Day 12
NexCo national network exchange
Skip To The Key Takeaways & Action Items
Earlier in the 100 Days of Business, I was able to teach video to a group of Realtors, an opportunity that resulted through the Network Chain. Well the chain continued as through that presentation I connected with local realtor Roy, who invited me to come and meet his networking group.
In the past I had been to a BNI group (Business Networking International), but Roy’s group was different. It is called NeXco National Network Exchange Community.
The way these networking groups work is that they charge money for a small business to be the expert in a certain profession, and each person in the group passes on referral business to each other. They meet regularly in order to hold everyone accountable, keeping track of the statistics on things like # of referrals passed.
Guests like myself are invited to see if the group would be a good fit, to see if one of the current members could use my services, and to see if I or someone I know can use one of their services. Roy’s advice to me as a startup small business was to look for members that could help me succeed in business.
The group was fantastic, a little smaller and more intimate than some of the big BNI groups I’ve seen before. But the thing that makes NeXco stand out is the small strategizing session that happens during the meeting. Members break off into groups to discuss a certain topic, sharing their experiences. Things that worked, things that did not work. And I really got some good ideas from this little session.
One on one sessions is another thing encouraged by NeXco. Connecting with members and meeting face to face for an hour to discuss business. After the meeting I connected with a few people for potential one on ones.
Here are a few of my key takeaways:
Key Takeaway #1: People Buy From People They Like
It is always good to remember this classic business saying. Often times it is hard to showcase your personality when you are uncomfortable in a lot of business networking situations, but it is important do do so. A good way to break into that is to find something that you have in common with that person and just have a discussion, business aside.
Action Items
Use social media to exhibit my personality and show customers who I am
Key Takeaway #2: Use Exciting Words To Stimulate Open Ended Questions
The best way to communicate with a potential client and to keep the conversation alive is to ask open ended questions, or better yet, avoiding Yes/No answers. I’ve always been taught to ask follow up questions to dig deeper and find out the true motivations of that person. Once you realize what that person is really feeling beyond their words, you can find out ways in which you can help them and giving them something they want, not something they need.
Action Items
Use social media to exhibit my personality
When it is all said and done, I don’t think the group was a great fit for me at this early stage in my business. It is definitely not in my budget at the moment, but it was great to visit and see what it was all about. Just being a guest alone may have helped me find a business accountant, and helped me to get hired by someone in the group (developing).