Shawn McCarthy
By Shawn McCarthy / Guest Contributor
Leverage is the essence of why leading sales professionals and small business owners invest their valuable time in business networking activities. J. Paul Getty once said, “I’d rather have one percent of the effort of 100 people than 100 percent of my own efforts”.
The difference between the success or failure of someone who is networking as a way of generating revenue is most likely what their perspective of “networking” is. Many people’s personal definition of business networking appears to be skewed. At its’ core, business networking is “selling through your network, NOT to your network”. Applying the foundational basics includes building relationships first, amassing trust and credibility in time, and then asking for referrals. Please avoid expecting your network to buy from you. If they do, that’s a bonus- but if you plan on it or encourage it, it could backfire on you.
I see it all the time. Sometimes people are attracted to the size of an event. These individuals are most likely sales people looking for a “buyer’s club” to help them achieve their quota. Once they pitch their network and a small percentage of the people buy from them, they consider the group tapped out. In this instance, you’ll hear these individuals murmuring, “Oh, that networking group didn’t pass me enough referrals”. Then they move on to another networking group and repeat the same activities. Once another 3-4 months roll by again and they tap out that small percentage of kind souls that purchase from them, it’s back on the meandering trail to wander around and find that next networking group … and the next …. and the next. I refer to this person as: The Networking Nomad!
Remember business networking is more about farming than it is about hunting. It takes time to cultivate relationships. But once you dedicate the effort, you will be harvesting referrals for life.
— Shawn McCarthy is the executive eirector of BNI (Business Network Intl’) of Ventura County and coaches business people on networking skills. He has resided in Oxnard since 1956. For more information about BNI’s terrific marketing program, please feel free to give Shawn a call at 805-850-0157, or check out bni-vc.com