Specializing in Enthusiasm - Tapped Into the Source!

By Anne Kelley
Southeast Bureau Chief
(the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi)

How could I possibly resist the line: "Specializing in Enthusiasm - Tapped Into the Source!"? Of course I wanted to know more!

That is the tag line that closes Benjamin Turpin’s email. I know Ben and it is certainly true. Ben is a Christian, a husband, a father of three, a master (of Dutch, his chocolate lab) a friend, a businessman, a salesman, a coach and a good listener. His is also half of the Inspiration Agents team (www.inspirationagents.com) that helps bring networking to a different level. I have enjoyed many of their seminars over the past few years as well as attended hosted events in Atlanta. Not only to the attendees learn new or improve upon their networking skills – they also network for their businesses as a result of the format of the meetings.

The newest launch for The Inspiration Agents is Leads To Business. This closed networking group has Hubs rather than teams and each Hub is owned by an individual, not the Inspiration Agents. There is a standard format and agenda for the weekly meetings with different formats for each week keeping things fresh and interesting. Once a month the weekly meeting is “open” to allow guests from any category to visit even thought that seat may be “owned” by someone on the team. The non-intimidating way of sharing leads is also unique to this networking group, yet everyone that attends leaves with a lead or referral. I have seen this system work in an open networking luncheon of about 70 people. Needless to say I was skeptical at first and totally impressed as I left the meeting.

The annual membership is currently $250 with a $25 application fee to secure your seat in the Hub. Meeting fees apply to cover food or room cost depending on the location of the hub meeting.

The exciting thing about the Leads To Business group for me is that it is connecting members from the Sarasota, Florida area hubs to members of the Metro Atlanta hubs by way of a member only website that features profiles, blogs, networking ideas and education.

Also available is a new tool for preparing your “elevator speech” ( www.elevatorspeechbuilder.com ). I know this is always a challenge for me. What do I say that will make an impression? How can I tell someone what I do in just 60 seconds? For me, it is about creating enough interest to be able to talk later. I always envy the people that can stand up and totally engage a room full of people when they speak. The Elevator Speech Builder will help you do just that. Increasing your confidence level is always a bonus in sales!

As interest grows in other states it will be exciting to see this close contact member network helping our businesses grow. As Ben says, “the object of the exercise is the building of a better networking mouse trap -- one that does what networking is intended to do and that is get people more business, without intimidation.

This month’s question is….What do you do to make your elevator speech more exciting? What works well for you? I will share your responses in next month’s column.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Specializing in Enthusiasm - Tapped Into the Source!

One Networking Team…Ten+ Years of Membership – Now THAT is Commitment!

By Anne Kelley
Southeast Bureau Chief
(the Carolinas, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi)

I wonder how many of us have made the kind of commitment to a networking team that several members of the Buckhead PowerCore Team have made. I was a member of this team nearly ten years ago. Imagine my surprise when recently talking with a current member of this team to learn that five of the members I had known were still on the team. I began to wonder what made this kind of “stick-to-itiveness” possible. This team has had an average of 30 members and meets in a part of the city that is full of tall buildings and business is booming!

Looking at a list of the members, one realizes that the team is very strong in B to B members. Also in looking through the business categories represented I realized that the more personal services that were represented were the kinds of services that busy business people would need.

A phone call to Wendy Kinney, www.PowerCore.net founder, gave me the insight into the team member’s commitment. Success! -- Both for the long term members as well as this team. It sounds simple…almost too simple. These teams meet weekly at 7:00 a.m. There is an attendance policy to maintain membership, so no sleeping in! If you are going to join a PowerCore team you better be serious about networking and supporting your team. There is a wonderful structure in place for each team, active membership participation in leadership roles and a lead tracking system that rewards those members that are working to recruit and support team members.

The first part of the meeting is about education. Each person, including guests, has one minute to tell everyone attending about their business, ending with, "A good referral for me is..." The idea is not to "pitch" the people at the table. Next two Members of the Team give 7-Minute presentations, where they share more detailed information about their businesses.

Following 7-Minute presentations, there is a Referral Trigger exercise. Everyone on the team will answer to the same question. The question changes every week, and the Participation Coordinator will announce the question, so you have a chance to think of an answer. The final part of the meeting is passing referrals. Team Members pass referrals to each other, and you hear invitations to coffee and lunch.

If you are struggling with finding your place to network, I would encourage you to visit the PowerCore website and read some of Wendy’s articles and reading recommendations. Every networker has a different idea about what works, but considering all the options and input from the experts while evaluating the true “cost” of networking is a good investment of your time.

Please let me know of interesting and successful networking opportunities in the Southeast. I would love to contact them for an interview and spotlight in my column.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

One Networking Team…Ten+ Years of Membership – Now THAT is Commitment!

Comfortable Referrals and 300 Voices!

By Anne Kelley, TNNW Southeast Bureau Chief

My first assignment for The National Networker has led me to two wonderful new friends.

First, meet Hugh Ballou who servesas Chairman of Choirfest 2008. I couldn’t help but wonder how a 300 voice choir was a networking event but after speaking with Hugh I realized what an incredible opportunity this is!

The vision of ChoirFest is to bring singers together in some of the finest concert venues in the world and present a concert of great beauty and inspiration. Singers will be led by a Choir Master of international standing, have the opportunity to sign up for educational seminars on various aspects of music and the culture of the host country, and tour the most outstanding sites and best of all, network with the participants of the event. There are only a few spaces left for this unique networking opportunity, April 3-6 in Huntsville, Alabama, so act quickly if you would like to attend. Information and registration forms are available at www.choirfest.com

Now meet Pamela Rogan, Vice President of Business Development for Flex HR, Inc. Pamela is an active member of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce and has developed a special B2B $5 Million + Group. This group provides a forum for a stable group of business development people to get to know each other and their respective businesses so that they may provide more qualified referrals and strategic connections. One requirement for an invitation into the group is that members have a similar target audience. The primary goal of this group is to generate qualified leads and sales in the Atlanta area. So what does this really mean?

Speaking with Pamela I could hear her energy. She started this group within the MOAC and is very passionate about its success. Its members are industry specific, limited to 20 and not duplicated in the group. Someone is invited to join only after the members of the group have the opportunity to meet the prospective member and vote to invite them to join. This keeps the group dynamic in tact. They operate under a “what happens in this room stays in this room” philosophy and really get to know their teammates. By doing this, Pamela explained, it becomes second nature to help one another and makes it possible to give comfortable referrals.

Another benefit this group offers its members is help with challenges they are facing. I learned that the members meet for 2 hours and often stay later and strategize. They also critique and evaluate presentations for each other and frequently meet away from the group.

Pamela has an interesting agenda for the group, varying the activities and guest weeks so that the group stays active. A couple of things this group does that I especially liked were the guest interviews to prevent any conflict with members before there was an awkward situation and the members regularly sharing their 3 top prospect companies so that everyone can be on the lookout for a connection. Also, once a month an outside presenter is invited for an educational opportunity with a 5 minute sales pitch allowed at the end.

Please consider yourself a Southeast Bureau Chief Ambassador and let me know of any groups you think I should interview. I am always interested in making new connections and sharing them with my friends.

Forward/Share This Article With Colleagues And Social Media:

Comfortable Referrals and 300 Voices!