Successful Networking Does Not Mean Home Based Business Operators Need to Attend a
Huge Number of Events

Networking and Promotion come under the umbrella of Marketing. Unfortunately, many home based business operators approach all of these activities in a very ‘ad hoc’ way. This unstructured approach to marketing means that a great deal of effort is put out for results that are difficult to assess and measure.

Without a measurement system in place, there can be no building on any success that may be achieved. This approach leads to frustration in home based business operators and is often a complete waste of your valuable time.

The number of events you go to for networking purposes does not necessarily equate to success. Instead of measuring the number of events or the number of contacts made, it is far better to measure the number of people that you build a significant relationship with. You can only build on this relationship if you are prepared to put in the effort to ‘follow up’ with meaningful and heart felt approaches.

Keep a Networking Log to Improve Your System

Set up a simple and systematic approach for your networking. The process or system that home based business operators put in place in all of their business activities will inevitably lead to their success. Without any systems, they will flounder around and have limited success that cannot be built upon.

So, do not attend loads of events looking for business contacts, but rather frequently attend events where your initial contacts go so that you can begin to build rapport with them. The regularity of your presence will be noticed!

Once you have built up some trust and ‘likability’, take the time to understand what they need and help them achieve it. Home Based Business Operators need to understand that good networking is about solving problems for others. It may be their personal problem that you have a product, service or contact that you can direct them to; or if the event is run by an organization, put your hand up to take on a ‘helping’ role. This is a great way to increase your level of exposure to all attendees, and enables you to build a platform within the organisation from which it becomes easier to be noticed and respected.
 
Such a system will allow you to invest your time effectively and you will find it much more enjoyable as you build your profile and credibility. But how do you actually build a system? Keep in mind what a system actually does. It allows you to repeat the same steps over and over again, exactly the same way so that you can repeat the results. Of course, if the results are not good, you need to change the system!

Access Free templates to help you
get systems in order for your business

Write down the steps you take: booking into an event in a timely fashion; asking if there is anything you could do to help (e.g. registration desk, provide a door prize etc); meet three new people and find out what their problems are; offer a solution with follow up email or phone calls; send a hand written card to each of the contacts made.

Beginning to get the idea? And that is for the first meeting. For each subsequent event that you attend with the same organisation, you may have a different set of steps e.g. you may ring the three people you last met and ask if they are going along as you would like to meet up with them again as you found their company to be most enjoyable. This time you may suggest another activity you could do to assist the organisation (based on what you noticed the first time); you may also ask them if it is OK to bring a guest (there won’t be too many who would say ‘no’!).

Whatever your system is, as long as it works for your home based business, it is good. You need to have the philosophy of ‘what can I do for you?’ and it will amaze you how the outcome of this philosophy can be ‘what’s in it for me?’ Just use your system, give it time, be persistent and your networking will reap huge benefits for you and your home based business.