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Evelyn Olivares
Evelyn Olivares
Business Coach Real Focus Business (& Consumer) Services North Rocks NSW

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100 tips to build your business network

  1. Plan networking as weekly, fortnightly or monthly marketing activity. Watch Video Here
  2. Have an action plan and write it up. Include names of companies and clients to target; which events to attend and any skills you need to learn.
  3. Set a goal and an intention before each event you attend.
  4. Decide if you are there to learn something.
  5. Decide if you are there to meet people, if so how many each time?
  6. Decide if you are there to increase your visibility.
  7. Decide if you are there to socialize/connect with like-minded individuals.
  8. Research the event before attending.
  9. Decide which group to join and how to find the right one for you.
  10. Visit as many groups as you can, try: professional associations in your industry, local chamber of commerce, swap, women’s groups if female, DSRD or other government bodies, seminars and business referral groups such as BNI.
  11. Become a regular attendee at 2-3 different groups.
  12. Arrive early, stay back at the end.
  13. Budget in advance for networking events.
  14. Realise networking is a skill and it needs to be practiced.
  15. Become known as a powerful resource for others.
  16. Build trust – be real.
  17. Get in the right mindset.
  18. Have an open mind.
  19. Have an attitude of abundance; there is plenty for everyone, even if there are 10 graphic designers at the event!
  20. Use this as an opportunity to find out what your competitors are doing.
  21. Be ‘present’, don’t be thinking about what you have to do later.
  22. Have a compelling elevator pitch.
  23. Know your own Unique Selling Point.
  24. Value your own worth – be confident.
  25. Learn how to start a conversation and exit a conversation. 
  26. Make sure you move along but don’t be scanning the room for your next interaction, whilst still talking to someone.
  27. Be genuine, connect from the heart.
  28. Respect and honor that your referrals will grow.
  29. Refer people to businesses you encountered at a networking event (provided you are confident that the person had integrity).
  30. Initiate new relationships and build existing ones.
  31. Be generous.
  32. Look friendly & smile.
  33. Ask how you can help, what does the person need? Be a giver.
  34. Remember the golden rule: networkers are givers, not takers.
  35. This is also a place where you can ask for help.
  36. Don’t try to ‘sell’.
  37. If someone asks you about yourself and your needs, have a clear understanding of what this may be.
  38. Ask open-ended questions.
  39. Value others’ opinions whether you agree or not.
  40. Ask questions to the speaker if there is one.
  41. Be a good listener.
  42. Be yourself.
  43. Have a conversation.
  44. Read books and articles about Networking. Read More Here, And Here
  45. Find out what your contact values.
  46. What are the dreams and goals of the person you are speaking with?
  47. Find out the needs of potential customers.
  48. Connect people that you know to each other.
  49. Use networking to get unbiased feedback on your ideas.
  50. Use networking to build strategic alliances.
  51. Remember people’s names.
  52. Wear comfortable shoes and clothes.
  53. Don’t drink too much.
  54. Look for differences in people as well as similarities as the differences may be the very thing that connects you.
  55. Understand that there is no conversation that is a ‘waste of time’.
  56. If you are uncomfortable going alone take a friend, colleague or client.
  57. Introduce yourself to the speaker and host.
  58. Join the organizing committee.
  59. Remember to use the law of reciprocity and pay back when you can.
  60. Sit with people you don’t know.
  61. Take your business cards and or flyers, hand them out or leave them on the tables at the event. Make sure you have them somewhere easy to get to i.e. in your pocket.
  62. Have 2 sets of business cards; one for business and one for networking events with your photo, contact details and what your business does.
  63. Ask for other people’s business cards/flyers.
  64. Write notes on the cards to remind you of the conversation you had with the person
  65. Gather information and get a ‘feel’ for the business of the people you just met by visiting their websites when you get back to the office. 
  66. Have a database or diary system to store contacts from each event.
  67. Keep a diary or spreadsheet of what happened at each event that includes your thoughts, learnings, self-evaluation, what worked, what didn’t. Record who you met or heard that you would like to model.
  68. Use a scent of aromatic oils or yourself or on your business cards to really create a lasting memory. Smell is one of the strongest memory triggers! Click here for more information.
  69. Always look for the positive in every experience, even if it did not live up to your expectations.
  70. Remember it is not about the quantity of cards you walk away with but the quality of the interaction.
  71. Aim to meet at least one new person each event you attend.
  72. According to reader’s digest, every person knows at least 250 other people, so remember that each person you speak to, can potentially tell another 250 about your business. So 1+1 could quite easily = 500!
  73. Send your contacts useful articles or links based on what you have found out that they need.
  74. Have a blog, twitter or Facebook account that you can direct your new contacts to so they can continue to network with you.
  75. Keep in touch regularly.
  76. Take action immediately!
  77. Make the most of every opportunity.
  78. Realise everyone has something to offer.
  79. Follow-up with a call or email.
  80. Networking should be a continual thing that you do every day.
  81. Don’t wait till you are desperate for business to build your network.
  82. Your net worth is equivalent to your net-work!
  83. Arrange to meet a select few of your new contacts.
  84. Introduce your new contacts to some people you know and get them to introduce you to some of the people they know.
  85. At the end of each quarter or fiscal year, determine your ROI.
  86. Make networking a way of thinking and living, not something you ‘do’.
  87. Know how to mirror and match someone’s body, voice and breathing to gain rapport.
  88. Learn how to use expanded awareness.
  89. Learn the 15 keys to successful negotiation.
  90. Learn strategic visioning techniques to set goals.
  91. Understand people’s eye patterns.
  92. Learn how to re-frames to improve sales.
  93. Learn how to identify someone’s motivation strategies.
  94. Learn how to identify someone’s buying strategies.
  95. Learn how to identify someone’s decision-making strategies.
  96. Learn how to identify someone’s empowered strategies.
  97. Learn how to use language patterns, agreement frames and closes.
  98. Learn sensory acuity to identify changes in someone’s feelings/thoughts.
  99. Learn the meta programs used by dynamic leaders of the world.
  100. Have FUN!