Networking Master Classes by The Rural Meeting Place

The Rural Meeting Place has added another product to its portfolio for its Members to access, the Networking Masterclass.
Over the last few months more people have started to network but have been unsure of how to go about the process to bring the best returns for their business, so we decided to help with an hours Masterclass before a network meeting. The first event proved to be a success and drew people together who had not networked before and who were apprehensive about the whole idea of networking.
We went through the process of the people who throw business cards around like confetti expecting them to stick somewhere and wondering why they get no business from an event and stop attending, to those that work the room naturally and carry with them a host of potential contacts for those they engage with by means of their own extended network.
The pleasing part of the Masterclass was when one of the attendees said 'Its all about relationships'
We also had the benefit of having a successful networker come along to tell people how he has made networking work for him and his Utilities Business.
The Masterclass is held before a regular network meeting and then gives people a chance to try out their new found skills at a live meeting whilst things are still fresh in their minds.
These events will now be held regularly so that new Members to the Rural Meeting Place can quickly start to discover how to market their business effectively through networking.

Developments on Twitter

Since I last blogged about Twitter things have developed quite quickly. Who would have thought that I would join forces with my Web Site designers to go on and do Seminars on using Twitter for business? I will talk about the benefits of this at a later date.
I find that having had success through this mode of Social Media I can confidently encourage others to use it as well. By success, I mean that businesses have signed up to www.theruralmeetingplace.com as members, others have come along to meetings and also I have been able to promote the products that I have available to a larger audience. Success in the means of a much increased profile and all for a short time each day.
Joining conversations on Twitter and learning about the people that you follow and who are following you is just a form of online networking. Some of what you say is interesting to some of your followers just as in the same way you are not always interested in what all the people you are following say all the time.
I find it very useful to tailor my Tweeting to the time of day I am online. Lets face it , at 11 o'clock on a saturday night are you going to take any notice of details of a networking meeting on wednesday lunch time? No, neither would I be, but, you might have a conversation about a TV program that was on or a book that I am reading.
Twitter is a good form of networking and is an arena where it pays to let your true personality shine through after all we all do business with people we like and whom we have interests in common.
Follow me on Twitter if you wish @carolermp say hello and mention that you saw the Blog.

Effective Tweeting

Last week I gave an over view of Twitter for Profile which I will take further in this Blog. After spending time viewing what was happening in the Twitterverse I decided to put some plans into action. I decided that I wanted to use it as a social and business tool for www.theruralmeetingplace.com
Initially I set about finding people in my catchment area to 'Follow' in the hope that some of them would follow me back to enable me to have an audience to speak to as well as to have an arena for conversation with the people and businesses that I was following.
To achieve this audience I set about viewing the followers of people whose Tweets I enjoyed and selecting those that I thought I would enjoy following. One quick click and the base of 'Followings' started to grow.
I found that there were some very interesting conversations happening and that people were posting some very relevant Links to articles, websites etc so as well as having some Social Discourse I was actually learning at the same time. When people started 'Following' me and responding to my Tweets that just increased the conversational possibilities which in turn increased the possibilities for me to highlight the role of The Rural Meeting Place. Some people are interested in joining, some in the Events that are listed in the Calendar and some in the Marketing opportunities that the site can offer and some were interested in chatting generally and becoming friends on a social level.
All in All this is a long term Marketing strategy for The Rural Meeting Place and the other accounts that I am setting up for other projects.
Next week I will discuss what I have achieved so far and how I did it.

Tweeting for profile

Recently I have discovered Twitter. This has been a revelation in the field of marketing and is used by many to promote their business as well as to socialise on line. Its another form of networking both online and offline. There are friendships made and regular Tweetups arranged in local areas where you can meet the people you are making friendships with.
Why should you want to Twitter? It is a free (apart from your time) form of marketing that makes you say in 140 characters what you want others to 'hear' and is a very good way of honing your spiel for your 60 second introduction at Network meetings.
Before Tweeting sit back and take a few moments to think what you want from this form of marketing. 'Follow' people and groups that interest you and are relevant to your business and to your interests.
Promote your offering and offer advice and knowledge to your fellow Twitterers.
Over the next few weeks I shall be letting you know about my travels on Twitter and imparting advice to you, following on from my trials.
To follow me on Twitter go to www.twitter.com/carolermp
Happy Twittering.

Tranferring new skills.

Over the past week I have developed new skills that adapt into the work environment. Through helping a friend negotiate a house purchase I have sharpened observation, learned to scrutinize what has been said before responding with a higher bid and to analyse the result of the conversation to ensure that we have responded correctly to the information that was supplied. Although it was an exciting time it was very tiring but caused a time for reflection on how the skills can be used in every day working life. I am sure that this will make me a sharper operator on a daily basis. Some times you need to do something different to appreciate how you normally approach a sale, client etc and that you can change your response attitude for the better.
To develop this further there are also grants available for developing skills and they are backed by the government through Business Link and the Learning and Skills Council. In this current economic climate it makes sense to train your staff and yourself with transferrable skills rather than to employ new staff that take time to induct and who may not necessarily be in it for the long term, however I also appreciate that there are also some very well qualified people on the job scene who are looking for new opportunities.

Marketing in a Recession.

As we are apparently in a recession it is important to maintain visibility infront of your prospective clients.
This does not necessarily have to be expensive but it pays to maintain a level of advertising and awareness with your audience. If you advertise regularly it might be advantageous to trim down the size of your adverts or to negotiate a deal with your supplier. Combine this with free press where possible by sending press releases out about achievements/awards won/staff recruitment/new products etc.
Keeping in touch with existing clients helps as they are true advocates of your business and are ideally placed to refer you to their friends. Try adapting the refer a friend idea by rewarding them for putting you in touch with paying customers. Set the reward to the level of the cost of your product or service and make it personal so if you are dealing with a staff member rather than the owner of a business vouchers may be appreciated whereas a free item that can be converted into cash may be better for the owner of a business................to be continued

Collaborative working.

Often we find that we are not able to supply all of the skills for a client specification and perhaps turn down the opportunity of a piece of work. Look at Networking from another angle. When you have built relationships with people in your circle you also have the ability to call in all the extra skills you need to supply a complete package as well as opening the door for work to be passed your way from these contacts. Set up a Service Level Agreement with these businesses and achieve a win/win situation for all involved.
This makes another good reason to continue Networking and increasing your circle of contacts. Opportunities are all around us if we look outside of the box, however, sometimes it is too easy to walk away rather than think through the alternative approaches.