Building Business Relationships - Networking without the Work
Building Business Relationships - Networking without the Work
Many people struggle with the concept of networking. This article may give you some useful tips on how to create a professional network of business associates.
When I began my own first business as a Sports Injury Therapist, I found my clients were the most effective means of referrals. A referral is the best form of advertising because most referrals convert to sales. Looking after client relationships is far more that just meeting their expectations on the day. My number one rule was that I put my client's needs first even if that meant I referred them onto another practitioner for adjunctive or alternative care.
Those referrals to other practitioners became my next most powerful means of gaining business. I was selective about whom I referred to. They had either been highly recommended to me, or I had personally experienced their service, so I knew the quality of their work. I wanted the best possible service and outcome for my clients and the people I referred to were a reflection of my own standards.
The most effective way of creating a professional network is to use a referral as a means of showcasing your own professionalism. In my case, after gaining the client's permission, I wrote a referral letter detailing why I had referred the client, what my own analysis of the situation was and what action I had taken. I would finish by asking the practitioner to discuss their findings and proposed plan for the client. This worked on several levels;
1) The client got the best possible service from both parties, with open dialogue between the service providers.
2) I value added to my service without it costing me anything and all the while ensuring the client's best interests were served.
3) The practitioner to whom I referred now knew me, and had a good idea of my knowledge and experience and how they could be able to utilise my services for their clients.
4) Dialogue was opened for building strong business relationships.
As a business coach I apply the same principles. When I began my coaching business for example, I spoke with my accountant and book keeper and asked them to describe their perfect clients, so that I could refer people to them. We discussed how each of us could fill the gaps in each others services and refer to each other. With the client's permission, where appropriate we communicate as a team to ensure the client gets the outcome they are looking for.
A good example is a client who is a physio therapist working in private practice,
specializing in working with brain injured patients. Integral to his work is writing patient health reports for the insurance companies and agencies that provide the majority of his business.
Following major surgery for cancer he developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which was leaving him exhausted. As a result he was having difficulty finding the motivation or energy to write and submit the essential health reports and had a significant backlog.
The consequences were severe - without submitting the reports he could not invoice for his work, and when he did eventually submit large invoices for work done in arrears he would inevitably have to fight to receive payment. In all, his reporting, invoicing and credit control were all in dangerous disarray. His professional reputation was suffering and referrals were dwindling.
As his business began to unravel he also began to lose confidence in his ability to regain the trust of the agencies who referred business to him. He contacted me to help get everything back on track.
There were several aspects that I needed to coach him on, for the purpose of this article I will focus on those which relate to the power of building relationships in business.
With the reporting being central to a successful outcome, we developed a strategy that broke the report writing down into manageable blocks and reframed his perspective on writing them, from being a burden to being an opportunity to showcase his professionalism. His reports would become the basis on which he would regain the trust of the agencies and bring in referrals for more business.
To rebuild relationships with the referring agencies, we needed to look at how he could manage relationships with some difficult case managers, who's co-operation would be essential for gaining referrals and for getting paid on time. Previously his attitude had been that his dealings with them had always been difficult, and his strategy for this was to become aggressive and use their chain of command to complain. The results were predictably poor and just increased his stress.
We looked at different approaches that would make the outcome more about the case manager than about him. I asked him to consider the case manager as a client and how that would change the way he worked with them. He realised that by helping the case manager in their task, even if it meant stepping beyond his expected responsibility to them, that he could build stronger relationships that would work in his favour. By becoming the provider that made every effort to meet and exceed their expectations, he would win back their trust and respect.
These strategies were very effective in finding solutions to both the reporting and rebuilding his business. Once the reporting was on track, we discussed the need to put his accounting practices in order. I put him in touch with my book keeper who introduced him to an excellent accounting package so he could do most of his own book keeping himself and keep track of his invoicing and credit control with ease, with the book keeper just checking things over once a month or more if needed.
With the client's permission, the book keeper and I remain in contact. If my client begins to let his books fall behind, and the book keeper is unable to prod the client into action, a laser coaching session is usually sufficient to get him back on track. The expertise for the accounting is provided by the book keeper and the accountant.
The results have been a resounding success, with my client reporting his highest turnover to date. Equally important, he is also the healthiest and most stress free he has been in years. I am enjoying the reward of his success, and I'm grateful for the 3 coaching clients he has referred to me.
Building strong business relationships can be placed in two categories:
1) Building your client base
Remember your clients are the most important business relationships you can have.
They are your best form of referrals and referrals are more likely to convert to sales.
Think of ways you can value add to your service without it costing you any more - free information and judicious referrals that save your client time and money are very effective.
Think of ways that will ensure your client will want to maintain contact with you, such as newsletters or loyalty incentives, and of course very high standards of service.
2) Your professional network
Think about who shares your clients and how you might be able to help each other by way of referrals
Choose who you include in your professional network carefully:
Do they match your standards of service and integrity?
Will they reciprocate your referrals?
Will they communicate openly with you if appropriate so that you can ensure your client gets the best possible service?
Get to know more about the services they offer and vice versa
Would they make a good venture partner?
Give First
Be clear about your expectations and boundaries
Building Business Relationships Networking without the Work - To learn more about this author, visit Sally Jacobs's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
Building Business Relationships - Networking without the work
Many people struggle with the concept of networking. This article may give you some useful tips on how to create a professional network of business associates.
When I began my own first business as a Sports Injury Therapist, I found my clients were the most effective means of referrals. A referral is the best form of advertising because most referrals convert to sales. Looking after client relationships is far more that just meeting their expectations on the day. My number one rule was that I put my client's needs first even if that meant I referred them onto another practitioner for adjunctive or alternative care.
Those referrals to other practitioners became my next most powerful means of gaining business. I was selective about whom I referred to. They had either been highly recommended to me, or I had personally experienced their service, so I knew the quality of their work. I wanted the best possible service and outcome for my clients and the people I referred to were a reflection of my own standards.
The most effective way of creating a professional network is to use a referral as a means of showcasing your own professionalism. In my case, after gaining the client's permission, I wrote a referral letter detailing why I had referred the client, what my own analysis of the situation was and what action I had taken. I would finish by asking the practitioner to discuss their findings and proposed plan for the client. This worked on several levels;
1) The client got the best possible service from both parties, with open dialogue between the service providers.
2) I value added to my service without it costing me anything and all the while ensuring the client's best interests were served.
3) The practitioner to whom I referred now knew me, and had a good idea of my knowledge and experience and how they could be able to utilise my services for their clients.
4) Dialogue was opened for building strong business relationships.
As a business coach I apply the same principles. When I began my coaching business for example, I spoke with my accountant and book keeper and asked them to describe their perfect clients, so that I could refer people to them. We discussed how each of us could fill the gaps in each others services and refer to each other. With the client's permission, where appropriate we communicate as a team to ensure the client gets the outcome they are looking for.
A good example is a client who is a physio therapist working in private practice,
specializing in working with brain injured patients. Integral to his work is writing patient health reports for the insurance companies and agencies that provide the majority of his business.
Following major surgery for cancer he developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which was leaving him exhausted. As a result he was having difficulty finding the motivation or energy to write and submit the essential health reports and had a significant backlog.
The consequences were severe - without submitting the reports he could not invoice for his work, and when he did eventually submit large invoices for work done in arrears he would inevitably have to fight to receive payment. In all, his reporting, invoicing and credit control were all in dangerous disarray. His professional reputation was suffering and referrals were dwindling.
As his business began to unravel he also began to lose confidence in his ability to regain the trust of the agencies who referred business to him. He contacted me to help get everything back on track.
There were several aspects that I needed to coach him on, for the purpose of this article I will focus on those which relate to the power of building relationships in business.
With the reporting being central to a successful outcome, we developed a strategy that broke the report writing down into manageable blocks and reframed his perspective on writing them, from being a burden to being an opportunity to showcase his professionalism. His reports would become the basis on which he would regain the trust of the agencies and bring in referrals for more business.
To rebuild relationships with the referring agencies, we needed to look at how he could manage relationships with some difficult case managers, who's co-operation would be essential for gaining referrals and for getting paid on time. Previously his attitude had been that his dealings with them had always been difficult, and his strategy for this was to become aggressive and use their chain of command to complain. The results were predictably poor and just increased his stress.
We looked at different approaches that would make the outcome more about the case manager than about him. I asked him to consider the case manager as a client and how that would change the way he worked with them. He realised that by helping the case manager in their task, even if it meant stepping beyond his expected responsibility to them, that he could build stronger relationships that would work in his favour. By becoming the provider that made every effort to meet and exceed their expectations, he would win back their trust and respect.
These strategies were very effective in finding solutions to both the reporting and rebuilding his business. Once the reporting was on track, we discussed the need to put his accounting practices in order. I put him in touch with my book keeper who introduced him to an excellent accounting package so he could do most of his own book keeping himself and keep track of his invoicing and credit control with ease, with the book keeper just checking things over once a month or more if needed.
With the client's permission, the book keeper and I remain in contact. If my client begins to let his books fall behind, and the book keeper is unable to prod the client into action, a laser coaching session is usually sufficient to get him back on track. The expertise for the accounting is provided by the book keeper and the accountant.
The results have been a resounding success, with my client reporting his highest turnover to date. Equally important, he is also the healthiest and most stress free he has been in years. I am enjoying the reward of his success, and I'm grateful for the 3 coaching clients he has referred to me.
Building strong business relationships can be placed in two categories:
1) Building your client base
Remember your clients are the most important business relationships you can have.
They are your best form of referrals and referrals are more likely to convert to sales.
Think of ways you can value add to your service without it costing you any more - free information and judicious referrals that save your client time and money are very effective.
Think of ways that will ensure your client will want to maintain contact with you, such as newsletters or loyalty incentives, and of course very high standards of service.
2) Your professional network
Think about who shares your clients and how you might be able to help each other by way of referrals
Choose who you include in your professional network carefully:
Do they match your standards of service and integrity?
Will they reciprocate your referrals?
Will they communicate openly with you if appropriate so that you can ensure your client gets the best possible service?
Get to know more about the services they offer and vice versa
Would they make a good venture partner?
Give First
Be clear about your expectations and boundaries
Building Business Relationships Networking without the Work - To learn more about this author, visit Sally Jacobs's Website.
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
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Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Casey GollanCasey Gollan, Business Coaching & Mentoring Programs. Add $1 Million to $10 Million in the next 1 to 3 years. Since 1996 Casey has to added hundreds of millions of dollars to businesses. Watch a free video see client results Business Coaching website. - Visit Casey Gollan's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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