BusinessNetworkingAdvice.com Blog ~ An Interview With Gina Bell, co-Founder of The Networking Masters
November 29, 2008
I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by Josh Hinds of BusinessNetworkingAdvice.com
The Interview consisted of these questions:
Q. How do you define Business Networking and why do you feel it is important?
Q. Can you share a couple of ideas that someone could put into practice that would help them to improve their business networking skills?
Q. With first impressions being so important — in your opinion how can
someone go about making a positive impression upon meeting someone else?
Q. We hear a lot about the importance of creating value for the people who we want to develop strong networking relationships with. Can you share some ways people can go about creating value in the eyes of those they want to cultivate stronger working relationships with?
Q. In your opinion, what would be the ideal design for a business card, from the point of effective networking. That is, what are the absolute most important elements one needs on their business card?
Q. Can you share a personal “networking” success story with us?
You can read the full article with my responses here: http://businessnetworkingadvice.com/2008/11/gina-bell-interview-co-founder-of.html
I’d love your feedback 
Happy Networking!
~ Gina
Prospecting, Brokering, Networking: Do You Know the Difference?
November 20, 2008
I love Success Magazine – Do you subscribe? If you do, I highly recommend reading the article on page 84 “The Gift That Keeps On Giving: Networking Your Way to Personal Gold” by Tim Sanders.
It’s a great article and the highlight for me is his differentiation between prospecting, brokering and networking. Could it be that your networking isn’t working because you haven’t really been networking? Let’s take a look:
Prospecting: When you walk through a reception or meet-and-greet with a handful of business cards looking for new prospects (you are not networking!).
Brokering: When you connect two people, then expect to be repaid for it (not networking!).
Networking: When done correctly, networking is when you connect two or more people who should meet. In other words, true networking is a gift you give to others.
Connecting others without an expectation of being repaid works in line with The Law of Reciprocity which is what Tim refers to as “The Secret” of the business world. The law states that people will give back where they’ve been given to. In other words, “what goes around, comes around” (just not necessarily directly from where you’ve given… that’s the catch!).
Tim’s article goes on to share the story of Elmer Letterman, a successful New York insurance salesman from the 1930’s.
“Elmer hosted networking lunches every Friday at the Four Seasons Restaurant. His strategy was simple: Invite three business people who should meet due to mutual interest. He did his homework too, arriving with ideas on how the three could work together. For example, Letterman might invite a chef who wanted to start a restaurant, a banker who could finance it and a construction executive who could build it. He’d explain why each party was credible, get conversation started, pay the bill and then disappear.”
You may be wondering how this strategy worked for him. Here’s the math: 3 people times 50 weeks a year equated to hundreds of business owners in New York who had Letterman to thank for part of their success. Cool story huh!
Now here’s what’s really exciting… this strategy can be duplicated to produce surprise and delight and long lasting loyalty for those in YOUR network! Now think about what this small investment in “networking” could yield for your business in a very short time!
Action Steps:
1) Identify three people in your network who should meet
2) Schedule a networking lunch with these three individuals
3) Introduce them revealing the connection and relevancy, get the conversation started and disappear.
4) Do this every week for one full year and watch The Law of Reciprocity work in your favor.
Tip: Starting today, when you get a business card, enter it into your contact database and think about who you know that this person should meet. Tim suggests that you can use the “miscellaneous” or “other” field as a “should meet” field.
“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” ~ Dale Carnegie
If you like the concept of GIVING as the foundation of your networking strategy, you’ll enjoy reading “The Greatest Money Making Secret in History” by Joe Vitale and you’ll want to mark your calendar for the JV Mavens Partner and Prosper 5 week Tele-series. It’s f.r.e.e. to attend and we will explore in great detail how you can leverage this concept to grow your business. You’ll find more information at http://snipurl.com/4qcql.
Happy Networking!
Top 12 Must-Do’s to Parter and Prosper with Joint Ventures
October 26, 2008
Joint ventures are the crème de la crème of effective business networking. If you’re looking to create momentum quickly and achieve big breakthroughs in 2009, joint venture marketing is a must-leverage strategy!
To get you set in the right direction, here are my Top 12 Must-Do’s to Partner and Prosper with Joint Ventures…
1 ~ Create and Leverage a Purposeful Marketing Action Plan:
In order to leverage this high ROI marketing strategy you need to clearly define the Who What When Where Why and how you plan to get the results you want and the success you deserve!
2 ~ Become a student of Joint Venture Marketing:
Read books, ebooks, articles and blogs; attend workshops (live or by teleclass); find a mentor… Take responsibility for your success and do whatever you need to do to acquire the knowledge and skills you need.
3 ~ Get a reality check:
Is it possible that YOU are sabotaging your success? Are there things you know you should be doing but don’t and can’t explain why you put them off? Are you not sure that you can succeed? In order to find your most direct path to success, you must place your beliefs and behaviours under a microscope and get out of your own way!
4 ~ Expand and leverage your network:
A relevant and responsive network can become your insurance policy for success! Creating “social capital” in this way positively impacts your financial capital thru referrals, better qualified clients, access to information and more.
5 ~ Relationships for Results:
Understand that referral marketing takes TIME. Mutually beneficial, win-win business relationships must evolve from contact to credibility to trust before they can become consistently prosperous.
6 ~ Identify Your JV Dream Team:
What are your goals? Do you need to increase your visibility? Do you need to boost your credibility? Do you want to increase your revenue? Once you’ve clearly defined the outcome you desire. Identify – specifically – WHO can help you to achieve it and how will they benefit by helping you?
7 ~ Step-By-Step Joint Venture:
Leverage proven systems and checklists for JV Success. Look for specific joint venture solutions for your specific business challenges. Model your successes and the success of others.
8 ~ Learn the Mindsets and Success Rituals of The Rich and Famous:
Motivation, Purpose, Perception, Abundance, Possibilities, Willingness, Desire… the list goes on. Become a student of success and model those who have accomplished what you are trying to do.
9 ~ Make giving the foundation of your marketing:
Joe Vitale really hit the nail on the head when he published his book “The Greatest Money-Making Secret In History”. Giving fuels Joint Venture Success and activates the law of attraction.
10 ~ Make Meaningful Connections:
In order to create joint ventures you need to reach out and connect with the potential partners on your list. Do your research so that you can connect in a meaningful and motivating way. Focus on the benefit to THEM.
11 ~ Learn How to Lead and Motivate Your Partners:
Be the kind of JV partner that you want to connect with. Exemplify the qualities of a high quality joint venture partner and that is exactly what you will attract. Learn to lead the joint ventures you create. Motivate your partners by learning to leverage proven follow up and keep in touch strategies.
12 ~ Build Momentum and Increase Revenue thru Consistent and Purposeful Action:
The real key to successful marketing is to select just a few simple, effective things to do and then do them consistently over and over. This is how you can build momentum and grow your business quickly by doing less.
Discover how this hot trend can transform your business – literally overnight by attending my F.R.E.E. Five-Part *Partner and Prosper* Tele-series. The series starts on Thursday November 20th at 1:00 pm CST.
Registration details will be posted shortly.
Socrates Knows How to Get More Referrals… Do You?
August 25, 2008
Socrates was a Classical Greek philosopher, considered one of the founders of Western philosophy. Principally renowned for his contribution to the field of ethics, Socrates also lends his name to the concept of the Socratic Method, a style of teaching in which a series of questions are asked not only to draw individual answers, but to encourage fundamental insight into the issue at hand. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Socrates)
Basically, Socrates asked a lot of questions, commonly answering a question with a question to probe deeper into a given topic. Today, entrepreneurs can benefit from the nature of Socrates by asking relevant questions (to themselves and to others) and discovering answers that significantly impact the direction of their business and boost their success.
What questions should you ask? When it comes to referrals, let’s begin with these…
Are you giving business referrals to the people you meet but not getting many or any referrals?
Do you have a growing list of customers who seem thrilled with your products and services but you struggle to generate referrals from them?
If you’ve answered “Yes” to the above questions, the next logical question is “WHY?”
The easiest way to get referrals is to ask for them! I know, I know… it sounds simple and seems obvious enough but, many professionals fail to simply ask for referrals.
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