Category Archives: Business Networking Tips

Stop Reading Hidden Messages into Emails

I received an email from a potential client and it said that he was putting off joining the group for a few weeks, at least for now.  When I read the email, I felt that he was saying he had changed his mind. When I read it to Cheryl, she disagreed and said to me it seems like he will join once he solves his problem. Ok so now what do I do? Well, I picked up the phone and I called him and asked if I should follow up with him. He laughed and said yes Kevin, like the email said I just need a few weeks to clean up a few issues.

This exchange made me think about how often messages in emails get misread. In this case reading between the lines is not a good thing. When in doubt don’t respond by email pick up the phone and call the person to make sure that you are on the same proverbial page.

Watch my YouTube Channel for more on this Business Networking Tip

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business  (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group  and the New England B2B Networking Group. Please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

Stop Staring at the 7 Pin

This past weekend, I was lucky enough to watch my nephew John bowl a 299 game! This is an amazing feat and something that most bowlers will never accomplish, but sadly nobody congratulated him. We all just stood there staring at the 7 pin rocking back and forth.

It made me think about how often we as business owners stare at our personal 7 pin. I know I did it last week. I had one of my best weeks ever, attendance at events was solid and I had growth in membership. But guess what I focused on, the one person that I didn’t sign on to become a client, my proverbial 7 pin. Instead of celebrating how great the week was, I said “sure it was good but if I signed that other client it would have been better”. Where does that way of thinking end?  I just want to remind you to please take the time to celebrate your victories and stop staring at the 7 pin.

Watch my YouTube Channel for more on this Business Networking Tip

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business  (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group  and the New England B2B Networking Group. Please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

Do What You Say You’ll Do

Last week two people sent me emails asking for help. I responded, “Sure, give me a call tomorrow and I can help you.” Both said they’d call me the next day. It’s been a few weeks and I haven’t heard from either of them. I know things come up, but think about the message they’re sending. They’re being disrespectful and more importantly they’re showing that they’re unreliable. My friends, nobody wants to do business with unreliable people. If you tell someone you’re going to do something and you forget, call and apologize, but please don’t tell them how busy you are. Do you know anyone who isn’t busy? Most people will understand and give you a second chance.

Watch my YouTube Channel for more on this Business Networking Tip

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business  (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group  and the New England B2B Networking Group. Please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

Yoda Was Correct

The great Yoda said there is do or do not but there is no try. Kevin says there is yes or no but there is no maybe.

Many business owners spend a lot of time preparing quotes for clients, only to never hear back from them. My friends, if someone takes the time to quote a job for you, please show them the respect of giving an answer, even if it’s no. I often have great ideas to grow my business. Sadly, many of them are outside my budget. It can be awkward to tell business owners that I can’t afford their services or products, but I tell them. Let’s think about this. What if someone who prepared a quote for you came across a really great potential client for you? Do you really think he or she would refer you if you never bothered to respond to the quote? Probably not, because he or she may believe you’ll show the same disrespect to the client. Remember, my friends, it all comes down to respect.

Watch today’s business networking tip on my YouTube Channel

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business     (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group  and the New England B2B Networking Group. Please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

There’s no Fast Forward Button with Business Networking

Kevin Willett, CEO of New England B2B Networking Group, talks about the importance of not skipping getting to know, like and trust.

Business networking is all about making connections and getting people to know, like, and trust you. My friends, there’s no fast forward button with business networking. You can’t skip the know, like, and trust part.
Lately, people have been sending me emails asking for 30 minutes of my time to show me a sales video, because they know once I see it, I’ll definitely want to be part of their “great opportunity.” If you’ve never met me, how do you know I’ll be interested? Moreover, because you don’t know me, how do you know we’ll like each other and be able to work together? See what happens when you skip the relationship building part of business networking? It just doesn’t work. At least one guy was honest with me and said “Look, you have a ton of contacts. If even 10 percent of them joined your team under this multi-level marketing venture, I’d be rich.”
Don’t fast forward and assume that we’ll know, like, and trust each other. Network with people, learn what they do and what they like, and convince them they can trust you and your product. Show them how the opportunity would benefit them. I strongly recommend that you get to know people before you attempt to sell to them

Watch my video on this tip on my YouTube Channel

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon . Buy One Connection now
Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group and the New England B2B Networking Group  please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events

When to Check Your Phone

In today’s business networking tip Kevin Willett speaks about the importance of waiting to check your phone after a business meeting.

Last week I met a guy for a mountain dew (as opposed to coffee) and as soon as the meeting was over, he grabbed his phone out of his pocket and started reading messages. Honestly it made me feel like he was happy the meeting was over so he could go back to his phone. It made me think about how often I have done the same thing. Now, I simply wait until I am out in the car, out of sight to check my phone. Why risk hurting someone’s feelings?

Watch this tip on my YouTube Channel

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon . Buy One Connection now

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group and the New England B2B Networking Group. Please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

The Golden Rule of Networking -Help Others before you help Yourself

We all know that networking is about building trust and getting people to know, like, and trust us. But sometimes we forget. We get excited and go right into our sales pitch. You should buy my widgets. (I use the word widgets so that I don’t offend anyone. If you sell widgets don’t worry. I’m not talking about you.) Of course, when no one buys our widgets, we get mad and stop networking because it’s stupid and doesn’t work.

Let me suggest a different approach. Next time you attend a networking event, focus on helping the people you’re speaking with. Ask them a few questions about their businesses. Find out who would be good clients for them. Try to think of people you know who may be good referral sources for them and ask if they’d like to meet those people. Typically, people will be so excited that you offered to help them, without trying to sell them anything, that they’ll ask how they can help you. Notice that you didn’t have to ask for help. They volunteered.

You might be thinking, “But Kevin, what if they don’t offer to help you back?” That’s okay, just consider it a deposit in the karma bank. Never keep score or expect a referral from everyone you give a referral to. Life doesn’t work that way. Always do the right thing for the right reason and things will work out for you.

Watch today’s  video networking tip to learn more  The Golden Rule of Networking

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon at Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group and the New England B2B Networking Group please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

THE IMPORTANCE OF MAKING DEPOSITS IN THE KARMA BANK

Kevin Willett speaks about the importance of making deposits in the Karma Bank

Whenever people ask me to help them, I ask myself one question: “Is this the right thing to do?” Don’t always focus on whether or not you can make money from helping a friend. Doing that will give you wicked bad karma.

Check out today’s Business Networking Tip – Making deposits in the Karm Bank

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business     (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group Friends of Kevin Website and the New England B2B Networking Group New England B2B Website please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

Add Value to your networking connections

 

Kevin Willett speaks about the importance of adding value to your networking connections.

One of my LinkedIn contacts emails me networking articles a few times a month. His emails simply say “I saw this article and thought of you. Hope all is well.” He asks for nothing in return. This is a great way to add value to a relationship. He’s definitely building his “know, like, and trust factor.” If I need to hire or refer someone in his line of work, you can bet he’ll be at the top of my list. Think about ways you can add value to
your connections. It could be as simple as offering to introduce them to one of your contacts. I highly recommend this simple tip to help you grow your business.

Check out today’s Business Networking Tip Add Value to your networking connections

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business     (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group Friends of Kevin Website and the New England B2B Networking Group New England B2B Website please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.

Arrive on Time for Networking Events

Kevin Willett speaks about the importance of arriving on time for networking events.

The hardest part of hosting a networking event is the 15 minutes before the event begins. We hosts can get nervous thinking nobody’s going to show up. If you arrive about 10 minutes early, the host will appreciate it. For myself, having someone to talk with takes my mind off of wondering how many people will show up and whether a good time will be had by all. What is in it for you? First, you can often spend some quality time with the host. I can only speak for myself, but when I have 10 minutes to talk with someone before an event, I usually end up introducing them to a lot of people simply because their story is fresh on my mind. Second, it allows you more one-on-one time with other early arrivers. Also, the host often needs help with some last minute preparations, so being that helpful person will go a long way towards building your relationship with the host. I’d like to thank everyone who shows up early for my events. Thanks for keeping me calm and entertained.

Check out Today’s Business Networking Tip – Arrive on time for networking events

Kevin Willett is the Author of One Connection How you can grow your business     (and change the world) one connection at a time. The business networking book is available on Amazon. Purchase One Connection on Amazon

Kevin is also the CEO of the Friends of Kevin Networking Group Friends of Kevin Website and the New England B2B Networking Group New England B2B Website please connect with him on social media to hear about his upcoming business networking events.