Hi I know we all need to get our business names out there and tell people what we are about but I was wondering whether any of you were members of a networking club and went to the regular breakfasts. My reason for asking is that I have been approached to join a local group but I am a bit unsure as to whether it will be completely beneficial. I know that I can go along to one of the breakfast meetings to see what it is all about but I just would like to know if anyone here had any experiences of them. The cost is also a little offputting,just under £500 membership and then the weekly cost of £10 per breakfast so nearly £1000 in the first year,and I know that you need to invest to get some return but when things are a little tight I just want to make sure that any investment is made in the right way.
Have a look at a couple of threads on the forum about this - put in BNI !
I have again come across networking via a conversation with a client who was a member. He joined via an invitation from his accountant and was a member for a short while. He was not that impressed as although he passed on referrals for work to other members, he did not receive good quality ones himself - people wanted work at `mates rates`, so in the end he decided that networking in this way simply was not for him.
But, if you feel comfortable with this kind of marketing and you can justify the annual fees, it may be something to seriously consider.
I have been to some of these breakfast meetings, BNI being one of them, in different areas. They are expensive and rely on recommendations from other members, so not always good or reliable - and you have to pay for the breakfast! Also you have to remember that only 1 person from a particular field is generally allowed so if they already have an accountant, they prob would not accept a book-keeper too!
Suffice to say I did not join and no longer go....
1) How much business do you think you need to win to make the £1,000 good value?
Keep in mind that new business will lead to new business via referrals.
2) Did you have a networking strategy? By this I mean did you have anything of value to give out to the networking group which could then be pass on to others?
3) What do you expect in terms of how many meetings you need to attend?
I go to free networking coffee mornings in the Milton Keynes area, one organised as part of the Athena Network (Capuccino Connections) and one called Ladies who Latte - which does accept male members too!
I find them useful and have gained a new client as well as had some one off Sales through them too, and to be honest when you work for yourself the biggest value is getting out and chatting to like minded individuals.
