How does online business networking help you get clients? The ONLE Networking Show ep25.
Kelly and James discussed the ways in which your networking activities can help you get clients as well as the other benefits networking can bring to your business. If done correctly, networking can be a valuable long term strategy for bringing new clients. Plus we hear members comments about whether they make customer experience a priority in their business and why neglecting this can be a huge missed opportunity.
Listen/subscribe on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/how-does-online-business-networking-help-you-get-clients/id1500905335?i=1000632563647
Listen/subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6BMaxHNL8cpG9DzLKHW75W?si=9e223b6092f040f0
Our sponsor
The ONLE Networking Show is proud to be sponsored by The Mayflower Theatre in Southampton. The Mayflower is a live entertainment venue which attracts more than half a million visitors every year, contributing more than £70 million to the local economy each year. The Theatre is deeply involved with the local business community, you can find out about corporate events, room hire and business membership using the following links:
Corporate events and room hire- https://www.mayflower.org.uk/functions/
Business membership- https://www.mayflower.org.uk/support-us/business-membership/
Show notes
How does online business networking help you get clients?
It’s an abstract idea if you’ve not been networking. How does meeting regularly with the same group of business people help you get business? Is the investment in time worth the outcome?
This is about measuring time inputs versus results. And yes, you should absolutely measure the time spent and the results gained from business networking. But you should put ALL your business development activities under the same scrutiny. If I asked you to tell me what your time/sale conversion rate for social media, for example, do you know the answer?
What are the additional gains of networking? If a social media campaign fails to generate a sale, it’s failed. If you’re savvy, you may learn that that particular messaging doesn’t work so it tells you to change the message to the next campaign. But that’s it - the feedback and insight is limited.
If you network and don’t get business immediately, you can learn so much about why your sales and marketing ISN’T working:
Knowledge of the market and what people actually need (and will pay for)
Support from people in the same position
Real-time feedback on your messaging
Based on Pierre Bauzee’s ONLE Talks about customer retention, conversation within our monthly meeting revealed that though our intentions are to look after our customers, it seems everyone is more focused on customer acquisition. With your loyal customers being 86% more likely to recommend you or refer your services to others, prioritising your customer experience is an essential priority which is too often overlooked.
New customers don’t trust you, your experience long-term ones do, so are you marketing new products and services to them? They are far more likely to buy from you than first time buyers. Very few of our members had a strategy or time allocated to retention - are you taking the steps necessary to put this in place?
ONLE members notes about technology:
Phil Coley: “I get 79% of his new business referrals from existing clients. The cost of acquisition is much lower than getting new customers.”
Keith Schorah: “List all of your services and things you could do for clients and share it with them. It’s a certainty that someone will say “I didn’t know you did that.” Market to the people who trust you, stop looking for the new.”
Lisa Armstrong: “Diarise time to focus on retention - what can I do to ensure those clients are happy and could they help me find more business?”
Larry Leighton: “Taking clients to lunch.” It feels old-fashioned, but that level of personalisation and showing clients that you value them as clients and don’t take them for granted means they will stay longer and tell others about you. What’s your version of taking clients to lunch?
Chris Wilson: “If you were left with one customer, what would you do? How would you use that relationship to rebuild your business? Make them feel special, reviews, referrals, upsell etc.”
Conclusion: Once people clearly understand what you do and you have built a relationship those networking connections will then either buy from you or be able to refer you on to someone who can. If you are not seeing results, you must question is my messaging clear enough? Ask your network!
Want to learn how to network online effectively? Join Kelly & James for a complimentary one-hour online training session. Book your space here: https://theonle.network/shop/p/how-to-network-effectively