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SuccessNet Online
Persevering—and prospering—with a simple branding idea.
When I first started in business several decades ago, I had no idea how important it was to focus on branding my company AND myself as a way of enhancing my networking efforts. Because of budget problems, I ignored it. Big mistake.
Finally, I decided that if I wanted to increase my visibility and enhance my credibility in the community, I needed to be viewed as the local expert by first writing articles and then books. Taking that path has been a major factor in creating the success I enjoy today.
You, too, can become the local expert.
To get started, think about the things you know best. What elements of that knowledge might be interesting, informative, and educational to the general public or a segment of it?
Then review the media outlets that write for that audience. Consider not only newspapers, magazines, and industry journals, but take a good look at e-zines, online newsletters, and information sites like Entrepreneur.com.
One Referral Institute® associate used this idea of mine from my Certified Networker® trainings and worked with it for some time. Being in the travel industry, he wrote a series of articles about the best way to travel to certain vacation spots; he then sent his articles to various outlets each month for several months.
He received some responses—all "No, thank you"—until one local newspaper said they'd like to use his piece in the next day's issue.
After it came out, they contacted him again and asked if he'd like to do a monthly piece. A little later, another newspaper saw his work and asked him if he'd write for them.
He says he now regularly writes articles for several media outlets, emphasizing in his articles little known tips on hotels, transportation, and the best time of year to travel. He eagerly tells me that publishing articles has totally changed his business. While most travel companies are going out of business, his is growing and thriving.
That's because his articles have created an identity—or brand—for him and his company. People know he has valuable knowledge about traveling, and they've told their friends about him. It's a good reminder that educating people is a relevant connection to your networking efforts.
My friend now includes links on his website to some of his online articles. He is even thinking of combining many of his articles into a book of traveling tips.
So, if this is such a great idea, why don't I suggest it more? In my book, Masters of Success, I talk about success being the "uncommon application of common knowledge." If you ask a successful person for their secret to success, you will almost never hear a secret! Writing articles—consistently and over an extended period of time—and making a book out of those articles to increase your credibility and enhance your networking opportunities is not a secret.
Most are just too anxious about trying something new.
Be anxious no longer. My book agent, Michael Drew of Promote a Book and Beneath the Cover, can teach you the process of jump-starting your book, writing your articles, making a book out of them, and successfully marketing your book. Michael helped me achieve four bestsellers, and he has taken 44 other books along the same route; he knows what he's doing.
The bottom line: 98% of you won't actually do it, either on your own or with Michael's help. Or you'll do it for a little while and give up. I told my friend with the travel company this and he said, "Educate 'em anyway. Do it for the 2% of people like me who will apply the idea. It will make a difference for them, as it did for me.
"Well, there you go. That's pretty good advice. So the question now is:
Are you part of the 2% or the 98%?
SuccessNet Online
During the five days of seminars and meetings, I had an opportunity to sit in on a presentation by Steve D'Annunzio that I felt compelled to write about. Steve spoke of many things, but what really resonated with me was his discussion of taking the easy path or the hard path in the decisions that we make throughout life. He said, "Taking the hard path often makes life easier and taking the easy path often makes life harder!"I sat there and thought about how much that truly applies to BNI. I've seen some groups that take the easy path. They don't hold members accountable for attendance, quality referrals, following the system, or general support of the group.
Many of these things are, in fact, hard to maintain. The real tragedy is that they may go down this path for a very long time, unwilling to take the necessary hard steps to build a successful BNI group. The results are inevitable—the chapter struggles. On the other hand, I see some groups that work hard to maintain attendance, generate quality referrals, follow the system, and cultivate a positive attitude. This is incredibly difficult to do consistently.
These chapters tend to be much more successful.In BNI, taking the hard path often makes business and life much easier, and taking the easy path can make business and life much harder.
Steve ended his presentation by asking, "Are you practicing hard/easy or are you practicing easy/hard in your life?"
This is a powerful question for every BNI chapter to ask. It might make a great discussion with your fellow members.
Is your group taking the hard path to success? If not, what can you do, right now, today, to help move the chapter forward on the hard path to make your life easier?
Called the father of modern networking by CNN, Dr. Ivan Misner is a New York Times bestselling author. He is the founder and chairman of BNI, the world's largest business networking organization. His latest New York Times best selling book, Masters of Sales, can be viewed at www.MastersBooks.com. Dr. Misner is also the Sr. Partner for the Referral Institute, an international referral training company. He can be reached at misner@bni.com.
SuccessNet Online
Networking is simple; it's just not easy.
If it were easy, everyone would do it and do it well … and they don't! In this article I'm not going to give you a step-by-step process you need to employ to network effectively. No, this article is to get you to stop and think about all the networking advice found in articles, books, blogs, podcasts, and audios you aren't following. I want you to stop and think about the things you should be doing—and implement them.
In my presentations around the world I talk about how to apply networking to your everyday life. Sometimes someone comes up and says, "I've heard my director or education coordinator talk about some of those things before." But they've never successfully applied them.
Hearing it for a year versus doing it for a year are completely different things. Success is about the "doing," not just the "knowing." In fact, I believe that ignorance on fire is better than knowledge on ice! The only thing more powerful is knowledge on fire.
There are so many things in life that look simple but, in fact, are not easy. Cooking is one of those for me. It always looks so simple. My wife can go into the kitchen and within 30-40 minutes put together a gourmet meal. Then, I get into the kitchen and burn water.
Small repairs around the house look so simple. Then I pick up a hammer and, well, it's just not pretty. I remember when I was 17 my dad brought me into the garage and solemnly said, "Son, you'd better go to college, because you're never going to make a living with your hands!" Good advice, Dad. Thanks.
Golf. Looks simple, right? I'm not talking about the professional competition; I mean just going out and smacking the ball around some grass. It looks simple. I've learned, however, that it's not easy.
There are so many things in our lives that look simple but are not easy. Networking is one of them. It is a skill. A skill that takes commitment and effort to learn as well as consistently apply.
So, I'm giving you an assignment (sorry, my inner professor is coming out): Think of one idea in a book, article, recording, blog—anything—that you've read or heard over the last year that you wanted to apply to your life but never did. Your assignment is to pinpoint that "something" and do it within the next seven days. If it is something you do on an ongoing basis, then find a way to incorporate it into your life and/or your business. All excuses are equal—just do it.
Success is the uncommon application of common knowledge. You have the knowledge. Now apply it with uncommon commitment. It won't be easy. But I assure you it is simple.
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