Hello, my name is Clueless

Are you clueless to as to why wearing a name tag will not only attract people to you, but also help you give and receive referrals for your business?


Are you suffering from  NDS (Nametag Deficiency Syndrome)?

Here are 20 Reasons Why You Should ALWAYS Wear a  Name Tag for Business: (And if that isn’t enough – I could give you 20 more!)

1.  The bottom line is while everyone may know or recognize you, it is very possible they do not remember your name and they will be too embarrassed to ask you what your name is

2.  Name badges make it easy for visitors to your event to interact with you, it overcomes fear.

3.  Name badges help create a more comfortable experience for the people when they meet you.

4.  A visitor who has a great experience, because they felt comfortable (see # 3) visiting a new group is more likely to join when you follow up with them!

5.  If you really want to meet more people consider wearing your name badge everywhere you go!

6.  It allows a person to easily use your name in conversation and helps them open up.

7. A speaker will more quickly call on a person who wears a name tag then one who doesn’t.

8.  You’ll make an introvert feel more at ease when they sit next to you at a table.

9.  You’ll get better service when you are at a restaurant or shopping when you wear a name tag.

10. Wearing a name tag at a trade show maximizes your influence and interaction.

11. Potential customers and clients will make an instant connection to you.

12. Someone may avoid you because of fear of calling you the wrong name.

13. A good name tag gives the proper name or nickname that you prefer to be called by. Or you could just go by Sir or Madam, if you like.

14. Wearing a name tag gets people’s attention and they are more likely to remember you.

15. Wearing a quality name tag speaks volumes about you and your company’s professionalism.

16. You don’t want your business to suffer from NDS (Nametag Deficiency Syndrome.)

17. Lack of a name tag can cause networking anxiety for inexperienced networkers. They feel left out.

18. Feelings of annoyance can be present due to the inability to say hello using a new member’s name
because of lack of a name tag.

19. Not wearing a name tag creates missed opportunities to make new friends or business contacts.

20. Wearing a name tag is just smart business.

Really Connecting with Groups

Social Media can become a prospecting tool for you. Take the time to learn about it.

Then, pick one day a week, like Monday, to invite people to a business networking meeting that you attend in order to meet face-to-face.

 

Groups really connect people.

FACEBOOK GROUPS:

If you’re using Facebook to increase your business, keep it professional but friendly. Facebook is moving from just a social utility that connects you with friends to a platform where business “groups” can connect and have discussions.

Businesses are now using Facebook to not only connect but to refer business services to each other.

If you have a business networking group that meets on a regular basis for lunch or dinner, think about starting a business networking group on Facebook. If you give several people Admin privileges, they can help monitor it. I would suggest that about every 48 hours, one of you should start a discussion in reference to business or business networking. Invite all your business friends to join your new group online and watch how fast the relationships grow.

LINKEDIN:

LinkedIn also has groups. You can join multiple business groups on LinkedIn. However, I feel it's better to focus on maintaining a pro-active presence in just a few groups that are your primary interest. That way you can get to know the members. Again, I suggest finding time to meet with some of the members of the group face-to-face, if possible. If it's a local group, you could invite everyone to meet after-hours at a local gathering place or for a cup of coffee or suggest attending a networking event in order to meet.

We have joined LinkedIn business networking Groups like “Tulsa Networking Professionals” and “Connected Indianapolis.” You can post discussions in your group such as:

 “What is the greatest book you’ve ever read about business?”

 “What kind of networking events are your favorites?”

 “How is business similar to the TV show Survivor?”

 “Describe what you do for a living in 6 words or less.”

"What's more important in a job, passion or experience?"

A post like this will create great discussions. Once a week, (I like Mondays,) invite them to your regular business networking meeting. 

Here are some Social Media Etiquette Tips to help you get started on the right foot:

     Don't Blog dump - that's when you use a group as just a place to dump your blog every days.

                  Don't post any kind of negative comments or complain about people.
                 
                  Don't spam people with business promotions and sales messages.

                  Don't over share - about anything. We really don't want to know. Seriously.

                  Don't be a Post Hog - Posting too frequently is worse than not posting at all.

                  Don't  share too many videos & posters.

                  Don't be too quick to judge. It takes a while to get to know people online.

                  Don't be annoying and clutter every ones inbox with meaningless posts.

                  Do say thank you for comments on your posts.

                  Do be respectful. Remember that there is a real person behind the post.

                  Do follow the rules that the group has set. 

                  Do add a profile picture. We like to "see" who we're talking to. 

                  Do demonstrate patience, kindness and humor. 

These are just a few etiquette tips to help you. The most important thing to remember is to be thoughtful and use common sense. If you mess up, just apologize. No big deal.

                 

                  

                  

5 Engaging Ways To Stay Connected to Past Clients

I once heard Joe Stumpf of "By Referral Only" fame say, “The system is the solution.”  

Building your business by referrals is both a philosophy and a mindset and it takes a system to make it all happen. By creating a system to keep in touch with and to stay connected to your past and current clients, your connections and your fans you can consistently reap referrals. 

Your past customers may have known, liked and trusted you at one time, but will they remember you? Will they refer you to their friends a month or year from now?

How are you staying visible? What are some engaging ways to stay in touch?. Newsletters are great, but what else can you do?

Consider all the ways you can stay connected with your contacts. Be creative. Then, create a systematic plan so you can consistently stay in front of your connections and fans. A plan might include Facebook time from 3:00 to 4:00 pm every day, blogging on Monday and Wednesday or shooting a short video every Friday morning. You might set a deadline for yourself to get a newsletter out by the 20th or to write an article for a neighborhood newspaper once a month.

If you're anything like me, if I don't plan it and put it in my smart phone to remind me, the chances of it happening are pretty slim. So, make some decisions, talk it over with your team, write your plan down, schedule it and make it a priority to get started this week.

Here are 5 engaging ways to stay connected:

Use permission-based emails that give value and education. Link to some interesting blogs and articles. Send Newsletters that contain news and humor. I like to use ConstantContact for my email campaigns. It's simple and easy to manage with an unsubscribe feature.

Blog for your audience. Entertain your connections with enticing content. Share valuable information that is closely related to what you sell. Educate people so that they continue to know, like and trust you enough to do more business with you and to refer you to their friends. I like Google's Blogger best. That's just my preference. When I finish with a blog, it seamlessly blasts it out on Google+. Then my husband, Todd, sends it out to our other social media sites. If you need help with content join Copyblogger.com. 

Video and YouTube are excellent ways to demonstrate what you do. Post your short videos on social media websites along with your blog. When I create a video, I just use my smart phone, which is set up on a stand in front of me. I make sure that the background is fairly neutral and that the light source is behind the camera and not me. It's fast and easy to upload it to YouTube. I don't personally care for videos shot from a laptop camera. It can have a fish-bowl look and nobody wants to look like a fish. 

Create a Facebook Group. Like-minded friends and customers can grow into a community with common interests. Post a weekly topic and encourage comments. Connect to your blog and company videos. Encourage discussions. This one only takes minutes to set up and you'll be amazed at how close you get to the people who join your group.

 Events can be fun and are a great way to stay connected. Invite your past clients, current connections and friends to at least one event a year. For example, you could invite them to  join you at a sporting event, charitable fundraiser or a seminar. Consider having a party to watch a great TV show or an event like the Oscars. Better yet, once a year have a family day at the Zoo, rent a bowling alley or have a business networking event.

Keep in touch and stay connected.

You are only as limited as your imagination.

3 Ways to Referral Success

When one is in sales, the goal is to spend most of your time in front of prospective clients. Unfortunately, most salespeople find themselves spending the majority of their time looking for prospects, not sitting in front of them. Wouldn't it be nice to have referral sources who supplied you with everyday leads and referrals? 

There are 3 solid, proven ways to get more referrals.

     

1.      Referral Groups

      A referral group sometimes referred to as a business networking club or chapter is precisely what it sounds like. It’s a group of business people that get together on a regular basis in order to form business relationships that produce sales.

       Check out Gold Star Referral Clubs, a great business networking organization and start your own group in your city. 

      There are face to face groups and online groups. An online group might be found on Facebook, LinkedIn or Google +.

2.      Clients, Customers, Patients and Connections

      A client, customer, and patient referral marketing system is a process of communicating with the intent of generating referrals. You will often hear people speak of CRM, which is Customer Relationship Management.

      In this section of your referral marketing plan, you will learn how to position your business or practice in order to attract referrals from your clients, customers, patients and connections.

3.      Strategic Alliances

      Forming strategic alliances with other business owners, CEOs and decision-makers will open a whole other world of referral opportunities.

      It’s a well-chosen business connection, who is outside of any referral group that you belong to. They will many times have a logical service or product that somehow connects people to the product or service that you represent.

     

These three low-cost high-return methods can quickly lift your profits to higher levels.