I just returned from a meeting of the Small Business Advisory Board at the North Dallas Chamber (NDCC). A different group mix today.
The group, comprised of both members and non-members of the NDCC, included an attorney, a recruiter, a health-and-wellness expert, two HR professionals, a financial expert and two advertising-related guys. This diverse group had an open discussion on LinkedIN, Twitter, Facebook, Plaxo, Namz and how these and other social media sites lend themselves to being effective tools in either gathering or securing business.
They discussed a range of related issues from compliance (the financial person's concern) to sharing proprietary info to related tools that could leverage one's exposure through these tools.
The bottom line for the group was the understanding that these are more arrows in our quivver to help us build relationships.
The quote of the morning (from AT Grant and I hope I get it right) was "The more connected you are the more you are connecting."
Keep on networking and use these tools carefully and wisely.
Relentless
Showing posts with label Bill Siegel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bill Siegel. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Being the "Go-To Guy"
One aspect of networking is being the trusted advisor. We had a discussion in my monthly small business roundtable today about the value of networking.
After relating a few stories, it became evident that we all (those of us around the table who had braved the bad weather to be there) had similar skills when it came to networking to build relationships. Bill, the attorney of the group, offered up "being the go-to guy."
If you want to be known as a reliable source of information and connections, be free with your suggestions of who should connect with who when a need arises. The example I used was of my friend who runs a graphic production company being connected to my colleague who does graphic installation. One of the resulting partnerships was with a job for one of our clients installing a new graphic on a trade show booth. While I didn't benefit directly with an invoice and payment, my two graphic professional friends did; the good work they did impressed my client; she, in turn, hopefully, will continue to view me (and my agency) as a trusted advisor and source for getting things done.
Remember that everyone in your network is valued as a resource--if not directly to you, then to one or two steps removed from you.
Relentless
After relating a few stories, it became evident that we all (those of us around the table who had braved the bad weather to be there) had similar skills when it came to networking to build relationships. Bill, the attorney of the group, offered up "being the go-to guy."
If you want to be known as a reliable source of information and connections, be free with your suggestions of who should connect with who when a need arises. The example I used was of my friend who runs a graphic production company being connected to my colleague who does graphic installation. One of the resulting partnerships was with a job for one of our clients installing a new graphic on a trade show booth. While I didn't benefit directly with an invoice and payment, my two graphic professional friends did; the good work they did impressed my client; she, in turn, hopefully, will continue to view me (and my agency) as a trusted advisor and source for getting things done.
Remember that everyone in your network is valued as a resource--if not directly to you, then to one or two steps removed from you.
Relentless
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