Comanche Marketing: Networking is Mandatory

If you (or someone in your company) is not networking, then your business is not very important to you. After all, personal networking is very important to your business.

Zig Ziglar once said, “If people like you they’ll listen to you, but if they trust you they’ll do business with you.”

How do you get people to trust you? You build a relationship with them, which can only be done by personal interaction (i.e., networking). Get involved in your community with centers of influence. This builds trust, which results in business and referrals. While all referrals are good, those from centers of influence are best because they occur more frequently.

Andrew Twidwell, owner of ABT Plumbing, Electric, Heating & Air Conditioning in Grass Valley, CA and Auburn, CA talks about the power of networking…

I joined our local Rotary club back in 2008. In the years since I've been able to turn more than 3/4 of them into returning clients. Our club has 92 members. So was it worth spending an hour every Wednesday having breakfast with these folk? More than you can imagine. I went into Rotary to help build my business, it did that and so much more. I've been sucked into an organization that does so many incredible things both locally and internationally.

By the way, yesterday was my first day as President of Nevada City 49'er Breakfast Club. The things I've gotten from Rotary are, business, friends, leadership skills, and the honor of helping do good deeds both locally and internationally.

The best networkers are involved in multiple organizations. Twidwell added, “By the way, I'm personally a BNI member and have one of my plumbers active in another BNI group. It’s another great organization.”

Steve Lauten, president of Total Air in Plano, TX said, “I've been in Rotary for 25 years. The relationships I've developed over that time has allowed our company to survive some big downturns in the economy and helped us build a referral driven business along with BNI. In addition I believe in putting ‘Service Above Self.’”

For non-Rotarians, “Service Above Self” is the Rotary motto. It is this commitment to community service leadership that helps build trust among club members. Rotary and other service clubs expect their members to work. If that’s not you; if your only interest is referral and lead generation, you will probably not last long in a service club. You will, however, find a home with BNI, LeTip, or Netweavers, which are primarily leads clubs.

Steve Wiggins of Quality Air Care in Waco, TX agrees. He said, “Networking is key. I've been in Rotary, BNI, and several others. It works!”

As a company owner, networking should be a major part of your job. Become one of your community’s centers of influence and your top and bottom lines will grow. If networking is not part of your DNA, hire someone to be Mr. Outside to your Mr. Inside. It’s too important to ignore.

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