Networking is more than just shaking hands and passing out
business cards. Based on a survey I conducted of more than 2,000
people throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and
Australia, it's about building your "social capital."
The highest-rated traits in the survey were the ones related to
developing and maintaining good relationships. For years I've
been teaching people that this process is more about
"farming" than it is about "hunting." It's
about cultivating relationships with other business professionals.
It's about realizing the capital that comes from building
social relationships.
The following traits were ranked in order of their perceived
importance to networking. They're the traits that will make you
a "master networker."
1. Follows up on referrals. This was ranked as the No. 1
trait of successful networkers. If you present an opportunity,
whether it's a simple piece of information, a special contact
or a qualified business referral, to someone who consistently fails
to follow up successfully, it's no secret that you'll
eventually stop wasting your time with this person.
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2. Positive attitude. A consistently negative attitude
makes people dislike being around you and drives away referrals; a
positive attitude makes people want to associate and cooperate with
you. Positive business professionals are like magnets. Others want
to be around them and will send their friends, family and
associates to them.
3. Enthusiastic/motivated. Think about the people you
know. Who gets the most referrals? People who show the most
motivation, right? It's been said that the best sales
characteristic is enthusiasm. To be respected within our networks,
we at least need to sell ourselves with enthusiasm. Once we've
done an effective job of selling ourselves, we'll be able to
reap the reward of seeing our contacts sell us to others!
That's motivation in and of itself!
4. Trustworthy. When you refer one person to another,
you're putting your reputation on the line. You have to be able
to trust your referral partner and be trusted in return. Neither
you nor anyone else will refer a contact or valuable information to
someone who can't be trusted to handle it well.
5. Good listening skills. Our success as networkers
depends on how well we can listen and learn. The faster you and
your networking partner learn what you need to know about each
other, the faster you'll establish a valuable relationship.
Communicate well, and listen well.
6. Networks always. Master networkers are never off duty.
Networking is so natural to them that they can be found networking
in the grocery store line, at the doctor's office and while
picking the kids up from school, as well as at the chamber mixers
and networking meetings.
7. Thanks people. Gratitude is sorely lacking in
today's business world. Expressing gratitude to business
associates and clients is just another building block in the
cultivation of relationships that will lead to increased referrals.
People like to refer others to business professionals that go above
and beyond. Thanking others at every opportunity will help you
stand out from the crowd.
8. Enjoys helping. Helping others can be done in a
variety of ways, from literally showing up to help with an office
move to clipping a helpful and interesting article and mailing it
to an associate or client. Master networkers keep their eyes and
ears open for opportunities to advance other people's interests
whenever they can.
9. Sincere. Insincerity is like a cake without frosting!
You can offer the help, the thanks, the listening ear, but if you
aren't sincerely interested in the other person, they'll
know it! Those who have developed successful networking skills
convey their sincerity at every turn. One of the best ways to
develop this trait is to give the individual with whom you're
developing a referral relationship your undivided attention.
10. Works their network. It's not net-sit or net-eat,
it's net-work, and master networkers don't let any
opportunity to work their networks pass them by. They manage their
contacts with contact management software, organize their e-mail
address files and carry their referral partners' business cards
as well as their own. They set up appointments to get better
acquainted with new contacts so that they can learn as much about
them as possible so that they can truly become part of each
other's networks.
Do you see the trend with these ten points? They all tie in to
long-term relationship building, not to stalking the prey for the
big kill. People who take the time to build their social capital
are the ones who will have new business referred to them over and
over. The key is to build mutually beneficial business
relationships. Only then will you succeed as a master
networker.
Ivan Misner is co-author of the New York Times bestseller Masters of Networking. He is the founder and CEO of
BNI, the
world's largest referral organization with more than 2,400
chapters in 13 countries around the world. He also teaches business
courses at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and
resides in Southern California with his wife and three children.
Dr. Misner can be reached at misner@bni.com.