BUSINESS NETWORKING in today’s environment. Introductions David Ruckno – Referral Network Group Ron Baker – S.C.O.R.E. Cathy Havens – Chamber of Commerce

BUSINESS NETWORKINGin today’s environment

Introductions

• David Ruckno – Referral Network Group

• Ron Baker – S.C.O.R.E.

• Cathy Havens – Chamber of Commerce

• Diana Bourgeois – Magic Marketing USA

Referral Network Marketing

FIVE MAIN ADVANTAGES

1. Throw boomerangs, not sticks

2. Industry Exclusivity

3. Establish closer relationships

4. Sharing of ideas

5. It's like acquiring a large sales team

Business Networking

SCORECarolina Low Country Chapter

SCORE Business Counseling

The Carolina Lowcountry SCORE chapter offers free, confidential business counseling to small business clients in Beaufort, Colleton, Jasper and Hampton counties. Our local

offices are located in Bluffton, Hilton Head and Beaufort.

SCORE is sponsored by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and we have a partnership with the Chamber of Commerce. We work with new and existing business

as well as non-profit organizations.

Nationwide we have more than 10,000 volunteers, with 40 counselors locally.

Contact us at our website, www.scorehiltonhead.com .

Grow Your Business With Business Networking

More new business is generated by networking than by any other

marketing activity.

It’s a fact – 70% on average of new business is gained through referrals or relationship marketing, and not only that, it is one of the most cost-

effective ways of building your business.

Today’s Discussion Topics

Face-to-Face Networking, Online Networking

Business Networking Opportunities

Friends, Family and Neighbors Alumni Networking – School, Military, Corporation Community Groups Business/Trade Associations Business Conferences, Trade Shows Guest Speaker at Workshops, Seminars

More new business is generated by word of mouth (networking) than by other marketing activity.


Chamber of Commerce Customer Events You Sponsor Faith and Charity Networking Groups Network Event Services Online Business Networking Use A Blog

More new business is generated by word of mouth (networking) than by other marketing activity.


Use Faith And Charity Good Place To Start - Charity Navigator.

Use Alumni Networking Join Classmates.com, Reunion.com, or Gradfinder.com Join Military.com

What better way to build a genuine relationship than through working together for a church or charitable organization. Look for groups geared to

business people.

Make sure you can find and be found by your old buddies by joining alumni associations.


Networking Event Services Join Meetup, Net Party, or VentureStreet Join Networking for Professionals

These services have made a business of bringing together business people for mixers. Give their events a try and see if they pull the kind of people you

want to meet.

With some of these services, you can organize your own events.


Online Business Networking Join Ryze, LinkedIn, EntreMate, Ecademy, Soflow, or openBC. Score’s Small Business Community, www.scorecommunity.org

Register yourself on these sites, invite your contacts to register, they’ll invite their contacts to register – and everybody’s connections build far faster than

they ever could in the real world.

Business Networking Tips

Build Relationships – Sell Yourself, Not Your Products Listen Actively – Be A Listener First, Then A Talker Get To Know Your Networking Contacts Gain Trust and Confidence Ask Open Ended Questions Understand Needs – Then Tell People About Your Products

Business networking, a deliberate campaign to connect with people who can connect you with more business.


Pick Groups That Match Your Goals Hold volunteer Positions In Organizations Become Known As A Resource For Others Understand What You Do, Why You Do It, And For Whom Be Ready To Answer “What Can I Do For You?”



Simply Introducing Yourself Is Not Networking Follow-up To Establish A Business Relationship Follow Through Quickly On Referrals Call Those You Meet, Arrange Follow-on Discussions Add Successful People To Your Network, Learn From Them



Elevator Speech – What You Do High Quality Business Cards

SCORE Elevator Speech

The Carolina Lowcountry SCORE chapter offers free, confidential business counseling to small business clients in Beaufort, Colleton, Jasper and Hampton counties. Our local

offices are located in Bluffton, Hilton Head and Beaufort.

SCORE is sponsored by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and we have a partnership with the Chamber of Commerce. We work with new and existing business

as well as non-profit organizations.

Nationwide we have more than 10,000 volunteers, with 40 counselors locally.

Contact us at our website, www.scorehiltonhead.com .

SCORE Business Networking

SCORE Business Roundtables SCORE Small Business Community www.scorecommunity.org

Workshop: Business Networking

SCORECarolina Low Country Chapter

Events Focused

Networking

Cathy Havens, Special Events and Project Manager

*NETWORK WITH A PURPOSE

*LOOK YOUR BEST

*DEVELOP A DISTINCTIVE SIGNATURE

*“WORK YOUR NAMETAG”

*DEVELOP AN UNFORGETTABLE GREETING

*OVERCOME YOUR SHYNESS

*EAT BEFORE THE EVENT

*KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH

BUSINESS CARDS

*THE BIGGEST FAILURE

Social Media: (R)evolution of Marketing and Networking

Magic Marketing USA | [email protected] | www. magicmarketingusa.com

The Big Questions:

Why Social Media?What does Facebook mean to my business?

Who cares about Twitter?


What is the 4th largest country in the world?


Answer: Statistics Do Not Lie!

*Nielsen Online shows that: Social networks and blogs are now the 4th most popular online activity ahead of personal email.

* 93 percent of U.S. consumers subscribe to email marketing messages.

* 42 percent of U.S. online consumers use Facebook at least once a day and, of these, 69 percent are a fan of one or more companies.

* Nearly half (43 percent) of all online consumers are either fans or followers of at least one brand on Twitter or Facebook.

* 68 percent of daily Twitter users follow at least one brand.


Blogging: The Time-Share of Social Media

Blogging is all about distilling information and materials to your audience in a way that allows them to directly interact. Companies actually share time with customers building relationships.

* Universal McCann reports 77% of all active internet users regularly read blogs



Facebook: Where the World Turns

Facebook has become the center of the social media universe for both customers and companies due to its robust interface the engages people within the Facebook universe without the need to leave.

* If Facebook were a country it would be the world’s 4th largest between the United States and Indonesia.

* More than 1.5 million pieces of content are shared on Facebook…daily.

Ways to connect with customers / businesses on Facebook:

TagsVideosInvite tabInformationKeywordsSchedule Events



Twitter: Communication in 140 Characters or Less!

Twitter is taking over the world with short and sweet updates designed for GenY. With the up-and-coming, real-time world, Twitter is allowing users to Tweet updates, pictures, articles, and links.

Ways to find target customers and businesses on Twitter:

#hash tagsTrendsKeywords@ or DMListsPromote your events



LinkedIn: Where the Big Kids Play!

Linkedin is a direct result of the professional community reaching out to other professionals to promote like minded goals and develop valuable connections.

* 12.44 million – number of unique visitors in June, 2009 Trend Analysis

* 49% – percent of site made up of “decision makers”

Ways to find connections in Linkedin:

Join GroupsStrong Profile w keywordsInvite others to your groupAdd your blog / twitter postsSchedule / Promote your events



YouTube: Your World in Video!

YouTube is popular among companies and customer because it allows companies to distribute informational videos to a large population and gain followers through subject identification. In short, everyone on the planet is a video reporter.

* The #2 largest search engine in the world is YouTube

* In 2010, YouTube exceeded 2 billion views a day.


Email: The Marketing That Keeps Dripping

Drip marketing through email allows companies to continually reach out to their communities to provide updates, offers, and information. When combined with social media, email marketing reaches out to customers who opt-in to provide constant contact.

* A new study released today by ExactTarget found 58 percent of U.S. online consumers begin their day interacting with companies on email, compared to 20 percent who start their day on search engines and 11 percent on Facebook.


Question: Why Social Media?

* Years to reach a million users: Radio (38 Years), TV (13 Years), Internet (4 Years), iPod (3 Years)…Facebook added 100 million users in less than 9 months

* By 2010, Gen Y will outnumber Baby Boomers and 96% have joined a social network

Three Greatest Myths about Social Media:

1-It works quickly. FALSE! You have to give it time to connect. Social media is an actual connection between you and the person on the other side.

2-It does not cost anything….just time. FALSE! Time is money! Many people spend hours a day on social media without getting anything out of it.

3-Social media can not be measured. FALSE! When done correctly, you gain brand exposure, customer input/output, and increase your advertising reach while decreasing cost.


Parting Words…

Put your social media information on EVERYTHING! In your office, business cards, brochures, emails…everywhere!

Be careful of what you put on social media! Personal stuff should stay AWAY from professional stuff.

You need to have a business page that is apart from your personal social media accounts.


Documents

BUSINESS NETWORKING in today’s environment. Introductions David Ruckno – Referral Network Group Ron Baker – S.C.O.R.E. Cathy Havens – Chamber of Commerce