New Jersey Enterpreneur - Small Business, Entrepreneurs and Venture Capital

The Q words ~ which do you choose? Over the past several years I had the opportunity of experiencing a variety of networking events. Some good ~ some not so good. I would like to think the preparation was right, the atmosphere was conducive to good conversation and the business men and women in the room were all successful with great books of business. But even though the room was filled with fashionable suits and skirts the ability to understand what networking was really all about fell short.

For the ‘quantity’ minded, it is difficult to understand that it is does not matter how many people are in the room. It is not about how many business cards you collect. I can assure you contrary to popular belief the people with the most business cards at the end of a networking meeting ‘are NOT the winners.’ When it comes to networking for business development there is ‘NO’ power in numbers.

The real power in comes from the other Q word ~ Quality! Like a great recipe, networking takes time and patience. The ingredients must cook slowly and simmer in order to get the full flavor of someone’s personality, their areas of expertise and how well they know their craft. It is a nurturing process that can take months or even years. How can you recommend with any confidence a lawyer, accountant or banker just because you got their business card? You can’t ~ most of the time it would be a disservice to anyone receiving the referral from you.

Quality hinges on two other words ~ Time and Trust. It takes a long time to really know someone. Are they givers, do they serve their current clients well, are they respected in their field, do they care about their community? It takes time ~ lots of time to learn all of this about someone. Ask yourself, if you can’t trust the knowledge you have of someone ~ then you can’t trust them enough to refer them?

A ‘quality’ referral comes with ‘your’ certificate of confidence. You are the one recommending that person to a client or friend. Are they referable? Can you trust them to do the job better then anyone else you know? Are they going to represent you well? Will they be responsible and honest in this endeavor? These are the questions you must ask yourself before giving a referral. How can you answer them if you don’t really know the quality of their work?

Yes, some business categories require less time to learn about the quality of service. Successful accountants or lawyers understand that developing business through networking can take a long time. On the reverse side mortgage brokers, real estate agents and other service businesses have to keep their pipeline filled and it usually takes less time to learn about their business skills. With that said, it is not about how many real estate agents or mortgage brokers you know ~ it is about the quality of the work they provide to their clients.

Time will bring quality to the surface. The numbers for quality networking can be as simple as two times two. Meeting only one quality business person can kick start your networking opportunities. Great networking can be that simple. The next time you attend a networking event don’t look at how many seats are filled in the room ~ look to see who is filling them. True ‘quality’ will stand out in a crowd.