Thursday, February 02, 2006

What makes a good networking group?

I have the privilege of working on the Internet presence for "KNOW it ALL" Niagara. Carrie Aeillo, the driving force behind the "Linkers", is a charismatic, dynamic go-getter and her enthusiasm for her job is seemingly never-wending.

Of course, like most networking groups, you have to pay an annual fee and fees per meeting yada yada. We're used to that - it's the cost of business.

While updating the membership list on the website, I was surprised to see quite a lot of familiar names not renew. These are people I've known from other networking groups - some of them since I got into business in 1997 - so it surprised me that they had dropped out of this one. Granted, there are a lot of NEW names as well, so the overall number of people is about the same.

To be honest, I'm not a member of many networking groups. I don't perceive value in belonging to a group whose meetings I can't attend and that probably doesn't do much to market me when I'm not there. Think most Chambers of Commerce, for example. If you're not at a meeting, or on the board, or have a large enough advertising budget to buy your publicity, chances are you're not going to get much out of a Chamber except for the odd referral. But does that make it bad? Of course not. As long as the group does what they say they will, your results will vary depending on your committment to the group.

In the case of "KNOW it ALL"' Niagara, I have to say they're the only Niagara networking group that I'm aware of that has a built-in messaging system that relays out information you send in. That makes my work a lot easier. Now I just have to send in a few articles to keep my name in front of the other Linkers. That's easier than going to a networking evening.

It's my opinion that the only major problem of most networking groups is their reliance on actually requiring people to know HOW to network. I don't think people join these groups because they know how to network. In my opinion, most people join because they want to belong to something that's going to help them increase their business with a minimum amount of effort on their part. When that doesn't happen, they bolt.

I'm guilty of this too. When my kids started getting into their own activities, I started swapping business-after-fives for flying-side-kicks at Glenridge Martial Arts. When I got back into Kendo and began my own club, I stopped attending networking events those evenings. Suddenly, it didn't make sense to belong to many networking organizations because if I wasn't there, they didn't do anything for me, aside from listing me as a member on their websites or in their print directories.

Business relies on relationships to grow. I have clients across the country that I originally got through networking. I value those relationships and want more of them. And ultimately, that's going to mean more networking.

However, if you're going to complain about the networking group you belong to, look first at how you actually NETWORK. If you just go to the meetings or trade shows, then complain nobody calls you, you're not networking - you're attending. Networking starts AFTER the event.

A couple of suggestions from one who's been around a little while...

  1. CALL or E-MAIL the people you spoke with at the event. You DID get business cards from them, didn't you? People forget about you once the event's done with. A follow-up is the most important thing you can do to help develop the relationship.

  2. Have a ready supply of business card with a call to action on them. People leave events, go home and forget about you. The next day, they go through the business cards they collected - if for no other reason than to clear out their pockets.

  3. Have something cool to give away that people will keep in front of them forever. I got this really neat paper-holder-thingie that holds a sheet of paper up so I can read from it while typing. Great idea - sits on my desk all day - but there's NO LOGO OR COMPANY INFORMATION ON IT. What an overlooked opportunity. Hmm. I just contacted the company who makes these for pricing...

  4. Did you call everyone whose card you got at the last meeting? Great? What came of it? A meeting? A promise to "look at your website" or something vague? Meetings are good - IF you use them effectively. The best is for each side to go into the meeting having thought of ways to help each other's business.
Your perception that a networking group has somehow "failed" you is only a reflection of the shortcomings of your own networking practices. Networking groups provide the opportunities for you to make intial contacts with people. It's your follow-up that constitutes the real "WORK" in networking but it's the follow-up that produces the results.

Keep that in mind at your next business-after five : )

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