CONNECTIONS

– Scot Simmons, Founder/CEO,
The Simmons Group

Ahhhhh, Networking…the grown up version (and sometimes equivalent) of the collegiate “What’s your name? What’s your major? Do you want to do it?” Actually, I’m not sure if these days the question period lasts that long.

All humor aside…how is that Networking thing going for you?

Networking is a biiiiiig topic, rife with side roads and tributaries and ancillary considerations and alternate distinctions. I don’ t want to talk about any of those (today). I’m going to talk about networking groups — what they are what they should be and how to get the most out of one.

The first networking group I joined played strictly by the book. $300 fee to join. Monthly fee for breakfast. Referral slips; exclusivity (only one member allowed from each field); strict attendance rules (miss three times, you are relegated to networking “purgatory” until someone is found to replace you or it’s determined that there is only one widget polisher in the network area and you are reinstated); monthly socials, bi-monthly gatherings, yearly membership symposiums.

Did I mention pressure? Pressure to come up with at least one referral each week or risk the mass opprobrium of the group mind? Pressure to throw as many filled-out referral or thank you slips into
the weekly pot as is humanly possible? Pressure to just put a name – any name, anyone with a pulse – into the mix.

As the CEO of a new business I really needed more pressure.

That’s the thing that bothered me most: the referral thing. How am I supposed to feel comfortable recommending (on either end) someone I literally just met?

Networking is about relationships. You can’t recommend someone or some service unless you trust them to deliver.

I quit the refer-or-die networking group after six months. They were focusing far more on the rules than the relationships. The trust just wasn’t there.

After a month of struggling with the question of how to achieve satisfactory networking results, I did the rounds of local networking groups – attending an introductory breakfast here and there, trying to get a handle on what to look for. I did join a group – a group that seemed to be much less concerned with the rules and regulations and more with actually getting to know one another.

But after we all got to know each other, the previously viable group of fifteen had dwindled down to about seven. The reasons were legion, but many boiled down to lack of immediate referral gratification. One would leave for valid concerns, two more would show up, join, then leave after six meetings because they hadn’t gotten a hot referral each week.

It’s hard to make a networking group work — no matter how you approach it, no matter who is in it, and no matter what your affiliations are. With that in mind, here are a few of the most basic concerns when considering joining any network group:

1) Don’t be afraid to be selective. You don’t have to join the first group you visit. You don’t have to join any groups you visit. You do have to generally like the people at the first meeting. Go with your first instincts. I personally avoid groups featuring that guy who has a smart ass quip for literally everything. When you see your red flag, step away from the networking group.

2) Make sure they like you…and each other. That’s an instinct thing as well. Hopefully you’re not that guy. Of course common sense tells you that if no one talks to you after your “30-Second Bio” this is the group to pass on, but be aware of the effort they make with you (and each other) during the luncheon as well as before and after. And an hour with any group will reveal at least some of the groups within groups and what that signifies.

3) Assess the professional makeup of the group. Are there people here you actually can refer once you feel confident enough to do so? How many are a natural offshoot/supporter of your profession. How many travel in the same professional “circles” that you do? For example, if you’re a graphic designer and the group has a printer, a market guru, and web tech guy, you have a natural “in” with this group – and that’s the biggest plus of all.

4) Plan on making an effort to know and interact with these people…for the purpose of referring them. Not just so they can refer you.

5) Plan on contributing to group success. By this I mean marketing and promoting and supporting your group so that it succeeds in bringing in new members, becomes known in the community, and eventually becomes a viable promotional force — all of which entail volunteering services, time and occasional extra funds to the group effort.

Let me say in closing that I have had a slew of positive networking group experiences – connections made immediately, in the short run, in the long run and totally out of the blue (see my introduction to this issue). They work. They have worked for me more times than I can remember. They can prove to be a profoundly positive force in establishing, promoting and growing your business.

Join a networking group…but be careful out there.

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