The Great Acceleration

The Great Accelerationstring(22) "The Great Acceleration"

May 6, 2021
, Online Networking, Restart The World 1

As many parts are of the world are coming out of “The Great Pause”, they enter the next phase. I am going to call this, “The Great Acceleration”. Businesses are restarting very soon in these areas. However, things will probably be different for them post-pandemic. Here are three topics I discuss in this video.

“The Great Acceleration” 

Here are my answers to the three questions that I was asked recently while interviewed on a morning television show:V

1) How has networking changed forever after the last year that we experienced?

The technology that exists today saved a lot of businesses all around the world. We learned, during the past year, that we can network online almost as well as we did in person. I do not believe networking has changed forever. It will take time to re-adjust. However, I think that a few years from now, the world will look very much like it did before 2020.  

2) Will face-to-face networking ever be a thing again?

Because of evolving technology, I believe business networking will become a hybrid of online and face-to-face. Online networking helped to keep old friends and business contacts connected last year. Online networking is more convenient. However, it lacks the ability to make a personal connection and you’re not able to read body language as well.

Someday, when we have the technology, we might have mixed-reality meetings or holographic meetings. If so, I want to be Obi-Wan Kenobi.

3) In the meantime, what can people do to make their career and business networking more impactful?

  • Use “Breakout Rooms” when you’re networking online with a large group to have deeper conversations with a couple of the attendees.
  • When having an online one-to-one, have food or beverages delivered to the other person ahead of time to share together while apart during your online meeting.
  • Use the G.A.I.N.S. exchange to share your goals, accomplishments, interests, networks, and skills. Plus, have a meaningful conversation.

Today, more than ever, you need your network. You need people around you to help and support you. Givers Gain® is a powerful philosophy that is focused on cooperation and collaboration. It’s an approach that involves helping other people over time, and by helping them, they will help you in return. Your network can help you weather almost any storm. You can get frozen by fear, or focused by fear. During “The Great Acceleration”, your “hybrid” networking is your beacon of hope in a sea of fear.

Growing Forward Together

Growing Forward Together™string(27) "Growing Forward Together™"

April 8, 2021
, , BNI, Restart The World, Video Blog

The global business world experienced many challenges with growing forward during “The Great Pause of 2020”. Last year was the most difficult economic time worldwide since the Great Depression. However, BNI® not only faced these challenges but thrived during the global pandemic. BNI’s Global Leadership Team focused on finding solutions instead of focusing on the problems. It is amazing that I love what BNI is doing for our members and I love what our CEO, Graham Weihmiller, is doing with this company.

Growing Forward Together™

Watch the first part of this video about BNI’s innovative programs from last year and what they achieved during “The Great Pause of 2020”.  Then, watch the second part of this video for announcements about upcoming BNI global initiatives, programs, and events as we enter “The Great Acceleration” phase of 2021.

The Great Pause of 2020

For over 35 years, BNI was the leader in hosting weekly local in-person referral networking meetings worldwide.  However in March 2020, for the safety of our members, BNI paused over 9,500 in-person BNI meetings and transitioned these to an online virtual meeting platform: BNI online.  This maintained business continuity and allowed our 275,000 BNI Members worldwide to support their fellow BNI Members during the pandemic. In 2020, our BNI chapter members passed over 11.5 million referrals which generated over $16.3 million(USD) of global business revenue for each other. Here are a few more of BNI’s innovative programs from 2020:

The Great Acceleration of 2021

BNI is a Beacon of Hope in a Sea of Fear

Today, now more than ever, you need your network and you need to be networking with them.  You need a team of people who will be there to help you during difficult times.  During 2020, many people became frozen by their fear.  However,  I also saw many people became focused by their fear.  They were focusing on surviving and thriving because “BNI is a beacon of hope in a sea of fear”.

Since 1985, BNI has created over $130,000,000,000 USD in revenue for BNI Members via over 130,000,000 Referrals. Today, the average BNI referral results in over $1,000 in revenue. And we’re just getting started. Your local BNI community can give you, and the people that you know, the support you need to thrive. Our BNI members are growing forward together. Today, more than ever, you need your network. Today, more than ever, you need BNI.

Staying in Touch With Your Clients

Staying in Touch With Your Clientsstring(34) "Staying in Touch With Your Clients"

May 28, 2020
, , Building Relationships, Networking, Online Networking, Relationships 1

Your business thrives by networking. Staying in touch is an important part of the networking process. Networking is much more than making contact with others and getting new business from them. The golden rule of networking is staying in touch with your clients. You strengthen your business relationships by fostering solid relationships with clients.

During “The Great Pause of 2020”, we started working from home. We created a plan to get through this situation with our businesses. Because we could not go to our usual places to network face-to-face with others, we took action and learned how to network online to stay in touch with people. Now, we need to plan on what we are going to do when society returns to the “new normal”. We need to get back in touch with those people that you have not seen or spoken with recently by focusing on strengthening these business relationships.

Here are six ways for staying in touch with your clients and strengthening your business relationships:

Spread out your phone calls.

Regular contact is important right now regardless of the type of relationship with your clients. Two short phone calls are more beneficial than one long call. Each phone call becomes an opportunity to strengthen the relationship and to enhance your credibility.

Schedule the phone calls predictably.

Stay in contact with your clients. Train them to expect to hear from you at certain times. If you usually contact certain customers during the first week of every quarter, they will come to expect it and will budget time for you.

One phone call leads to the next phone call.

Before concluding your telephone conversation, schedule the date of your next phone call. With this commitment, you are more likely to follow through. This practice establishes a chain of contacts, with each phone call leading to the next.

Assume responsibility for your phone calls.

Take the initiative and stay in touch with your customers. When clients do not feel cared for, they are more likely to leave. You are more likely to head off potential problems by staying in touch with them by picking up the telephone and calling them these days.

Invite them to your online networking events.

One way of making sure to stay in contact with your customers is to invite them to join you at your online networking events. This is a great way to introduce your customers to other people.

Stick to your plan for staying in touch with your clients

Occasionally your clients will telephone you. Do not let this interfere with your contact schedule. Do not count it as one of your prescheduled phone calls when they initiate the phone call.

People need their network, now more than ever. Maintain a powerful personal network by telephoning your clients and adopting these tips right now. You will have a stronger business tomorrow because of the actions you take today by staying in touch with your clients.

net

Networking on the Netstring(21) "Networking on the Net"

May 11, 2020
, , Networking, Online Networking 1

Are you suffering from “networking withdrawal”, missing networking at business functions? If you answered yes, you are not alone. In only a few short weeks, an entire technology, vocabulary, culture, and virtual marketplace have been born. Cyber entrepreneurs, online customers, and a whole new net economy have evolved at a blinding speed.  It is no wonder so many business owners are at a loss about what to do and how to do it when it relates to the Internet and their business. The net is to the world what the printing press was hundreds of years ago. It is to the world what radio and television were only decades ago. The Internet has opened doors and opportunities these days in a way beyond anything that has preceded it.

The Internet is an excellent vehicle for networking via social media and “Zoom Room” communities. These communities allow people to connect online regularly, exchange information and ideas, and get to know one another a little better. Besides, staying in touch via the Internet is our only option these days of working from home during “The Great Pause”. I’ve found the net to be a very powerful mechanism for regularly connecting with people with whom I already have a casual relationship. That’s the key–that the Internet is a great tool for staying in touch with people you’ve already established a connection with. Granted, you may do some business with people that you’ve met on social media. However, for the most part, people do “repetitive” business with people they know and trust.

Learn how to utilize the net as part of your networking strategy.

  • Understand that your business fundamentals might need to quickly adapt to the “new normal”
  • Create a social media business plan for your online marketing
  • Develop your online networking skills
  • Update your company’s look and brand with a new website to reflect what is happening with your business during “The Great Pause”
  • Learn how to network on the internet and stay connected with platforms such as “Zoom”

Those businesses that neglect to consider these issues today will most surely be a casualty of this new technology tomorrow. But more importantly, those businesses that do consider these issues today will be the success stories of tomorrow. When done properly, networking on the net can truly make a difference in the amount of business your company generates. Not only now while we are all working from home, but when we return to our “new normal” at the office after “the Great Pause”. With the right approach, you can use it to build a wealth of resources and contacts that will help make your business very successful now and in the future.

Sure, I’ve seen some business relationships begin, develop, and prosper via the net. However, I have found that most repetitive referral relationships start through personal contact and are maintained via Internet communication. We live in the Internet age, where change seems to take place at light speed. Now, more than ever, you need your network. Work together with them by networking online. If you’re in business today, you need to be on the net.