Every business person needs some great networking partners to help them build mutually beneficial business relationships – and if you are a regular reader of these articles, you already know that the important word in the above sentence is “mutually”! That’s right! Relationships - business, personal or otherwise – require a measure of give and take and commitment, but the pay-offs can be priceless!
The a networking partner is, essentially, a professional with whom you can join forces to create a strong bu
siness relationship, often passing referrals back and forth, and help each other grow.
Here’s how my business networking partner “Want Ad” reads:
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ISO enthusiastic networking partner. Must possess the following:
PASSION – We all want to work with people who love what they do – their enthusiasm can be infectious and give you the boost you need on those days that you aren’t really feeling it. It also makes it easier for
you to refer someone who is passionate about their business to others and chances are, such a networking partner will energetically talk about your company as well and get others excited to do business with you.
GREAT LISTENING SKILLS – Make sure your potential partners have mastered the art of listening – to you, to their clients, and to those they refer to you. Be sure you are clear about the types of people that make a good lead for you, and of course, be a good listener in return!
GOOD COMMUNICATION SKILLS – Communicate often and meaningfully with your networking partners and ask them to do the same. You both will want to stay updated on what the other is doing, in order to make relevant referrals. Make it a point to schedule face-to-face time every few weeks. This helps cement the business relationship and makes it more likely for referrals to be passed on both sides!
WILLING TO SHARE – There is no room for being selfish in networking – otherwise, it’s not networking! Make sure the professionals you want to network with are willing to pass your name along when it makes sense to do so and make sure you are also willing to do the same.
SOMETHING IN COMMON – more specifically, clients. Networking partnerships work best, and are most efficient, when the clientele that you market to is similar and that you can offer complimentary services. This allows each of you to be a resource for the other’s clients, thereby making it easy to pass referrals back and forth. An obvious example of this is a CPA/financial advisor relationship. It is also OK to think outside of the box– find professionals who aren’t in obviously complimentary professions to partner up with and see if you can somehow share networking resources. Also, having a hobby outside of work that you share with your networking partner, or a shared favorite sports team or volunteer activity, can go a long way giving you something other than business to talk about and will help create a bond.
“GET IT” – If a professional that you have set your sights upon to be your next great networking partner shows signs of not understanding how real business networking works – perhaps they seem more interested in the “quick sale” (i.e., the equivalent of the business networking one-night stand) – move on! There are better fish in the sea!
Please be willing to make a long-term commitment to a mutually beneficial business relationship!
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It should go without saying that you should be prepared to provide the same level of commitment to your networking partners!
Too bad there’s no eHarmony for networking partners, right? But guess what? The Power Lunch Project is the next best thing! (Yes, that was the shameless plug!) Our job is to set you up with great networking partners who “get” it and to facilitate business relationships truly made in business “heaven”! Check us out at http://www.ThePowerLunchProject.com to see how we do it and to see what some of our 85+ Philadelphia area members are saying about TPLP! New York professionals – we are taking applications from you, too!
What do you look for in a great networking partner, and with whom would you like to network?
1 comments:
My ideal networking partner is someone with great interpersonal skills committed to forging long-term sustainable networking relationships via exchanging relevant information. Together online or live we look out for each other.
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