Monday 26 December 2011

Top 3 Reasons to Join a Small Business Networking Group

By Barbra Sundquist


As a small business person, you may feel that networking is just one more thing on your already massive to-do list. But I'm here to tell you that joining a small business networking group just might be the best thing you ever did for your business success.

I am an advocate of small business networking groups because as you help others, you also help yourself! You not only tell the people about your business but you also find out how you can be of help to them. And as we all know, helping others is one of the best ways to make them remember you (and send you referrals).

Are you one of those people who try to avoid the standard "meet and greet" networking events? I don't blame you: I do the same thing. There's that nagging feeling that you have to "sell" yourself to people who may not be interested in hearing about you and your business. That's the good thing about joining a small business networking group: the concept of the group is to tell each other about your respective businesses and try to see how you can help each other with referrals. Because everyone is there with the explicit goal of helping each other, there isn't that competitive feeling that comes with some networking events.

There are many other advantages to joining a business networking group, including the ability to promote yourself directly to other local businesses who may need your product or services. And even if they don't directly hire you they may be able to recommend you to someone else.

There are a lot of people people really enjoy their regular networking group. They even say that it is the most productive meeting of their week. What are the things it can do for you? To name one, a small business networking group can get you referrals to hot prospects. It can provide exposure to your business as as exclusive member in your particular field. And finally, a networking group usually offers you group advertising discounts, business educational seminars, and lots of useful new ideas

Even considering all the advantages, many small business owners are still put off by the idea of networking.

The bottom line is that networking is an important way to let other people know about your business. After all, if nobody knows about your business, it won't be successful.

Being a part of the small business networking group that suits you and your business can actually fun. Consider joining a networking group -- you'll be glad you did!




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment