Becoming a Master Networker – Evaluate Networking Opportunities

Articles, Networking,

There are a number of different networking opportunities out there so let’s talk about some of the most common and give each some pro’s and con’s. Before that, we will start with this general statement. The best opportunities for you will be found in the same places that match your target personas. Different personas may yield different results.

This is critical … any attempt to do business with any other member of any of these networking opportunities should only occur once a relationship to do so has been established. These opportunities are earned. They are not given and they are not entitlements.

It is also only fair to say, and we will discuss this in depth in a future article, that any results will be in direct proportion to your efforts. Certainly some activities are designed to yield higher returns but, I have personally achieved great results from some really terrible organizations while I have also seen people fail miserably in desirable settings as a direct result of their lack of effort.

A few options …

Leads groups – Weekly (frequency) – NetWorks! Boise is a traditional networking, or leads, group that is entirely focused on generating business opportunities for its members. The strength of groups like this is found in the membership and whether or not your fellow members share your marketplace, goals, and target personas.

While these types of groups hold the potential for the highest returns, they also require the most effort. They should also be fertile grounds for potential power partners. They are generally not well designed for those who offer a product or service to a narrow market (geographic or industry).

Leads groups will also likely be the only activity that will only allow one member per industry classification. These groups may be professionally run, as a business (local, regional, national, or international), or they may also be run by the members themselves. A simple Google search will direct you to local organizations.

Power partners – 24/7 – Every bit as powerful as leads groups are power partners. Better yet, power partner relationships should be an integral subset of every leads group or … you are in the wrong group. For that matter, they can/should be an integral part of any group activity.

Power partners hold the potential for huge levels of ROI while being some of the more challenging relationships to manage. It requires two partners who are committed to equal efforts and both must receive an equal ROI. However, how that ROI is defined will be up to that individual and it may differ substantially from the other partner.

Self-improvement groups – Weekly – Mastermind and Toastmasters would be good examples of these types of groups. Please keep in mind that these groups will have very specific goals that may or may not include building each other’s businesses. In fact, that type of activity may be frowned upon and perhaps even … severely.

However, common interests are excellent foundations for personal relationships which will often lead to business relationships. Just take things slowly. Now, if you have any sort of fear of talking in front of a crowd … Toastmasters is awesome!

Service groups – Weekly – Think Rotary, Optimists, and Lions. Great groups and a great way to give back to the community. While their focus would be different from self-improvement groups … the same rules regarding doing business will generally apply.

Chambers of Commerce – Monthly – This includes Business after Hours events and the Boise Chamber also has their own separate leads groups called T.I.P.s although you may need to be a chamber member to participate in these. While these are business-focused networking organizations, I call them “passive networking”.

You are there to do business with each other but I have rarely seen any overt effort to accomplish that or to refer members to business opportunities with others. Best advice … be active and join committees to gain visibility. It is very easy to get lost (unnoticed) in groups of this size.

Trade Associations – Monthly – These types of groups are generally comprised of companies and their employees from a specific industry and maybe vendors who support that industry. Member education is a common theme. Examples might include Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) and the American Institute of Architects (AIA).

So …how does the concept of friendly competitors sound? It’s actually not that far fetched as many industries tend to specialize. For example, I might be an attorney who does nothing but wills. In this case, an attorney that does nothing except for business transactions might be a synergistic vs. conflicting relationship. In fact, these kinds of synergies can be found in any networking activity.

Social networking – 24/7 – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn. These are the big three but there are certainly many more. Sites like Talloo (local to Boise), Refer.com (founded in Boise), Alignable, and Shapr are four web-based applications that are specifically designed for business networking referrals and leads.

Of course, one of the biggest draws of social networking is that it can be conducted at virtually any time. Additionally, your reach to new markets and potential partners increases exponentially and it can run by itself 24/7 in the background. Social networking attracts buyers. It is your inbound marketing tool.

However, letting it just sit there without being active, in the right way, is a major mistake that will cost you business. While social networking excels at opportunity discovery, you will maximize your chances for success by developing relationships in real life.

Other networking – Varies – These would include things like business social clubs and even business leagues that might be similar to your local Chamber of Commerce. Hey, it’s all networking and all networking has value.

What to do?

It’s time to make some choices. I suppose that you could try to do it all but you would probably drop dead from exhaustion before any meaningful returns were realized. While I certainly cannot make these choices for you, I might suggest …

  1. One awesome leads group that meets weekly
  2. Five great power partner relationships
  3. One weekly service or self-improvement group
  4. A concentrated effort on one or two web-based networking platforms only. Pick based on your target personas. For B2B … LinkedIn should be one.

This will give you two weekly commitments (you might pick one for breakfast and one for lunch), power partners that can meet with you at any time (coffee, lunch, tasty adult beverage) and a social networking program that can be largely managed off hours. Speaking of managed … these levels are manageable in terms of your investment of both time and dollars.

Just remember that you are going to have to make unique contributions to each organization that you elect to participate in. You can’t (shouldn’t) share the same lead with people who compete with each other and nor should you take a lead given to you and share it with others! At NetWorks!, bringing leads from another group is not tolerated and sharing our leads with another group is a neutering offense!

Craig M. Jamieson

Craig M. Jamieson

Managing Member at Adaptive Business Services
Craig M. Jamieson is a lifelong B2B salesperson, manager, owner, and a networking enthusiast. Adaptive Business Services provides solutions related to the sales professional. We are a Nimble CRM Solution Partner. Craig also conducts training and workshops primarily in social selling and communication skills. Craig is also the author of "The Small Business' Guide to Social CRM", now available on Amazon!
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