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Have You Met The Networker From Hell?

 in Guest Post  tagged business / LinkedIn / Lisa Chilvers / meeting / networking

In today’s guest post Lisa Chilvers asks:

Have You Met The Networker From Hell?

By Lisa Chilvers

"Have You Met The Networker From Hell?" by Lisa Chilvers

I did quite a lot of networking last week… unusual for me, but, like buses, several interesting events came along together so off I trundled.

Generally, they were good – lots of new people to talk to and although I didn’t meet anyone I was interested in for my own business, there were a couple of lovely people there who might well turn out to be useful contacts for my clients.

So, there I was, happily chatting away about websites when he appeared, the one person you dread meeting at an event like this. That’s right, the “Networker from Hell” or NFH, as I like to call him. (NFH, as we all know, stands for something else entirely, but it’s also a fitting acronym here too, with the words “no” and “hope” applying perfectly)

We’ve all met this guy. Strides right in from left-field, business card in hand, which he then proceeds to thrust into your unsuspecting hand, while trying to shake the other one simultaneously. Ignoring any other ongoing conversation, he (or even she) then proceeds to bang on about themselves for the next five minutes, asks you nothing about your own business, then strides off purposefully looking for his next victim, leaving everyone slightly shell-shocked in his wake. Fantastic!

Could it get any worse? Well actually it does! In fact, this particular individual has met me before on no less than four previous occasions and yet he still pounced on me as a potential new source of business and treated me as a total stranger. He clearly had no recollection of any earlier encounters. I’d like to think this has nothing to do with me and my ability to make a stunning first impression and everything to do with the fact that he obviously pays very little attention to who he actually meets at these type of things.

This is clearly not networking at its best. What does he really hope to achieve by this approach? I’ve no idea, but I do know what my response to it will always be. His business card will go in the nearest recycling receptacle, never to be thought of again.

In short, he has No Flipping (trying to keep it polite and professional) Hope!

Fortunately, Mr NFH is a rare breed these days. Most people know how to network and are a pleasure to meet and chat to, regardless of whether there’s any business to be done.

But, if most have sorted it out on an actual basis, why oh why do so many fail to grasp the niceties on a virtual platform? I’m talking about LinkedIn here and those individuals you’ve never set eyes on before who send that dreadful standard, lazy message “I’d like to add you to my network”

I bet you would! But it’s not going to happen.

LinkedIn is, among other things, an online networking tool. It works very well if you use it correctly and can be great for getting to know people you might not otherwise get to meet, particularly if they live miles away or even on another continent. I’ve made some very valuable contacts through LinkedIn, by commenting on discussions and generally being sociable, by striking up conversations with others who share similar, as well as conflicting, opinions. I now have a number of contacts across the UK, as well as in America, that I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting face-to-face, but through the conversations we’ve had to date, feel I’ve got to know them fairly well and they have become valuable connections.

The key here is “networking” – it’s just like the face-to-face stuff, but online. So you should act accordingly. If you’re not a NFH in person, don’t be one online. If you want to connect with someone you don’t know, give them a reason to respond to you. Show interest in them and what they do. Start building that relationship. Explain why you’d like to connect. It’ll make all the difference.

Don’t be an NFH.

Just because you’re not meeting someone face-to-face, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make the proper introductions.
Treat online networking like it is in real life; show interest in the person you’re trying to connect with and start building a relationship

About Lisa Chilvers

Lisa Chilvers is a business development specialist with emphasis on improving customer retention and delivering five star service, helping SME’s implement strategies to grow their businesses by building better relationships with their customers and clients.

She specialises in providing the tools and strategies needed to address business issues and delivers bespoke development consultancy, training and coaching to companies across the UK, helping them to be the best at what they do.”

Social Networking Links

Google+: https://plus.google.com/103317990054669275360
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisachilvers1
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Athena_Business
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UChRzCwMmSk7bVEj1L8BkkNw

 

 

Article Source: Have You Met The Networker From Hell?

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Using Coaching Questions to develop your Social Media Strategy

 in Guest Post  tagged awareness / business coach / business coaching / charging / client / clients / coach / coaches / coaching / coaching courses / coaching qualifications / coaching skills / coaching techniques / coaching training / executive coach / Facebook / leadership coaching / life coach / life coaches / life coaching / LinkedIn / loyalty / measurement / Nicky Kriel / nlp coach / performance coaching / personal coach / personal development / questions / sales / social media / social media strategy / Twitter

In this weeks guest post, communications coach and social networking expert, Nicky Kriel shares how you can use your coaching skills when developing your social media strategy.

Using Coaching Questions to develop your Social Media Strategy

by Nicky Kriel

Are you using Social Media to help grow your Coaching Business? It is very easy to say you do Social Media as a business because you have a Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook account, but do you have a Social Media strategy? So many businesses rush into setting up accounts without looking at the bigger picture.

Have you thought what you want to achieve through Social Media and how you will know when you’ve achieved it? It is so important to start with the end in mind; otherwise, you could get caught up in the chat, or find it to be an endless, mindless, unmeasured chore.

As a coach, have you ever asked your clients the following questions?

  • “What do you want?”
  • “And what will that do for you?”
  • “How will you know when you have achieved it?”

Have you thought of asking those questions to yourself about using Social Media for your business?

Here are some questions that will help you focus on what you want to get out of Social Media:

What’s the point?

  1. Awareness?
  2. Sales?
  3. Loyalty?

Pick one! Your focus will be very different according to which one you choose. For most small businesses the point of doing Social Media will be to build Awareness. More awareness tends to drive sales.

Where do your customers hangout?

To answer this question you will need to have a clear idea of who your customers are. Which Social Media platform are they most likely to use? Just because you might be comfortable using Facebook doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be using LinkedIn if your business is predominantly business to business.

What’s your business about?

Forget having a few minutes to explain your business. Can you clearly state what your business is about in one sentence? The clearer you are about your business, the more customers you will attract. It is wonderful being warm and fuzzy as a coach, but if you can’t get your message across concisely, you will struggle to get new clients. On Social Media you have 120 characters on LinkedIn (The Headline) and 160 characters on Twitter (your Bio). People will make a decision whether or not to follow you or connect with you based on what you have written.

Do you have a list of keywords? It is worth spending a few minutes jotting down at least 10 words as your keywords. When you post updates or tweet are you using your keywords?

What’s your one Thing?

What makes you special? What is the one word that you would like to be associated with you? Disney has the word “Magic” and Volvo has “Safety”: So what word is yours? Are you consistently getting that message across on your website, in your bio and in your updates?

How will you know?

How will you know if you have been successful using Social Media?

What will you see? – (Will it be more visits to your website or more email enquiries?)

Hear? (Is it the phone ringing more often?)

Or feel? (Will it be the satisfaction of working with someone new?)

If you don’t know what success means to you, how will you know if you are wasting your time? If what you are currently doing on social media is not helping your business, you need to do something different. Start with the end in mind.

It is worth thinking about because Social Media can grow your business if you are focussed about using it.

About the author

Nicky Kriel, Guildford’s Social Media Queen, is passionate about empowering small business owners to use Social Media to grow their business. Her background is in Marketing and Sales and she is a Master NLP Practitioner.

As a Communication Coach, she helps people remember the “Social” aspect of Social Networking: It is not all about tools and technology, but about people and human relations.

Aside from her private coaching clients, she runs Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook workshops for business owners and bespoke courses for SMEs. Nicky really enjoys helping business owners to level the playing field by harnessing the power of social media.

You are welcome to follow Nicky on Twitter or like her “social media for newbies” Facebook page

The Perks and Pitfalls of Social Media for Coaches 6

 in Guest Post  tagged business coach / business coaching / charging / client / clients / coach / coaches / coaching / coaching courses / coaching qualifications / coaching skills / coaching techniques / coaching training / executive coach / Facebook / leadership coaching / life coach / life coaches / life coaching / LinkedIn / marketing / Nicky Kriel / nlp coach / performance coaching / personal coach / personal development / sales / social media / Twitter

This week, communications coach, Nicky Kriel shares her thoughts and expertise on the use of social media for coaches.

The Perks and Pitfalls of Social Media for Coaches

By Nicky Kriel

Are you using social media for your coaching business yet? If you are, how is it working for you? And if you are not, what’s stopping you? Social Media offers you a great opportunity to get more clients and build up relations with existing ones. Social Media is not about the Tools and the Technology; it is about people and relationships. And as a coach you are already good at that! If you have enough clients and are making enough money from your coaching business, you can stop reading now, but if you want to grow your business, I have listed five perks and pitfalls for you to consider.

Perks

1. Connect with a far greater audience than you could by networking or asking for referrals. Networking is fun and can be buzzy if you are extroverted, but exactly how many people can you meet at each meeting and how much time is it taking up? Networking online can allow you to make real connections with real people. I am writing this guest blog because I met Jen Waller through Twitter, I have never physically met her although I plan to have coffee with her when I am in her neck of the woods. Within two weeks of being active on Twitter I had my first coaching enquiry. I have never met anyone yet that I haven’t liked in real life after gelling with them through Social Media first.

2. Raise your profile both online and offline – Have you Googled yourself recently? Who does Google think you are? Have you had strangers walk up to you and say “You are……… you are a coach, I love your blog/tweets/Facebook page/website”? Have you been invited to do podcasts about your business? Or radio interviews? Or been quoted by someone else as an expert? All these things are possible without spending a penny on public relations. I know because they have all happened to me last year and they could be happening to you too!

3. Potential clients can get a taste of what you are like before they commit – Your personality comes through even in 140 characters and potential customers can sample bite-size pieces of what you offer. You build rapport before even meeting or talking to people. People feel connected to you if they can read your thoughts and opinions, see pictures of you, hear your voice or watch a video of you.

4. Meet like-minded people – I have met so many supportive wonderful people who are willing me on to succeed. Like attracts like. There are many people out there who will like what you are doing if your intentions are good.

5. Learn – Twitter has provided me with a wealth of information. There is so much information about how to do almost anything and most of it is freely available. YouTube is brilliant for learning how to do things too.

Pitfalls

1. It’s a marathon not a sprint – Things don’t tend to happen instantly. For Social Media to work for you, you need to be part of the community, which means you need to show up consistently. You don’t need to spend hours each day on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, but you do need to be there.

2. You can’t hide behind a corporate image – People do business with people they know like and trust and you will get further revealing your personality than using stiff marketing language. More people will connect with people than businesses.

3. There is no simple formula – If someone suggests you automate everything, please don’t pay attention to them. There is no substitute for personality. You need to build up your own quality network, engage with your audience as a person and not a robot. Anyone who thinks that simply feeding inspirational quotes into your feed is going to bring you business, needs to consider this: there is only one you. Why use the words of someone else when you can say it yourself?

4. Need to be conscious of what you make public – What you broadcast online becomes public and visible to a large number of people. Don’t put posts you wouldn’t want your family to read or to see as a headline in a newspaper. If you are a coach, telling people you are depressed is probably not a good idea. You always need to be conscious of how you market yourself.

5. Easy to get overwhelmed by Social Media – It is very easy to be overpowered by all the possibilities. It is good to start with a big picture of where you would like to be and have a clear intention in mind of what you want to get out of using Social Media. But remember this; you start all journeys with a single step. It is better to get to know one tool well before moving onto the next rather than trying to do everything at once and giving up.

If you would like to know more about Social Media, I write about Social Media regularly on my blog http://www.nickykriel.com/blog and I have started up a page on Facebook called Social Media for Newbies.

About the Author/Further Resources

Nicky Kriel came from a Marketing and Sales background before she retrained as a Master NLP Practitioner. As a Communication Coach, her passion is empowering people to reach their true potential. Aside from her private coaching clients, she runs personal development and social media courses for business owners. www.nickykriel.com

This is the second guest post from Nicky Kriel. To read her first one, 5 ways to make your coaching business successful, click here