Networking in a digital age

Networking in a digital age

As the digital world continues to develop and it seems that more and more of our communication takes place online, over email or via social media is the art of networking face-to-face becoming obsolete? The growth of social media and other networking applications such as crowdfunding sites has undoubtedly led to employees spending longer in front of their screen and less time out meeting contacts, peers and clients face-to-face. Unarguably, online has opened up many businesses to otherwise unreachable international markets and information that would have previously taken weeks to research is now available at your fingertips. The growth in this technology has opened up many alternative commercial channels for businesses, large and small; however, it has also meant that employees now spend time sifting through vast swathes of information – making decisions as to what is useful and what is not.

Networking is an important skill

As the tide of social media has continued to grow there has also been a growth in the number of people discussing the need for face-to-face meetings and nurturing those so-called softer skills of networking and developing relationships. Interestingly, Julia Hobsbawm has long heralded the need for businesses to maintain more face-to-face contact and the need for employees to “come out from behind their screens “ and actually meet people. She has such weight within the business community that the Cass Business School based in the City, London have recently made her their inaugural, honorary Professor of Networking. Julia has long argued that the process of building networking skills is integral to the development of a solid, productive team, that networking is less of a soft, additional skill and that is should be brought to the forefront of business skills that firms should be demanding from their employees. Proving that an ability to network matters and can make a difference to the bottom line of a firm takes the skill swiftly away from its lightweight roots or comical images of standing alone in a conference room with a handful of business cards and takes it into the realms of relevant, contemporary business thinking. 

Larger firms recognise the need to network

Hobsbawm argues that, in fact, it is a disservice to think that employees don’t want to or aren’t capable of networking in this way. Large businesses such as BT and Regus have proven business techniques that show that in order for employees to work at their best, face-to-face contact is required. They ensure that new managers go out and meet all their teams – even though their corporate policies rail against “unnecessary travel”. To run a successful business is obviously a far more intricate operation than employing people to sit behind desks connecting through their PC’s. Employees should, and need to be encouraged to take the opportunity to network as and when they can. Hobsbawm comments that these opportunities may also come from the most unusual of places, but are necessary in order to push those employees onto the next stage of their career (and prevent them from becoming disillusioned). Businesses themselves need to aspire to be dynamic and forward thinking – they must remember to look beyond their own walls and engage with the wider world.

Networking whether it is in your social circle, with peers at a curated external networking event (such as those run by the CIPD), or at a focussed business to business conference or exhibition should be a firm and regular fixture of any business. Starting a relationship online is great, but the cement that will hold and build that business relationship into a longstanding, mutually profitable one will be done face-to-face.

5 top tips to make your speed networking session a success

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? Well you can book your slot here for the East Kent B2B 11th September. And let us know how you get on ……

West Kent funding opportunities for small businesses

The Escalate scheme has recently made £5.5 million available to micro and small businesses in West Kent and is part of the Government’s Regional Growth Fund. The aim of the scheme is to offer interest free loans to businesses that are experiencing growth and need funding to help them develop further and create new jobs.

The Regional Growth Fund 

The Regional Growth Fund was created by Government to help regional businesses and economies expand. So far, over £1 billion has been made available with around 3,500 firms benefiting from the funding. Aiming to help local businesses protect or create jobs, build on creativity and strengthen their business through investment, the scheme invites local businesses to apply for the fund via their local scheme.

The West Kent Partnership looks after the Escalate fund for the area around the A21 corridor, it hopes to create around 1,250 new jobs in the area through around 150 companies. With business finance still a major issue for many small and micro businesses the programme is looking to support those businesses that are growing, but may be struggling to find the means to accelerate as quickly as they want.

First business receives support

Great news then for DotImpact, who are the first business to receive funding from the Escalate programme. Established to support SME’s that want to increase their online presence but don’t have the budget or expertise to do so, DotImpact is a full service marketing agency that offers a range of services from website design, email marketing, social media & SEO, digital marketing strategies to traditional branding design and print. Amanda Robinson, MD, of DotImpact commented, “Now we have the support of the Escalate fund, our plan is to create employment opportunities within the business with the aim to help further SMEs in Kent achieve their growth potential”

West Kent B2B offering advice and tips on applications

The West Kent B2B on the 30th April at the River Centre in Tonbridge, is backed by the West Kent Partnership. On the day there will be opportunities to hear more about the Escalate programme and how your business could benefit from its’ funding solutions. The event is free to attend and along with local and county-wide exhibitors there is a fantastic programme of key-note speakers and workshops - all with a definite slant to the small business sector. If you pre-register there is also the opportunity to gain free advertising for your business via the on-site screens and a welcome coffee as well. 

To find out more and how to register your place click here.

5 reasons to consider event sponsorship

As marketing budgets begin to increase once more many organisations will begin reviewing their spend in terms of both finance and the channels that they use. Whilst the march of social media and online marketing continues apace many marketers are starting to look at some alternative means in order to get their brand out there and recognised. With the growing noise across many channels, an alternative strategy may be the way to be seen and heard by more of your audience. So, along with a return to the more traditional areas of print marketing, the arena of event sponsorship should also be considered as a great way to build your audience and grow exposure. 

Choosing the right event and what you sponsor is absolutely key to your sponsorship success. Consider should the event align itself with your business? Is it attracting the right audience for you? Could it open a new market for you? These are all questions that you need to be pretty sure of the answers before going ahead. One thing is for sure though many business directors agree that exhibitions offer a great way to meet new clients,  so surely extending that to sponsoring makes sense? And do you know what? Sponsorship needn’t cost the earth - it’s not always about sponsoring the whole event, or the event guide - there are generally lots of other smaller opportunities for business to get involved with. Take a look at five reasons why your company should look at event sponsorship.

1. Build credibility with a targeted  audience

Events like B2B exhibitions and conferences are a great way to get to meet your clients, develop relationships with new ones and build authority within your sector. Alongside taking a stand having your company branding elsewhere at the event will help to build recognition of your product or service. Sponsorship will enable you to stand out from the crowd to an audience that has been created for you. What does this mean? Well, a carefully managed exhibition or conference will have heaps of delegates that are ideally placed to be receptive to your product or service - thats’ the job of the event organiser. For them to make the event successful they need to have the right delegates meeting the right exhibitors … and sponsors! Be sure to do your homework and find out exactly who the target market is.

2. Remember the people that aren’t actually there

Now this may sound bizarre but when you are speaking with delegates, contacts or other exhibitors always remember that they most probably have a book full of other people with similar interests or who are in a similar sector, so, remember the people that aren’t at the exhibition and make an excellent impression on those that are. This still holds true for sponsorship - sponsor the event bag or some promotional items and the chances are they will be seen by far more than just the person who attend - gaining you and your business further exposure. 

3. Increase your media exposure

As part of the organisers role the event will undoubtably be well advertised both on and offline - as a sponsor you gain access to this. For businesses that look at becoming a headline or major sponsor the opportunities to spread your reach can be huge. Advertising tends to come as standard on all the events marketing including web sites, email marketing, advertising, but be clever and you can get more involved - creating social media campaigns or other content that align you to the event and build your exposure.  

4. Big or small 

Whatever the size of your business, there is likely to be a sponsorship  opportunity for you. Larger firms may be interested in becoming a headline sponsor - like Caxtons for the Kent B2B’s. Not only does it give them great coverage across the county - which is their main target market - it also goes to show that they are genuinely interested in the local area and businesses within it. However, if you don’t have the resources for headline sponsorship what can you do? One of the best ideas is to pick up the phone and call the event to see what the other options are - there are usually opportunities to sponsor event bags, perhaps the coffee cups (what a great way to get your brand noticed as people stand, chat and network!) or, even get involved with a workshop or sponsor a networking session. 

5. Make more contacts

For some events, becoming a significant sponsor can also open up the events contacts lists for your business. If you have chosen well this list could be one of the premium benefits to your firm - offering you access to a list of delegates that potentially are interested in you.

Making sponsorship opportunities work is a two fold deal - firstly, you need to ensure that the event you are looking at is in the right sector and that the organisers are targeting your potential clients. Then it’s down to you - negotiate well and you could come out with a package that’s worth far more than the money you pay for it. 

Interested in finding out more about sponsorship of our events? Call Carole on 01732 758530.

Dame Kelly Holmes to open West Kent B2B 

Exciting news for the West Kent B2B event as Dame Kelly Holmes has been confirmed to open proceedings on the 30th April at the River Centre in Tonbridge. As a double Olympic Champion Dame Kelly has been an inspiration to many people both on and off the athletics track. Although now retired from the world of track and field, Dame Kelly is still determined to push herself physically and mentally, recently taking part in a Duathlon, an event which combines the disciplines of running and cycling. Aside from sports Dame Kelly is venturing into the world of food, drink and retail by starting her own Cafe in Hildenborough and developing a chain of frozen yoghurts and juice bars. Alongside this, her charity, the Dame Kelly Holmes Legacy Trust helps "Get lives on track" through the mentoring from world class sports stars. She recently hosted an event at the River Centre that celebrated the success of the Trust with young people from Kent.

Offering opportunities to all types and sizes of business

With the West Kent B2B event entitled “Leading the Way” Dame Kelly Holmes is the perfect choice –an exemplary sports star intent on developing young lives across the county and beyond. 

Offering industry leading speakers and advice

West Kent B2B is so much more than an exhibition; it is an event that plans to offer advice, information and share knowledge. It is an event where you can give your contacts list a boost by meeting a range of diverse, interesting businesses through speed networking. Or, gain insight through attending the keynote speaker sessions given by industry leaders and find out how to apply their lessons to your business, increasing your sales and profitability. Speakers booked for this year’s event include marketing expert Barnaby Wynter, dynamic entrepreneur Daniel Priestley, media guru Stuart Smith and social media expert Katie King. Tailored specifically for the West Kent market this event also offers insightful workshops and will bring together local and county wide firms, connecting businesses and offering advice for all sizes and types of business. 

West Kent B2B is backed by the West Kent Partnership, the economic partnership for the council areas of Sevenoaks, Tonbridge and Malling and Tunbridge Wells and sponsored by Caxtons, one of the leading Chartered Surveyors in the South East.  There will also be the opportunity to hear about “Escalate”, an interest free loan available across West Kent, Maidstone and East Sussex. The event is run by the Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce, Chief Executive, Jo James commented, “These B2B events are really high quality, engaging and informative. They offer businesses not only the opportunity to meet and network with a huge range of local and Kent wide firms, but also the chance to gain invaluable insight from leading business speakers – a must in the diary of any local business.”

A great day for businesses locally, regionally and nationally, find out more and book your FREE place now - not only will you get £100 FREE advertising but a FREE welcome coffee as well.

Why small businesses should be blogging

If you aren’t changing your web site, on a regular basis, then what have you really got? An online brochure is the answer that many professionals would give you. So, how to keep your web site content fresh should be top of any small businesses marketing agenda. With fresh content comes (hopefully) fresh traffic. Your web site can be jam packed with information about your product or service, have loads of testimonials and recommendations but nothing can develop engagement as quickly as a high quality blog.

Blogs will .....

Blogs offer not only a great way of engaging with your clients but also a brilliant way to increase your authority with them - showing them exactly how much knowledge you have, not only about your product or service, but, also your target market - them! 

Blogs enable people to make immediate contact with you by commenting - offering the perfect opportunity for you to then engage with them in the future, perhaps even making a time for a phone call or a meeting.

Blogs are well loved by the search engines too - Google likes web sites that are updated and many industry experts see them as a one of the most natural ways to build SEO.

Blogs offer your prospective clients more opportunities to find you, as the search engines will be able to pick up on the words within your blog and display them in the search results on those certain words.

What your blog should look like ...

So the reasons why small businesses should have blogging at the top of the “to do” list seems clear - but how to go about it? There are now lots of great, easy to use options for creating blogs - Google and WordPress are two of the favourites. But, bear in mind that ideally you should have your blog hosted within your web site, so that the site also benefits for the traffic your blogs creates. 

Then it pays to do some planning - one of the most important factors is that your blogs are consistent. You are aiming to build a following of people who look out for, or even search out your blogs - don’t leave them hanging. Try to blog two or three times a week - but, at the very least make sure its once. The content needs to be top quality as well - offer useful tips, great insight, share your knowledge, add pictures, links, video clips. 

Developing your social media strategy as a small business owner can seem daunting - so many channels, where to start right? Well, blogging could help you here - creating great content and sharing it across the social media channels can help you to build your networks, whilst directing traffic back to your web site too. A win, win. 

Want to find out more about why blogging is so important? Come along to the FREE workshop at the West Kent B2B on the 30th April at The River Centre, Tonbridge. To book your FREE delegate space that gains you entry to this workshop (and others) plus access to talks by expert key note speakers including Daniel Priestley, Stuart Smith, Katie King and speed networking sessions click here

30 April - The River Centre, Tonbridge

5 basics to help you maximise your returns from B2B exhibitions

Want to know how to make every penny count for you at exhibitions?  Need to prove to the boss that exhibitions work and can bring in great new contacts as well as business opportunities? As with any event, if you get the foundations right, the likelihood is that the event is going to, not only, be a great success but also bring in the results that you are looking for. Since the recession first hit back in 2008, and through the intervening years and even now with the economy seemingly back on track, businesses need to ensure that every bit of expenditure has a demonstrable return - and events have certainly been no different. Take a look at some of the golden rules of making a success of your exhibition.

Make sure you know what it is that your business wants from the exhibition

It sounds pretty obvious doesn't it? But it’s surprising how many people head off to their exhibition stand with no clear, defining reason for going. Is it purely to make some new contacts or would you like to forge relationships with potential new suppliers? Is it a great forum in which to meet up with existing clients and talk through their future business? Do you want to take advantage of the speakers on offer and networking opportunities? Or, as with most exhibitors is it a bit of all of the above? Well, the secret to a successful event lies in the preparation and planning prior to the actual event. It’s simply not good enough to book your space, make sure you have some marketing and turn up. Think about the reasons for exhibiting beforehand and plan the details as to what you expect to gain from it. 

Look at the details 

It’s great to have the bigger picture in mind but with exhibitions a lot of the success is also down to the finer details - the thought that has been put into the space and promotion of your business and products.  One of the most important details is working out how you are going to record and track the contacts that you make, not only do you need their details, it’s also useful to note what their interest is in relation to your business. 

Make your marketing count

As you might have gathered so far – meticulous planning is key – but not just for pre and at the event, planning after the event is also a must – following up leads and thanking all those who visited your stand. Creating an integrated tactical plan enables your marketing to be developed along a theme that ties with your corporate, strategic business plan, meaning that your messages both at the event and through your other marketing channels are harmonious. Know your target audience, plan you promotional message and deliver marketing that makes add value and makes a difference.

Manage your time and other people’s well

Make sure your time is well managed, delegate when necessary and ask for help. The very best stands are well managed with the right number of enthusiastic, positive people and as great as it is to be a strong, organised manager, their also a real need to be a great team player when attending events. You alone cannot keep the stand running and working productively all day. Make sure that alongside you are a strong team of knowledgeable, professional people who are well briefed to look after the stand, throughout the day. A positive attitude is a must have and ensuring those around you have a similar mentality means that any challenges become opportunities and outcomes are generally far more positive.

Make post-event follow-up a priority

You've organised a brilliant stand, had lots of positive comments, made new contacts and learnt tonnes from the keynote speakers, so, you think the hard work’s done? No, not quite, this is as important a stage as the pre-planning or the actual event. It’s time to work though all those new contacts, get them uploaded onto your database and start developing your relationship with them. Along with ensuring you have recorded them all and contacted any clients that requested more information or to book meetings, it is essential to follow up all those that visited you with a thank you.

Plan, plan then plan a little more is really the key message of becoming a successful, results orientated exhibitor who profits from their exhibition plans. Remember to maintain an optimistic outlook, keep your sense of humor and learn from your experiences this year – your business will see the fruit of your work and your next exhibition will be even bigger and better. 

So, there's the basics, want to find out more? Come along to the free workshop then on 8th April at 70 Churchill Square Business Centre, Kings Hill, West Malling, Kent, to get more sound advice and tips on making your exhibitions work for your business.

30 April - The River Centre, Tonbridge