Madison Who’s Who Blog

Business referrals are the primary reasons that anyone invests valuable time in peer networking. So when you have two or three messages from a contact from one of your your B2B networking groups would you ignore it? Apparently, failure to return phone calls is one of the primary “faux pas” that are made.

“There are countless examples of people receiving referrals at networking groups and then contacting the referral a few days later. The old phrase, “If you snooze, you lose,” is apropos here. If the referral knows you had her name and number on Monday and took your time calling, that sends a negative message about your business.”

Another mistake is flooding your networking contacts with e-mail spam and promotions, using your list of names for a type of “glorified cold calling”. The writer spoke to one woman who considered her networking events successful if she left with a handful of business cards. The idea that relationship precedes requests for business did not enter her head.

Using your referrals and network to pull the following stunt is close to idiocy, but apparently relationship abuse is a common mistake.

“A woman I know was invited to attend a 50th birthday party of an associate who used to belong to a networking group in which she also participated. They once had a long-term working relationship, and, out of respect, she decided to attend. When she got to the door, she looked through the window and noticed people were arranged in a semicircle, listening to a presenter in front of an easel board. When she stepped in, it was very obvious the partygoers were being recruited for a business opportunity. As resentful as the woman felt, she and other mutual friends found it difficult to remove themselves from the “birthday party,” despite the fact that the only refreshment being served was the company’s diet shake!”
(Source)

In discussing the importance of “culture” in a start-up, blogger and entrepreneur Rick Swier describes the underpinnings of a productive culture, enumerating key principles equally applicable to a healthy networking group.

Core to any organism is health and culture will always be a barometer of health and the viability of a network.

“…from what I have seen culture thrives when people are engaged, happy and motivated to do whatever it takes to succeed.”

The author defines culture this way:
“The system of shared beliefs, values, customs and artifacts that the members of society use to cope with their world and with one another.”

A peer to peer network organized around core principles first, and business objectives second, may imbue that network with a dynamic difference, ensuring longevity and flexibility. The resulting culture would support goals,ensure positive conflict resolution and. most importantly, engender trust.

“A startup is 95% trust. Everyone knows a startup is risky, and when you cut through all the hype of any early-stage company - there is a high likelihood you may not see a paycheck next month. The only thing that keeps people from going insane is the shared beliefs. The job of a CEO is to show a path to success and have everyone believe it is achievable. If one person doesn’t believe - its like a virus of doubt that will spread throughout an organization - and ultimately kill a company’s culture. Everyone needs to believe.”

Follow the above link where Swier explores further the key dynamics of “shared beliefs, values, customs and artifacts”.

Peer networking is invaluable and a given in business. Social networking is a phenomena that still is emerging at a seemingly irrevocable pace. Professionals are issued countless invitations to join this networking group or that.

Not surprisingly, people congregate online much how they do in life and those individual preferences are appearing online as specialized networks, networks that cater to affinities of a specified segment, with more exacting criteria for membership.

“The embrace of Web 2.0 by the wealthy will mirror the rapid adoption by children of baby boomers…the difference will be in the types of online communities the wealthy will embrace.”

As networking proliferates online, exclusive communities will emerge reflective of the ideologies and lifestyles that the memberships deem to hold in common and that advance their vision for their organizations and their lives.

The Luxury Board is an example of such a private social network .

“Wealthy boomers are the most educated, highest achieving segment in history,” said Milton Pedraza, CEO of the Luxury Institute. “They are not typical of mainstream baby boomers who are about to be ‘lapped’ by the Net Generation. These wealthy over-achievers are the original ‘road warriors,’ who never plan to retire, and stay tech-connected 24/7/365 by necessity.

Expect them to embrace, and pay for, exclusive, collaborative ’safe harbor’ online communities that are relevant to helping them achieve major goals in their personal and professional lives, not in their ’second’ lives. This savvy segment, which truly has much to lose, will shun advertising-driven, biased and conflicted, open-to-the-public communities. They didn’t get rich by being foolish.
(Source)