time you see one of them and remember the name is priceless. You can’t buy that kind of marketing for any amount of money. This is one of the little secrets of networking that can build your business tremendously. And while you’re at it, you’re giving your brain a little workout.
Tell a good joke
Laughter is like glue; it bonds people together. Laughter tells others in the room that you have a sense of humor and don’t take yourself too seriously — major personality pluses. If you feel uncomfortable telling a joke, practice. Keep your joke clean and free of cultural references. And find something relevant like: “Last week at this after-hours, I asked a guy why he left his last job. He told me it was illness-related. His old boss got sick of him.”
Laugh at a bad joke
Almost all people think they’re funny. Some are not. But a networking event is not the time embarrass anyone. Show good manners and laugh if someone tells a joke you’ve heard 17 times that week. Never make people feel uncomfortable. It will reflect poorly on you. If you’re kind and gracious, they’ll remember your kindness. They’ll know they can trust you. And you can be sure that they’ll call you when they need your product or service.
Make introductions
Of all the networking tips, this one is our favorite. It feels powerful when you’re the one in the know. Be the good guy or gal and introduce people you meet to people you know, especially when it may help either or both of them. Give a positive testimonial of their business or talk up their favorite hobbies or the big promotion they recently got. You’ll be remembered as the one who made the connection. You’ll be known as the one who has a finger in all the pies. You’ll gain a reputation as the one to get to know in business networking circles.
Leave late
On days when you don’t have to rush off to another meeting or return to the pile of work waiting for you, stick around to the very end of the networking event. There are always a few stragglers who still want to talk — or boast or rant. You never know whom you’ll run into when the room starts to clear. It’s very often after the last shrimp has been gobbled up and the tables are coming down that the really big, meaningful (and profitable) relationships are forged. Don’t miss it.

Ray Access is a content marketing firm that delivers targeted words to empower your business. Contact us about your specific project to receive a quote or discuss your needs. We write website copy, blog posts, e-newsletters and more. Everything we do is thoroughly researched, professionally edited and guaranteed original.

The Difference Between Morning and Night People

by Elle Ray | Aug 28, 2014 | Small Business Advice

Why the Distinction Matters in Your Business

not a morning person

Are you a lark or a night owl? Do you get your best work done before noon or after five? Whichever answer you give, you may not have much say in the matter and may in fact become more productive and happy with your work if you just go ahead and honor your circadian rhythm.

There’s no reason to disrespect co-workers and business partners who happen to land on the opposite side of the spectrum. There’s new evidence that much of our energy preferences actually are programmed in our genes, creating actual physical differences in brain structure between morning and night people.

Add Lifestyle to the Mix

Studies by German scientists in 2013 found that people who stayed up late and slept in later than their counterparts had less white, fatty tissue in their brains. The white matter is associated with communication and links certain nerve cells together. Reduced white matter also is associated with depression and anxiety.

When you follow your genetic desire to stay up late and sleep in late, you often find yourself at odds with the rest of the working world, which then exacerbates the alienation that often leads to depression. You may find yourself sleep-deprived on a regular basis as you try to maintain a “normal” schedule to fit in with society’s expectations. Night owls also have a tendency to eat, drink and smoke more than naturally early risers.

Good News for Night Owls

night owls struggle during the day But this kind of lifestyle also has its upsides. The chronically jet-lagged set also tends to be much more productive and energetic than their counterparts who get to bed early and rise with the sun. You usually have more stamina during your waking hours and end up getting more done. It’s very often the night owls in a business who drive the ultimate success of a company.

Night owls also tend to be more analytical, making it easier for them to see the big picture and figure the ways and means to achieve objectives. Their reasoning skills often are far superior to the early risers. The trick is to balance and fine-tune those extra advantages so they don’t get lost in the mood swings more common among night owls.

Nurture Over Nature

Just as the discussion rages on about nature over nurture when it comes to child-rearing, the conversation also is relevant to business people struggling with the natural biological pull of an internal alarm clock. To avoid the mood swings, anxiety and depression commonly associated with people who work best at night, you can regulate your sleep habits consciously.

Night owls hoping to make those early breakfast meetings and avoid all-nighters can rely on mechanical alarm clocks set on a regular basis. Avoid alcohol before going to bed and artificial light when it’s dark outside to make it easier to stick to a regular sleep cycle. When you control your sleep patterns, you won’t experience the manic highs you may enjoy in the middle of the night, but you will be much more even-tempered and easy-going like your early bird friends and co-workers.

For night owls, it’s a trade-off. For early birds, it’s a blessing. Which time of the day do you work best?

How to Work a Networking Room

by Elle Ray | Aug 5, 2014 | Small Business Advice

Networking Advice for Business Owners

Image courtesy of Ambro / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Networking is one of the most powerful means at your disposal to market and grow your small company. Yet so many business people fear the crowded rooms. But be assured that not everyone sipping wine and trading business cards is comfortable. Like you, many had to swallow their fears, take a deep breath and dive forward to press the flesh. The alternative, they know, is sitting in silence in a dark corner as all their hard work slowly comes to naught.

The bottom line is that it’s not about who you know, but who knows you. To earn a reputation in your field and in your market, you have to be visible. People have to know your name and be able to put a face to it. Business people drop names as part of their normal, everyday pitch, and they only drop names of experts they’ve met in person or heard a great deal about. To be that person and get that referral, you’ve got to hit the networking circuit in your area and within your industry.

Succeed at Networking

helping one another: the goal of networking To help you make the most out of those after-hour mixers, breakfast pow-wows and open house handshakes, we’ve put together a list of tips. Try them — and tell others where you heard about them — because the writers and editors at Ray Access know the power of networking:

Compliment people. Remember that business men and women are just people. Who doesn’t appreciate a compliment about a pair of shoes, a jacket, tie or handbag? A compliment is a great way to start a conversation — and perhaps a new relationship.
Approach loners. You can find them standing in the corner or nursing a drink at the bar. Loners sometimes can feel less threatening than approaching a pack of pristine suits who are standing in a circle laughing at an in-joke. Instead, commiserate with the fellow loner about how much you deplore these events to find common ground.
Ask questions. As former journalists, we always resort to the time-honored trick of getting people to talk about themselves as a way to open up a conversation. Even inane questions like: “What do you do?” or “How about them Red Sox?” can serve as an opener leading to and interesting (and profitable) conversation. You never know.
Move around. One mistake networking newbies often make is to stick with one group of people they’ve become comfortable with. Once you make a quick connection, trade cards and leave an impression, move along. The purpose of networking is to talk to as many people as possible in the time allotted. Get busy!
Go alone. Business people who move in packs don’t take the chance to break away and meet someone new. A networking event is not the place to socialize with people you already know, even if it’s nice to acknowledge each other. The primary goal is to see and be seen by all the people you don’t know.
Leave the sale for later. Pushy business people who only talk about themselves often end up alone. Salespeople who try to sell their services to everyone they meet tend to earn negative reputations. In fact, if you rarely talk about yourself, you’ll be remembered because you listened. Wouldn’t you rather be remembered positively and not with a knowing eye roll?

So don’t fear. You too have what it takes to get out there and develop new relationships. All it takes is a deep breath and a stack of business cards.