This post is another of many that is designed to help the new business networker to understand the dynamics and marketing strategy of a one-on-one.
Attending Business Network groups is a great first step to developing an never ending list of names for building any kind of business. Whether your business resides in a brick and mortar building, a network marketing business, direct sales, or a mlm, business network groups will allow you to develop your business in a way you never thought possible.
Of coarse there are still other means in addition to business network groups such as the new social networking movement that has taken the internet by storm but that subject will be reserved for another post. For simplicity this post is not going to engage social network. Look for future posts that will bring business networking groups and social media all together.
When you attend a business network group meeting, a term you will hear frequently used is one-on-one. A one-on-one is when two business owners from different businesses agree to sit down and share information about each other and begin to develop a relationship.
If you were to inquire around to different people and ask, "what is a one-one-one?", you will likely get many different definitions but there will be a consistent theme to each answer which is, "two business owners sit down and share information about each other".
When I started in networking, I found this answer to be so vague that I really did not have an answer and with my personality it just did not work. Because I could not find an answer there were many times that I would sit down to a one-on-one and ask the person sitting across from me, "what do you expect the results of this one-on-one to be". The great thing with this question is it laid the groundwork of our meeting up front and each of us had a chance to voice our expectation.
Over time I have come up with what I think is a good definition. I do encourage my readers to please provide your opinion since this topic does seem to be very individualized.
When I have a one-on-one with a person there are a few things that I keep in mind.
#1) I want to get to know this person and determine if I feel they are a person if integrity and character. This is a primary concern when having a one-on-one. If you feel the person you are facing is not a person of integrity then I suggest that you just have a nice conversation and then go your separate ways.
If a mutal feeling of trust appears to be plausible then your goal is to develop the relationship to a point where you would feel comfortable referring your mother to the person you are having your one-on-one with.
#2) The conversation must consist of each party sharing their product or service. It is absolutely vital that they understand your business and that you understand their business. In fact, it is my opinion that if an individual does not share their business then they are either, a) treating their business as a hobby or b) they do not feel you are of value to their business development. And just to be fair that are alot of people out there that do not have self worth to share their business, which is another way of saying they do not believe enough in their business that it will work for them. If this sharing of business does not occur then each party should agree to have another informal one-on-one in order to provide quality referrals.
#3) You want to know the approximate 250 people they know that you do not know. If you have conducted yourself properly through #1 and #2 then #3 has greater chances of occuring. Getting referrals is your goal. We have all heard about the guy that noticed the number of people that attended weddings and funerals and the number is around 200 to 250 people. Most of those people consist of family and close friends when attending weddings and funerals. Creating the relationship of trust and providing the necessary information for the other person to be able to convey your business is important since this creates your sales ambassadors.
The three points above are your focus during a one-on-one. Our next "How to" post will cover how to maximize this strategy and create business growth.
Attending Business Network groups is a great first step to developing an never ending list of names for building any kind of business. Whether your business resides in a brick and mortar building, a network marketing business, direct sales, or a mlm, business network groups will allow you to develop your business in a way you never thought possible.
Of coarse there are still other means in addition to business network groups such as the new social networking movement that has taken the internet by storm but that subject will be reserved for another post. For simplicity this post is not going to engage social network. Look for future posts that will bring business networking groups and social media all together.
When you attend a business network group meeting, a term you will hear frequently used is one-on-one. A one-on-one is when two business owners from different businesses agree to sit down and share information about each other and begin to develop a relationship.
If you were to inquire around to different people and ask, "what is a one-one-one?", you will likely get many different definitions but there will be a consistent theme to each answer which is, "two business owners sit down and share information about each other".
When I started in networking, I found this answer to be so vague that I really did not have an answer and with my personality it just did not work. Because I could not find an answer there were many times that I would sit down to a one-on-one and ask the person sitting across from me, "what do you expect the results of this one-on-one to be". The great thing with this question is it laid the groundwork of our meeting up front and each of us had a chance to voice our expectation.
Over time I have come up with what I think is a good definition. I do encourage my readers to please provide your opinion since this topic does seem to be very individualized.
When I have a one-on-one with a person there are a few things that I keep in mind.
#1) I want to get to know this person and determine if I feel they are a person if integrity and character. This is a primary concern when having a one-on-one. If you feel the person you are facing is not a person of integrity then I suggest that you just have a nice conversation and then go your separate ways.
If a mutal feeling of trust appears to be plausible then your goal is to develop the relationship to a point where you would feel comfortable referring your mother to the person you are having your one-on-one with.
#2) The conversation must consist of each party sharing their product or service. It is absolutely vital that they understand your business and that you understand their business. In fact, it is my opinion that if an individual does not share their business then they are either, a) treating their business as a hobby or b) they do not feel you are of value to their business development. And just to be fair that are alot of people out there that do not have self worth to share their business, which is another way of saying they do not believe enough in their business that it will work for them. If this sharing of business does not occur then each party should agree to have another informal one-on-one in order to provide quality referrals.
#3) You want to know the approximate 250 people they know that you do not know. If you have conducted yourself properly through #1 and #2 then #3 has greater chances of occuring. Getting referrals is your goal. We have all heard about the guy that noticed the number of people that attended weddings and funerals and the number is around 200 to 250 people. Most of those people consist of family and close friends when attending weddings and funerals. Creating the relationship of trust and providing the necessary information for the other person to be able to convey your business is important since this creates your sales ambassadors.
The three points above are your focus during a one-on-one. Our next "How to" post will cover how to maximize this strategy and create business growth.
