Category: Business relationships

Once upon a time…

Posted on August 9, 2020 by - Business relationships, Marketing, Networking

In the last week I have been asked the same question three times: How do I tell people about all my different services when I first meet them? My answer was the same: don’t.

Many companies have a business category, e.g. IT support, but this is made up of lots of products and services: hardware, security, etc. Tell people all that and you will see them glaze over and stop engaging with you. Don’t forget that networking is about building relationships, not overwhelming people to the point when they switch off.

My advice? There are two parts to this.

The first part is to tell people what your business category is. (Assuming you have said your name and company name.) Then you can say “We have lots of products and services”. You can, if you want, say “For example” and list two or three of the services, followed by “Today I’m focussing on helping people who need to have their cyber security reviewed”.

The second part: tell them a story. Think half a page, not War and Peace. As humans, we understand stories. Give it a beginning, a middle and an end. For example, “Cyber security is getting to be more and more of a problem”, throw in some stats if you must, and then “Recently we helped a firm of solicitors who had lost £250,000 because someone hacked …”.  (This is not my area of expertise, so bear with me.) “We were asked to look at all of their systems and we found 5 ways of ensuring this kind of attack could not happen again, and we also put in place a system that will constantly keep the company protected.” ” So…this is the kind of help we want to give to others—do you know any solicitors who you would feel able to introduce me to?”

Then shut up and let them talk. One final thing: if you see people snuggling down for the night, you have spoken for too long. Refine the story.

If you would like some more tips on networking, go to ebn.uk.com and at the bottom right hand side you can download my top twenty tips.

Being hit with a two-by-four

Posted on July 27, 2020 by - Business relationships, Marketing, Networking

As I write this it is four months since England when into lockdown. On that day two things happened to me:

  1. On paper, my business stopped. ebn is a business networking company, we meet face-to-face, over breakfast. For a few weeks before lockdown things had been decidedly different: members not sure what would happen with their business, what they needed to do, would they survive and how could they protect and support their staff. Then on 23rd there was some clarity, at least for me. On a business level I couldn’t continue my existing business model. It justwasn’t an option, that was very clear.
  2. I was told, very emphatically, that I was classed as vulnerable and must not go out of the house for any reason other than my regular four–weekly hospital appointments.

Maybe if one of these issues had happened in isolation I might have coped better, as it was I felt like the two–by–four had been applied. (Not that I know what it actually feels like to be hit with a two–by–four, but I have an active imagination!)

So, what happened? My network immediately kicked in; my fabulous team of Group Directors, all business owners themselves, took their groups online and this gave me some space to get to grips with all aspects of ‘being vulnerable’, from the psychological impact of that, to the practical.

My beloved, who is high risk, decided, to keep me as safe as he could by also not going out. We, therefore, had to work out how could we get things like food, medicines, and other frivolities.  The next-door neighbour became our short-term lifeline and then three people from my business network volunteered to shop for me. (Any of you who are thinking: “what about home deliveries?” are delusional. I never managed to get the golden ticket, or as some people called it, a delivery slot.)

Since 23rd of March four things have happened:

  • ebn has grown as people came to virtual meetings as visitors, got help, advice, and support from my wonderful members. Business people have come together and supported each other. It has not just been about how they are coping but how their businesses are doing.
  • I have realised that, if nothing is normal then, for my business everything is possible. So, I am reviewing my business model. This includes how and where we open groups and when and how we develop additional products, which would be available to members and non-members
  • I have realised that ‘vulnerable’ is a label that others apply to me
  • My long-held belief has been proven; networking works.

Since networking is about building relationships, please accept my gift of Top 20 networking tips by following this link: ebn.uk.com and complete the form to download your copy.