Spent a thoroughly enjoyable evening at The East Riding Business Network last night. I was invited by a member Neil Edlin and enjoyed the company of the people I met.
Highlight for me was the presentation given Rob McPhun. Rob is a retired police officer who rose to senior rank in the Humberside force. Rob's experience of managing teams of people in what must often be pretty stressful circumstances is now being turned into a benefit for the business community. Rob has set up a successful personal and business coaching business.
On Thursday March 10th he is running a free seminar entitled Are You Ready for the Fallout. Rob will be advising senior managers on the best way to get the best out of colleagues who may be left in the workplace after a round of redundancies. People in this situation are often said to be suffering from "Survivors' Guilt" and may often be demotivated and fearful for their jobs.
The event takes place at South Hunsley School, Melton, East Riding on the 10th March 9.00 am -11.00 am. A second seminar takes place at the same venue the same day at 1.30pm.
Rob also ran through some very useful self-evaluation techniques he encourages his coaching clients to employ. Above all he stated that the prime goal of any ethical coach is to encourage clients to be able to self-coach.
A great evening and very informative.
Wednesday, 2 February 2011
Monday, 31 January 2011
Member Training, Guests welcome
Just a quick note to say that BforB east Yorkshire will be holding a member training event on SEO on the 18th February at the Pearson park Hotel 2 till 4.
In this two-hour session we will show you:
1. How to analyse the competition’s website, see what it is they do that pushes them up the Google rankings. You will get access to a simple plug in application that cracks open the secrets of sites and shows exactly who is looking at them!
2. A list of High PR sites to submit your site to for free. This will put your content all over the web and bring you customers
3. The easy steps to take to make Google friendly pages that rank themselves. This is a page structure tactic that SEO agencies are afraid to tell you.
We offer this training to our members as a benefit of their membership and today I’d like to extend this invitation to you for £50.
When you consider that a half-day course can cost up to £250 this represents real value for money.
Why are we offering this?
· At BforB we are passionate about adding value to our colleagues’ networking experience and business.
· We want you to enjoy the same opportunities our members get.
· By meeting our members and other like-minded colleagues you will be able to get a feel for how Business Referral Networking can grow your business.
Pleasure To Meet You
After attending any business event, open networking, conference or anywhere where you meet people for the first time it would be a crime not to follow up. Yet so many people do not. Last week I went to a business forum event where I met someone for the second time. The first occasion had been at a speed networking event two months ago.
So I said hello and in return I got that slightly embarrassed but friendly look you get form someone who thinks they ought to know you. After we chatted for 5 minutes I was asked; "How come you remember me and I can't place you? It's really embarrassing."
Well I gave two reasons. Firstly I used to be a teacher and therefore had to train myself to learn 240 names at a time at the start of a school year.
The second is the pleasure to meet you e-mail. Any time you go to a networking event as soon as you get back, sit down with a pile of business cards you collected. Go through them and split them into two piles. In the first pile put the cards of the people who you can definitely remember something about. n the second put those cards where you are struggling to remember anything. Go back to the second pile later something will always crop up in your memory bank.
Then write an individual pleasure to meet you e-mail. make sure its not template, include a detail that you remember about the person and leave it at that. This is not the time to ask for a follow up meeting ( unless agreed in principal at the event). Nor is it the time to say "Please join my LinkedIn network". Just say "Nice to meet you", leaving the door open to who knows what may happen
So I said hello and in return I got that slightly embarrassed but friendly look you get form someone who thinks they ought to know you. After we chatted for 5 minutes I was asked; "How come you remember me and I can't place you? It's really embarrassing."
Well I gave two reasons. Firstly I used to be a teacher and therefore had to train myself to learn 240 names at a time at the start of a school year.
The second is the pleasure to meet you e-mail. Any time you go to a networking event as soon as you get back, sit down with a pile of business cards you collected. Go through them and split them into two piles. In the first pile put the cards of the people who you can definitely remember something about. n the second put those cards where you are struggling to remember anything. Go back to the second pile later something will always crop up in your memory bank.
Then write an individual pleasure to meet you e-mail. make sure its not template, include a detail that you remember about the person and leave it at that. This is not the time to ask for a follow up meeting ( unless agreed in principal at the event). Nor is it the time to say "Please join my LinkedIn network". Just say "Nice to meet you", leaving the door open to who knows what may happen
Wednesday, 26 January 2011
Some People Are Total Bankers
Last month a I met a fellow who really was a total banker. I went visiting various places around Hull City centre to see if there was any interest in BforB. Now the Hull business community is always unfailingly polite and the vast majority of the visits I made drew a courteous response but no interest. Fair enough.
The banker in question was an exception. I was asked to come back another day and when i came he gave me a nice cuppa and told me straight away that he would not, for contractual reasons be able to participate in a BforB meeting.
He then told me that he had given some thought to BforB and suggested that start-ups might be good place to network. He then told me that his bank had close associations with City Works. Now City Works offers support guidance and training to people in Hull. It is concerned with employment, ensuring that Jobs are available to Hull folk and supports new businesses.
He offered to phone the two guys that run it and promised to get back to me when he had done so. He did just that and as a result I met Nick and Phil. Now Nick and Phil are two really nice people who gave me free coffee cup after a friendly chat. Nick may come to a BforB meeting soon.
All this stemmed from meeting an employee who was on the ball about local business and employment needs, has strong links to the business and public sector and put a great deal of thought into how my work could offer benefit to, and benefit from, his connections.
Like I said, total banker. To meet like mined business colleagues, check the BforB website for Business networking now
The banker in question was an exception. I was asked to come back another day and when i came he gave me a nice cuppa and told me straight away that he would not, for contractual reasons be able to participate in a BforB meeting.
He then told me that he had given some thought to BforB and suggested that start-ups might be good place to network. He then told me that his bank had close associations with City Works. Now City Works offers support guidance and training to people in Hull. It is concerned with employment, ensuring that Jobs are available to Hull folk and supports new businesses.
He offered to phone the two guys that run it and promised to get back to me when he had done so. He did just that and as a result I met Nick and Phil. Now Nick and Phil are two really nice people who gave me free coffee cup after a friendly chat. Nick may come to a BforB meeting soon.
All this stemmed from meeting an employee who was on the ball about local business and employment needs, has strong links to the business and public sector and put a great deal of thought into how my work could offer benefit to, and benefit from, his connections.
Like I said, total banker. To meet like mined business colleagues, check the BforB website for Business networking now
Time for a cuppa
Just got off the phone after chatting to one of the BforB members here in Hull. He told me about a meeting he had with a colleague in the same sector that he had after BforB.
He has been a member since December and his take on things went along these lines:
"This networking stuff works. I went to see colleague over in Leeds, just phoned him up for a cuppa and a chat. Any way there are some interesting possibilities I found out after talking with him."
"I can't see why more people don't do it. I can see what you mean when you keep banging on about Know Like and Trust".
To be honest this bloke is a top BforB man who brings at least if not more to each meeting than he takes away.
But by taking time for his business, away from working in his business and buying into KLT the personal as well as business benefits are accruing.
Its simple: make time for a cuppa, people like meeting people and when you offer something as nice as good company you lose no more than a quid (or more if you are into one shot lattes with chocolate on top).
He has been a member since December and his take on things went along these lines:
"This networking stuff works. I went to see colleague over in Leeds, just phoned him up for a cuppa and a chat. Any way there are some interesting possibilities I found out after talking with him."
"I can't see why more people don't do it. I can see what you mean when you keep banging on about Know Like and Trust".
To be honest this bloke is a top BforB man who brings at least if not more to each meeting than he takes away.
But by taking time for his business, away from working in his business and buying into KLT the personal as well as business benefits are accruing.
Its simple: make time for a cuppa, people like meeting people and when you offer something as nice as good company you lose no more than a quid (or more if you are into one shot lattes with chocolate on top).
The BforB Cross-Country Ethos
Somebody I have never met was provided with a lead by someone who I have only met 4 times , via somebody I have only met twice simply because of the BforB ethos of developing Know Like and Trust relationships. What was that? Well here's what happened:
A good friend of a BforB member in Hull who lives on the other side of the Pennines has particular need of specialist Legal Advice.
The BforB member phoned me up and asked if I knew of any solicitors over in that part of the country.
I put him in touch with the Manchester BforB Regional Director, who gave him a contact number, someone who is a member of his BforB group.
Sorry if the thread seems a bit convoluted. It does involve 5 different people but the end result is simple. A professional colleague has obtained a worthwhile lead because BforB is a network of referral clubs. It was easy for our member in Hull to help locate a suitable solicitor for a friend on the other side of the country.
But more important than that, because BforB teams focus on developing Know Like and Trust relationships this lead came about because people know that they are adding value to their membership by simply talking to one another.
A good friend of a BforB member in Hull who lives on the other side of the Pennines has particular need of specialist Legal Advice.
The BforB member phoned me up and asked if I knew of any solicitors over in that part of the country.
I put him in touch with the Manchester BforB Regional Director, who gave him a contact number, someone who is a member of his BforB group.
Sorry if the thread seems a bit convoluted. It does involve 5 different people but the end result is simple. A professional colleague has obtained a worthwhile lead because BforB is a network of referral clubs. It was easy for our member in Hull to help locate a suitable solicitor for a friend on the other side of the country.
But more important than that, because BforB teams focus on developing Know Like and Trust relationships this lead came about because people know that they are adding value to their membership by simply talking to one another.
Thursday, 13 January 2011
I know a Bloke: Marketing for your Network Colleagues
So you've been a member of BforB for a couple of months, been to 4 meetings, like your colleagues and get on with the group owner well, even if he does bang on about Know Like and Trust a bit. You've met a couple of the guys for a one to one and you've got some business out of it. Your BforB fee is paid for and even in early January when its still dark and you barely got going last week because of the flu, you had no problem getting up in the dark to go to BforB. All good. That's about as good as it gets, right?
Well no actually. When life looks like easy street there is danger at your door. There is a kind of danger period for business networkers if they get too comfortable. There may come a time when the leads are not so hot. You might even get to a point where you seek out another a group, after all if the essence of your business is meeting new people why not?
The essence of a business referral club is that is a just that, a club and as such people share their skills to make the club grow. Bringing guests is certainly one thing but so too is marketing your colleagues and their businesses. The "I know a bloke" technique is the simplest and best.
Small talk leads to people talking about aspects of their lives that does not have a direct on what you and they may be trying to sell one another. Two weeks back I was able to tell a new contact (graphic designer) "I know a bloke" who could fix his gutter. And he did, then my bloke asked him if he could sort out an advertising leaflet for him.
It was all a simple matter of having a chat but also having in the back of my mind the fact that I know a lot of blokes. If your networking club does have a Know Like and Trust ethos (there it is again) then you'll have no trouble mentioning your colleagues once you form a relationship with someone. Like all good things its an easy habit to pick up once you start.
So if you've reached your network group comfort level time to take the lead in marketing. Just remember " "I know a bloke, keep " I know a bloke" in your mind when your of to meet someone. I'd bet the mortgage that if you do and your one of the first in your group to do it, twelve months your group will not be static and you'll bag more business. And you'll know lots of nice blokes! Follow this link to our business networking site
Well no actually. When life looks like easy street there is danger at your door. There is a kind of danger period for business networkers if they get too comfortable. There may come a time when the leads are not so hot. You might even get to a point where you seek out another a group, after all if the essence of your business is meeting new people why not?
The essence of a business referral club is that is a just that, a club and as such people share their skills to make the club grow. Bringing guests is certainly one thing but so too is marketing your colleagues and their businesses. The "I know a bloke" technique is the simplest and best.
Small talk leads to people talking about aspects of their lives that does not have a direct on what you and they may be trying to sell one another. Two weeks back I was able to tell a new contact (graphic designer) "I know a bloke" who could fix his gutter. And he did, then my bloke asked him if he could sort out an advertising leaflet for him.
It was all a simple matter of having a chat but also having in the back of my mind the fact that I know a lot of blokes. If your networking club does have a Know Like and Trust ethos (there it is again) then you'll have no trouble mentioning your colleagues once you form a relationship with someone. Like all good things its an easy habit to pick up once you start.
So if you've reached your network group comfort level time to take the lead in marketing. Just remember " "I know a bloke, keep " I know a bloke" in your mind when your of to meet someone. I'd bet the mortgage that if you do and your one of the first in your group to do it, twelve months your group will not be static and you'll bag more business. And you'll know lots of nice blokes! Follow this link to our business networking site
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)