The slayer of the Dragons comes to celebrate 30 years of the Kent B2B

Having found success through his appearance on Dragon Den and the subsequent development and popularity of Reggae Reggae Foods life hasn’t always been so easy for Levi Roots. His talk will cover his childhood and learning how to cook with his grandmother in rural Jamaica to his turbulent teenage years in 80's Brixton to his music career to the building of Reggae Reggae Sauce. Looking at the key themes of entrepreneurship, business and enterprise Levi’s warm and engaging style is why he experienced such commercial success. Helping the Kent B2B to celebrate its 30^th year after his talk Levi will cut the birthday cake.

The afternoon keynote speaker is the CEO of Chapel Down, Frazer Thompson who will be talking about “The Chapel Down Story – from repossessing photocopiers to regenerating Ashford” -  looking at the importance of people with passion, the need for a plan and how not all money is equal. Chapel Down is proud to supply British icons such as Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver, and you can enjoy their drinks at great institutions such as the Royal Opera House, the Turner Contemporary and at the Kent B2B VIP networking reception at lunchtime. As one of the UK government’s top 50 British food and drink producers and identified as a ‘CoolBrand 2015/16’ the Chapel Down story is certain to be an illuminating talk.

Fresh perspective for the Kent B2B

Held at the Ashford International Hotel on the 26 April the Kent B2B is the longest running free conference and exhibition in Kent and offers a fantastic opportunity to listen to leading business speakers, attend informative workshops and most importantly network with over 80 “Best of Kent Shows” exhibitors and more than 1,000 delegates. Speed networking proved to be a big draw at the recent West Kent B2B show and there will be 2 sessions throughout the day.

Alongside the conference programme and exhibitors there will be the rerun of the “The Winning Bid” workshops. The Kent B2B will also offer a free networking breakfast with Peter Anderton looking at “7 Secrets That Super Successful Managers Know & Do That Most Managers Either Don't Know or Don't Do”.

Jo James, Chief Executive of the Chamber says, “I urge businesses to come along and help us celebrate our 30^th anniversary at the Kent B2B. Along with the informative speaker sessions, useful workshops and great business advice this is going to be a brilliantly fun day too. Come along for all or part of the day and enjoy being part of the best B2B event in Kent.”

Register for free tickets here

How to use an Exhibition to Market Your Business

Exhibitions are an excellent way of meeting new customers and marketing your business, your products and services to ultimately get more sales and increase profits.

Exhibiting does not need to be costly, so how do you keep costs down and maximise your return on investment?

It's all in the preparation

In order to maximise your results on your stand you will need to:

• Identify your goals and objectives -Work out what you want to achieve from the exhibition and beyond, who you want to target and how you will measure your success (e.g. number of leads, number of converted leads).
• Exhibition stand design - When designing your exhibition stand, ensure that it conveys your marketing aim, brand values and product or service capabilities and is geared towards your target audience. Think of ways that you can entice people to engage with you. Create a special show offer on your product or services pricing or perhaps deliver a pertinent give away – a white paper or some new research.

Text

Remembering the basics of design will help your stand make an impact. The text you use is an important element of this and less is definitely more. Try to convey your key sales/marketing message as succinctly as possible - a single word is great, as long as it still gets your message across. Also, place your text at the top of the stand so that your message isn’t obstructed by other stands and ensure the font is large enough to be seen from a distance.

Graphics

Choose graphics and images that will appeal to your target audience, keep them big so that they can be seen from afar, and once again, place them in the top two thirds of the space.

Lighting

Finally, the lighting you use can make or break your exhibition stand. At the very least, you need to ensure that there is enough lighting so that delegates can read your text and displays.

Your stand staff

• Carefully brief your exhibition stand staff, ensure that your staff are trained and briefed on the overall aims, who to target, the kind of questions that may arise and how to interact with prospects and customers.
• Contact your contacts - Make sure that as many prospects and customers as possible know that you will be attending the exhibition. Send e-shots, use social media, add a signature block toy our emails and add it toy our web site if possible.

On the day of the exhibition

• Remember why you're there - make sure you and your staff remain focused on their goals. Reinforce your aims to the team just before the doors open and the day begins 
• Make the most of the exhibitions and remember that networking can happen anywhere at the show – when you’re at the coffee bar, attending a workshop or listening to speakers. Walk around the exhibition and talk with other exhibitors – increasing your engagement with delegates and exhibitors will hugely increase your positive leads from the day. 

Big No-Nos

• Body language and behaviour - Your staff are your brand, that means no crossed arms, mobile phones, or eating on the stand. Welcoming smiles, making eye contact and open questions will make a big difference to your success
• Keep it short - Keep your conversations with prospects short and concise. You have a limited amount of time, so ensure that you spend enough time to get all the details you need and then move on

Post-exhibition

• Evaluate the day - After the event, it's important to assess how well the day went and discuss any feedback you received from customers so that you can improve for next time.
• Follow up on leads - Immediately after the event, you should either call or mail every contact that you spoke to on the exhibition stand, even if it's just a simple thank you for visiting you at the stand
• Measure your successes - Ensure that you follow up on all leads and track whether or not these convert into sales. This the only way you will know whether or not the exhibition was a success enabling you to accurately calculate your return on investment. 

If you require any further information or we can help in any way, please give us a ring on 01732 758530. We run free training sessions on exhibiting and making the most of social media so why not book onto one now? Click here to find out more.

The Professional Way To Connect With LinkedIn

If you're serious about building your professional network, then you already know the enormous value of LinkedIn.

With virtually every influential contact you could ever want to make, mapped out and with up to date profile information, LinkedIn has become the default connection tool for business professionals.

In my first guest blog for Kent B2B, I’m going to introduce two ways to connect with business contacts using LinkedIn that ensure acceptance and prevent those embarrassing knock backs.

Use LinkedIn Groups to Build Influential Connections

Converting your valuable connected group-only connections to 1st degree connections.

We’re spoilt in Kent with some active LinkedIn groups for taking part in some engaging conversations. KentB2B has its own discussion group. Being part of a group provides opportunities to identify influential people who can connect you to the people you want to do business with. And often, directly with the people you want to do business with.

So while you may be tempted to simply connect directly with a Group member, don’t.

We've all done it: You see someone that will be a valuable member of your network and click "Connect." You tell LinkedIn how you know them and fire off the invitation, without changing the default boilerplate, “I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.”

You wouldn’t do it like that in a face to face situation.

Being part of a Group affords you a special privilege, the ability to InMail someone you aren’t connected with. If you’re unfamiliar with InMail, it is the LinkedIn email system for users to communicate with each other. This is normally reserved for your 1^st degree connections unless you use the premium service. Being part of a group enables you to InMail other group members.

Before going straight for the invitation, send a personalised message using InMail. Your contact wants to know why they should connect with you on a personal level. Send them an InMail to explain why you think it is in their interest to connect with you. Then follow up with the connection request.

Now, you may already be well versed with connections and know that you can put this personalised message in the connection request. By all means add another message there too. But in my experience, few people know how to read the connection request. It’s something LinkedIn seems to have neglected to make easy to access.

Sign post your connection request and you’ll avoid being ignored.

Use LinkedIn To Maintain Your Valuable Connections

Converting your new contacts into 1^st degree connections.

We have a vibrant business networking scene in Kent. The Invicta Chamber have some great events to make new contacts. Not least the Kent B2B events themselves.

I primarily think of networking events as an opportunity to meet people who can refer me. I don’t expect to leave with leads, but I do anticipate having a handful of new contacts that can generate introductions to people who will value my services.

Don’t get me wrong; I never say no to a lead.

Networking usually generates a pocketful of business cards for me. Business cards don’t have the richness of data that a LinkedIn profile holds. So converting a business card into a LinkedIn contact is a profitable use of time. No matter how busy I may be.

We can learn more about the new contact from LinkedIn and most importantly, to see their connections. So as in our Group scenario, don’t reach for the connect button just yet.

Send an email to your new contact. Thank them for taking the time to speak with you and share their card. Refer to something in your conversation that will aid their memory of you and then say ever so politely, “I noticed on LinkedIn that we have some contacts in common. It would be great to connect there to ensure we don’t lose touch.”

Then when you receive their reply, send a LinkedIn connection.

LinkedIn is a powerful tool to maintain our contacts and get introduced to new ones. It doesn’t do the job for us. Making connections is personal activity and not to be left to boilerplate messages.

Follow these steps and you’ll increase the effectiveness and the richness of your LinkedIn experience.

Simon Ryan is the Managing Director of the multi-award winning digital marketing firm, Social Advisors. He is a Kent Digital Envoy and a regular speaker on social media.

You can follow him on Twitter @simonjryan

Getting the most from Twitter at LIVE events - with Zoe Cairns from ZC Media

This guest blog comes from social media expert, presenter and trainer Zoe Cairns from ZC Media

• Are you exhibiting this year? 
• Are you attending one of the main business shows in your region? 
• Would you like to engage with the attendees and other exhibitors before meeting them?

You can build and establish a rapport, know-like and trust to accelerate your business relationship with them before attending the event!

This is how……

Pre Event

#Hashtag

Find out what the event hashtag is. The event organiser should display this on their website.

Once discovered you can then go onto twitter and type this hashtag into the search bar. This will then bring up all the tweets and media for this hashtag.

Have a browse through what has already been tweeted, check out the conversation and pictures being shared. Start to engage back with this audience as these are the people and organisations that will be at the event.

If you are using Tweetdeck, Hootsuite or Sendible you can add this hashtag stream to your dashboard and whenever there is a new post with this hashtag you will be notified and kept up to date with the conversation.

Check the event website for exhibitors and find them on twitter

A great way to get your brand in front of other exhibitors to raise brand awareness is to start following them on twitter and engaging with them.

Visit the event’s website and check out who will be exhibiting. You can either then find their twitter link on their website or via the twitter search by typing in their company name.

Once you have found their twitter account follow them and add them to a twitter list called the event name i.e.: KentB2B.

When you follow someone on twitter they are notified that you have followed them. They will then hopefully reciprocate and follow you back.  Again this is great for building brand awareness but also the start of building a business relationship with someone before attending the event.

Engage

Once you have created your twitter list and added the people tweeting with that particular hashtag to the twitter list too, you can then start engaging with these people before the event.

Check your twitter list on a regular basis as to what the contributors are saying, sharing and posting. Engage with them; comment on their posts, share their content if valuable and contribute to their conversation. This will start to build a rapport with those people.

Please note: Don’t stalk them ;-)

Remember to include the hashtag in your tweets and replies. This then means your tweets and replies are included in the conversation stream too.

Tweet about the event

Put together 8-10 tweets about your presence at the event either as an attendee or an exhibitor. Make other people aware that you will be there and start to build that rapport with them before attending.

Let people know what stand you will be on or alternatively tell people you will be visiting the event and who would like a coffee with you?

At the Event

Schedule

If you are exhibiting it is hard to be able to manage your stand and try to tweet throughout the day too. You don’t want to look rude by being on your phone all day!

My suggestion is that you schedule 4-5 tweets throughout the day to post that mentions you, your company and stand and where people can find you.

Be inviting.

Don’t spam with constant selling messages. Give them a good fun reason to come and meet with you.

Use tools such as Hootsuite, Buffer and Sendible to schedule these messages. Remember though you need to be engaging as well. In your comfort breaks and lunch check out the hashtag stream of conversation on the event and engage with the attendees and other exhibitors. Share pictures of your stand, competitions you are running, pictures of your team! Be engaging.

Check your notifications

Make sure someone is checking your twitter notifications whilst at the event. It could be that someone has noticed

your tweet in the conversation stream and is engaging back. It might be that they are wondering what stand you are on, or that they have just met you!

If they have just met you and tweeted mentioning your twitter handle, make sure you re share with all of your followers and with the conversation hashtag stream to show other people. This will increase the reach of your message and brand to the wider audience.

At the Ashford Kent B2B over 1200 tweets were send with over 1.3 million impressions with 800 unique people seeing the tweets. If your message was sent out with the relevant hashtag for the event this would be great brand awareness and exposure for your business!

Engage

Try to engage with as many people as you can who are engaging on the hashtag stream of conversation.  This will get your brand seen by as many of the people contributing to the conversation and also start to build the rapport with those people and companies too.

Post Event

Continue to Engage

Many people after an event will stop engaging and following the people they have engaged with.

I believe this is the most important time to engage with them.

You have spent the last few weeks online and at the event building a rapport, know-like and trust.

Now maintain that relationship with that company to develop into a great referrer, contact or client.

Happy tweeting and engaging!

Zoe

Business Conferences are great for building relationships

Research shows that conferences are proven to be a brilliant way of meeting new business contacts to build your business
Technology now rules the world which is cutting down on our face to face interaction.  We say we are too busy to go out to events but are your competitors going?.  Are you missing great opportunities for building business relationships?

Many businesses are losing the personal interaction with their existing customers and are busy always trying to get new ones but don’t forget the ones you have.

A study by Travel Weekly of more than 2,000 business people found that half felt they had a lost a contract because they did not meet enough and over 80% felt that meeting in person was the best way to sustain a long term relationship.

Business psychologist and body language expert Hazel Carter-Showell said:

‘Although developments in technology allow business men and women to make achievements in meetings that would have been impossible a few years back, meeting face-to-face continues to ring significant benefits that are much harder to obtain through virtual channels.  One of these benefits is building trust, which research has shown is behind many profitable companies. Trusted companies have higher morale, productivity, lower employee turnover and create deeper relationships with their customers’

Social media can lack the personal touch which is so important.   There really is nothing like gathering in one place and meeting face to face.  This is what builds business relationships that last and what better place to do it than at a Conference, more so if it is FREE to attend!

Top ten secret tips to exhibiting!

1  Set your objectives -  what you wish to achieve 

   
    Design your stand to meet your objectives and plan your staffing needs early

2  Train, train, train

    80% of the success of your stand is down to your staff

3  Exhibiting is not just for leads but also to find suppliers and to ...

    Develop customer relations, find business partners, research competitors, 

    launch a new product, get new ideas

4  Market your stand to both customer and prospects

    Invite them to meet you at your stand or in the networking area

5  Messages on your stand
 
    Should be simple, visual and in LARGE print which stresses benefits, less is more

6  Can I help you?
    Not a good question, ask open questions that require more than a one word answer

7  Don’t just wait for visitors to visit your stand

    Lead generation can be anywhere, getting coffee, at workshops and speaker sessions-   
    Talk to everyone you can wherever you are!

8  Networking is about helping other people

    Hard sell is not appropriate and not appreciated and less effective

9  Don’t

    Use a mobile, eat on the stand, sit down, have your back to the aisle, have a messy stand
    or have cheap tacky giveaways

10  Follow up
      Follow up leads as quickly as possible after the exhibition

       

5 top tips to make your speed networking session a success

Most businesses would agree — referrals and face-to-face contact are the best ways to build and nurture business relationships — however, contrary to this many businesses spend many thousands of pounds placing advertising and sending marketing via email or though the post. 

Why you should get involved with speed networking?

If meeting someone is the best way to judge whether you can do business with them why don’t more businesses get involved with networking? Well, for many people it seems to be a little bit of nerves that can keep them away from meetings — so, if a breakfast or lunch seems too daunting how about the best and quickest form of networking — speed networking?

Speed networking is not a new concept, however, in a time when we seem to be spending more and more of our working day communicating online and through email it makes a refreshing and interesting change to your business development strategy. Arguably, speed networking will give you access to more people in one hour than you might normally meet in a month. It’s quite normal to feel a little apprehensive but do a little prep work beforehand those nerves should be calmed.

As ever preparation is key

1. Make sure you have a great opener for each of your pitches — just 10 seconds will do, covering an introduction, what your business is about or what you are looking for.  

2. Try to think about the different types of people and businesses you are going to meet and how you could change your intro to meet their needs — you’ll have far more success if you can slightly tailor your pitch to each person. 

3. Be practical — remember your business cards and a pen to make notes (on the back of each card is a good idea) and remember people’s names!

4. Not everyone is going to seem suitable for you or perhaps be interested in your product or service right now, but, remember to “think outside the box” — the product or service may not be suitable today but what about next month or in year’s time when you have diversified or grown? Consider whether a contact could become a mentor or a partner or a franchisee? The people who gain the most from these sessions are those that are the most open minded. 

5. Although it may seem counter intuitive, do your best to help the people that you meet — try to offer solutions to them and their challenges. You’d be surprised at how this “pay it forward” mentality has helped many businesses — perhaps not immediately but at some point. You’ll impress your new contact and you never know they may well recommend or use you in the future. 

Networking for success

Many of the most successful entrepreneurs are those that have spent their time networking — building trustworthy, reliable contacts across their industry, in support services and a wide variety of geographical locations. Meeting people and developing positive relationships is surely the key to a successful business?

So, hopefully now you should feel a little more prepared for a speed networking session? Come along and try a session at the West Kent B2B, 27th March. And let us know how you get on ……