Speed Networking
When I tell business owners one of the easiest ways to expand your network is to attend a speed networking event, they always think I am pulling their leg. I’m not.
All business owners, salespeople, and those that live on commissions should always attend a speed networking event to “PRACTICE” your elevator pitch. This is the best testing ground to test your elevator pitch in a relevant environment.
Speed networking programs are showing up all around the world. These events tend to be a fun, exciting, and effective way to make a lot of initial connections in a very different environment from the standard business networking meetings.
Speed networking programs generally involve people meeting each other one at a time for a short interval and then moving on to the next person in line. They are fairly structured in the way people queue up to meet. For example, one variation is to have two concentric circles of people. The individuals sit across from one another and after the set period–generally one or two minutes–the outside circle of people gets up and moves in one direction around the circle until everyone has met.
You might not be surprised to learn that I have some definite opinions and ideas about how to best use speed networking as a tool for creating viable referral partnerships. First, I think speed networking is a great way to meet other business professionals in a short period. It’s a good tool for business people to be the viability to a high number of people in a short amount of time.
The potential downside to speed networking is if someone thinks this is “all” they have to do to network effectively. The key to making speed networking work is to take those contacts and develop them over time into “credible” relationships that lead to “profitable” referral partners.
Some people have likened speed networking to speed dating. While there are some similarities, there is also a subtle but significant difference. Speed dating is done to eliminate potential suitors and keep from wasting time on people with whom you share no common interests and no mutual attraction. The presumption is that you are going to follow up with only the ones you connect with during the exercise.
I don’t feel speed networking can be used to its potential if you treat it as a means to eliminate potential referral sources, but to attract potential referral sources. Developing a strong referral base is about developing relationships with a variety of people, even when it seems you have nothing in common.
So how do you go about participating in a speed networking exercise with the proper focus to make the most of your time? Here are several points to consider:
1. Start with the end in mind. You’re not there to bag the big one. You are NOT there to sell your stuff, nor is someone there to buy your stuff. You’re not there to eliminate referral sources or referral partners. You’re there to find ways to connect with every person you have the opportunity to sit (or stand) in front of for that one- to two-minute period.
If you are going to a speed networking event to “refine” your elevator pitch, bring 3 versions and practice each pitch to a third of the room and gauge their reaction to your elevator pitch to see which one engages the other person to what to know more.
2. Conduct the exercise as a mini-interview. Think in terms of what you can find out about the person you’re meeting. That’ll allow you to help further the goals of that individual. Forget about mining their database or trying to determine who they know to further your goals. In working to mutually benefit one another, ask questions that’ll clarify where and how you can best help your new referral source.
3. Make notes during the exercise. If you’re not provided some type of contact card on which you can jot notes while in the exercise, be sure to use your pad of paper to write down the information you discover. Be sure to note the person’s interests and goals you could help achieve.
4. Follow up. Follow up. Follow up. If you don’t follow up with those you meet during the speed networking exercise, you will only have succeeded in wasting your time–which is exactly what you were trying to avoid by attending the event in the first place. Collect the business cards of each person you sit with during the exercise. The magic happens after the exercise, in the weeks and months to come.
Set appointments with each person, not to convince them they need your product, but to become better acquainted, finding out what their needs are and how you can positively impact their lives. You’ll realize the reason you went to the speed networking exercise in the first place: to develop more referral business.
I believe speed networking can work if it’s done the right way. It can be a fun, energetic, and dynamic way to further your own goals of having a thriving, successful word-of-mouth-based business.
Contact Biz Coach Steve today to see how he can assist you to get the results you want in your business, steve@bizcoachsteve.com, or www.bizcoachsteve.com. He is in the business of growing businesses. Need a speaker, contact Steve today.
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