Author: gvtadmin

Word Count:
434

Summary:
Your direct contacts may provide advice, counsel and support. But, it is THEIR contacts that create a new customer base, provide a supplier, get venture capital or introduce you to the person you need to close a deal. Perhaps the term business networking is a misnomer. Think of it as people networking, because it is PEOPLE that make networking successful.

Keywords:
business,networking,sales,services,internet,ebooks,customers

Article Body:
Your previous customers are going to be valuable to your future business. As you get each new customer you want to network with that customer again in the future, to keep your business in their mind, and to keep them on as a walking and talking billboard for your business. The future of your business is going to evolve to include repeat customers, and referral customers, both of which are vital to the ongoing relationship of your business, the consumer, and the local surroundings of your business.

How can you network with your previous customers?
Even if your customers are online – or if they are offline, you can network with your customers. A simple note, or email is going to do the trick. Ask about their day; talk with them by name, and offer advice or to continue with the conversation when they have time to chat with you. Talk with your customers about what they have purchased, or what work you have done for them. Ask if there is anything that can be done to improve the process, they went through while dealing with your business.

Network with your largest clients by taking them to lunch, or ordering them something special and having it delivered to their home. As you continue to acknowledge your largest clients, they will keep you fresh in their minds. They will tell others about what you have sent to them, and how they feel about your business. Of course, this is not done with every type of business, but with the largest buyers who are spending thousands of dollars with a particular business perhaps.

The online business is going to use newsletters, ezines, emails and coupons sent to previous customers as a method of networking and keeping in contact with previous customers. Keeping the lines of communication open with a customer, and with a previous customer is going to increase awareness of your products, and what you have for sale. This in turn is going to increase sales, one repeat customer at a time.

Never forget about your previous customers. In the offline business, and in online business you can network with your previous customers by creating mailing lists and using these mailing lists. State something along the lines of – because we have done business in the past, we find that now is the time to offer you this great advantage in Networking we have, and would like to give you a special price. Yes this is still advertising, but networking at the same time because you have established a relationship with that customer already.

Word Count:
390

Summary:
Remember that any career-minded individual can use business networking to advance their professional progress, and to make their work life easier. You may be a teacher, plumber, customer service representative, stockbroker, social worker, doctor, or a telephone repair person. Perhaps you have a part-time job or you work at home taking care of the family and the house. Networking can help everyone!

Keywords:
business,networking,sales,services,internet,ebooks,traveling

Article Body:
Networking is more than just putting your business name out there for people to find you, but it is also a part of getting to know people, who are going to spread the word about what you do, what you sell, and that are going to support you in all that you do. Networking is going to involve getting to know as many people in life as you can, and putting your business in front of those people, so they will represent your name, your business, and will tell others about what you have to offer.

If your business requires that you travel often, or perhaps you travel often to find supplies, visit relatives or just because you like it. You should make it a point to get to know those who you are sitting beside, those who are surrounding you on the plane, even those who are sitting on the bench while waiting in the airport. Make it a point to meet and greet at least one new person a day.

How are you going to get started on this?

Start the conversation by saying hello, how are you today?
Ask questions. The best way to get to know someone is to ask questions. Without asking questions, it can be difficult to carry on a conversation. Asking questions is a good icebreaker, in turn, the person is going to want to talk about their self, and where they are traveling too. You can then lead into something like, is this business trip or a personal trip? As you go on with the conversation, the person is going to ask you questions, which is where you will be able to talk about your business and what you do.

As you make it a point to get to know at least one new person a day- you are going to increase your network, which means you will increase the people that you know in life. Increasing your business network is going to be dependent on your abilities to carry on a conversation and to talk with others. Force yourself to do this. Force yourself to stick to your habit of meeting at least one new person a day. As you make this a point, you will make this a habit and in the long run, your business will thrive for it.

Word Count:
551

Summary:
For those most passionate about their music, a job in music education is a natural fit. Far from being a case of “those who can’t do, teach”, those who take music education jobs are talented not only as artists but as teachers who want to pass their love of music on to another generation, to ensure that there is always music in the world.

Once upon a time, a degree in music education was seen as a ‘fallback option’- the job that would always be there if a performing or pro…

Keywords:
music jobs, music jobs uk, music industry jobs, classical music jobs, church music jobs

Article Body:
For those most passionate about their music, a job in music education is a natural fit. Far from being a case of “those who can’t do, teach”, those who take music education jobs are talented not only as artists but as teachers who want to pass their love of music on to another generation, to ensure that there is always music in the world.

Once upon a time, a degree in music education was seen as a ‘fallback option’- the job that would always be there if a performing or production career didn’t work out. That time is long gone now as states have cut funding for enrichment education across the country. While the job outlook for music teachers is still good, the Occupational Outlook Handbook says that jobs for musicians and teachers will grow at about average or a little faster than average rates through 2014 – school departments, private institutions and universities have the luxury of being able to be choosy about whom they hire to fill music education jobs.

One of the best ways to hear about music education jobs and openings is to establish a network of contact within the music education community. While basic networking is good, there are ways to network more effectively to concentrate your focus on finding and improving your chances of being hired for music education jobs.

Network locally.

Lucky you, you actually have three different sources of local networking that can help you narrow your job search focus. As an educator, get involved in local organizations for teachers and get your name out there. If you’ve made contacts while interning and practice-teaching, keep up with them, and ask their advice and guidance in your career path. By all means, let them and others know that you’re looking for a job in music education. Other teachers are often the first to know that one of their own is leaving.

School department contacts are invaluable.

In most cities, the school department must post vacancies internally before advertising them to the general public. Those vacancies are often posted on a bulletin board in each school within the district. Let teacher friends and contacts know that you’re looking and ask them to keep an eye out for you. Knowing that a vacancy is posted internally can give you a leg up on the competition and cue you to submit your resume and cover letter for music education jobs before they’re advertised.

Network online.

Join national and local music teachers associations online, particularly those that hold regular events, symposiums and have a discussion board. Many of them post job openings for members, and more than a few allow members to post job leads and requests for job leads on their boards. Some organizations that you might consider joining include:

Technology Institute for Music Educators (http://www.ti-me.org/)

Music Teachers National Association (http://www.mtna.org)

Teachers.net Chat boards (http://teachers.net/mentors/music/)

The National Association for Music Education (http://www.menc.org/)

Keep in mind that in networking, you get out what you put in. Don’t just join a group and start soliciting for music education jobs. Look for what you can offer – the more you become involved the more visible you’ll become and the more willing others will be to recommend jobs to you.

Word Count:
376

Summary:
Networking terms are very important for you to know. This article explains some of the most common networking terms.

Keywords:
networking terms, networking-terms

Article Body:
It is very important to educate your small business prospects and clients on key small business networking terms and buzzwords. After all, in order to “win them over,” you need to be speaking the same language. In fact, you may even want to prepare a “cheat sheet”, based on the below definitions, to help you in your prospect and client pre-sales activities.

If you’d like to order a license to reproduce these networking terms for client sales literature, please contact questions@ComputerConsulting101.com and put “Licensing Your LAN Buzzwords” in the subject line.

• 802.11a – wireless Ethernet standard that allows for data networking transmission at up to 54Mbps; operates in the 5-6Ghz range.

• 802.11b – most mature of the widely available wireless Ethernet standards that allows for data networking transmission at up to 11Mbps; ; also commonly referred to as a “WiFi”; operates in the 2.4Ghz range

• 802.11g – newest in-progress wireless Ethernet standard that promises to allow for data networking transmission at up to 54Mbps, operates in the same 2.4Ghz range as 802.11b-based Wireless Ethernet networks.

• CAT5 (Category 5 Cable) – copper, unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cabling that can support voice and data communications at speeds up to 100Mbps and 1000Mbps for Ethernet networking.

• Client/Server Network – a network in which a dedicated server is used to share resources.

• Ethernet Network Adapter – due to the market dominance of Ethernet networks, an Ethernet network adapter has become largely synonymous with the more general term network adapter or network interface card.

• IDE (integrated drive electronics) is a more mainstream, lower-cost interface (than SCSI) for connecting internal peripherals — generally hard drives, CD-ROM drives and tape backup drives.

• LAN (Local Area Network) – set of computer systems and peripheral devices connected for sharing resources and providing near instantaneous communications; today’s small business LANs are typically physically connected using Ethernet network adapters and Category 5 cabling; when extended to one or more additional geographic locations, can become a metropolitan area network (MAN) or wide area network (WAN).

• Network Integrator – a computer services business that designs, installs and maintains heterogeneous computer systems and software; many computer consultants are also network integrators (and vice versa).

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Small Business Computer Consulting .com. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Word Count:
465

Summary:
Networking events provide an effective way to meet and connect with potential clients. The key to your success though, is to quickly assess the “sweet spot” potential of the people attending the networking event.

Keywords:
Networking Event, Networking Events, Networking-Event, Networking-Events

Article Body:
Networking events provide an effective way to meet and connect with potential clients. What you need to do when you attend these networking events, though, is quickly determine if the person you are talking to is a “sweet spot” client.

Is this person part of your small business target market?
Is he or she a decision maker or influencer?
Does this business have the potential to become a regular, long-term client?

To get these answers you need to work the room at a networking event efficiently and productively.

“Working” A Networking Event

At networking events you want to talk to people that own or manage a small business. These are the people who have potential to become your sweet spot clients. At the very least, the people you talk to at these networking events should work in, or for, a small business

You DON’T want to waste time at networking events talking to people who work for:
Big banks
Fortune 1000 companies
Organizations with large in-house IT departments
Government or non-profits

When you connect with a person who fits the small business criteria, ask some subtle questions to determine if he or she meets the sweet – spot profile. Questions to ask people at networking events include:

What kind of systems do you have?
Do folks use a lot of computers at your office?
Do you have a network?
What kind of network do you have?
How many people are on the network?

The answers to these questions will help you lead the discussion and give you a lot of great insight as to where to go next.

The next step is to determine if you are talking with the appropriate person in the organization. A good question to ask for this purpose is, What kind of systems do you use?” If they can answer the question then you can be fairly certain they are a decision maker or are close enough to the decision maker to be an influencer. Asking these types of questions at networking events helps you determine if you should push further or walk away.

The Bottom Line on Networking Events

Networking events offer a short window to connect with as many potential clients as possible. You want to use your time at these networking events wisely. By asking direct and specific questions you can quickly determine the sweet – spot potential of the people attending the networking event. If there is potential, then follow-up questions to determine if the person you are talking to is a decision maker or influencer are in order. If not, then you can be confident in your decision to say good bye and move on.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Small Business Computer Consulting .com. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Word Count:
561

Summary:
If you are a new business just starting out into the world of contract cleaning then your immediate aim is to gather as many new customers as you can and constantly grow the business. The initial stages are hard and it is difficult to gain those first few customers. How gain you gain a foothold in this highly competitive market? Many of the marketing strategies you might employ have been explained in previous articles. One area that was not explored in these articles was netw…

Keywords:
contract cleaning, contract cleaners, networking

Article Body:
If you are a new business just starting out into the world of contract cleaning then your immediate aim is to gather as many new customers as you can and constantly grow the business. The initial stages are hard and it is difficult to gain those first few customers. How gain you gain a foothold in this highly competitive market? Many of the marketing strategies you might employ have been explained in previous articles. One area that was not explored in these articles was networking.

As a new business you will probably receive a number of invitations to go along to various local networking organisations meetings. At these they will no doubt try and impress upon you the huge benefits to be gained by networking. You will also be told how much business was generated for its members over a period of time. All will seem very impressive and like myself you may very well be impressed enough to join the weekly breakfast or luncheon meetings. This could cost you anything up to £500 a year to be a member plus the cost of the meal or maybe as little as the cost of the meal. Some of the internet networking organisations charge a small monthly fee and then organise monthly local meetings.

When I started out into the field of commercial cleaning I was willing to try anything that might generate business so I joined a number of these organisations. So how successful was this as a means of expanding my business?

I did in fact persevere with some of these breakfast meetings for a whole year, having paid the yearly subscription it was in fact something of a necessity. However it does not take long to realise that the people who attend these meetings are not in fact your likely customers. Many of the individuals who attend networking meetings are just starting out in their business and are operating as sole traders working from home and not in any way, shape or form likely to be your potential customers. Others are well established but still operate as single entities such as business coaches and have no office as such. Others may be proprietors of shops just starting out and these are potential customers.

However you as a contract cleaning company are looking to clean offices and office complexes and these are inhabited by well established companies who do not by and large participate in local networking groups. So you are not going to come in contact with the group who are going to provide the more lucrative cleaning contracts.

I can look back on my time with these networking groups as a learning experience and we probably just about recouped our membership fees. Other than that very little long term benefit was derived from the experience. Networking it would seem from my own experience is not a path I would necessarily recommend to the start up cleaning business. Use that time period to utilise other marketing techniques which are more useful to the cleaning business entrepreneur. If you do fancy the idea of networking then you must target a different audience. That is the established businesses, and to do that you will need to join such organisations as the Chamber of Commerce where your networking will not be so overt and often done in a more sociable and relaxed atmosphere.

Word Count:
460

Summary:
This article will look at both the positives and negatives of owning a network marketing homebased business.

Keywords:
business, network, marketing, network marketing, home, homebased business, information, money, profit

Article Body:
Many people that think operating a business from home is glamorous, exciting, and filled with freedoms that you can never experience if you work for someone else. Without the obligations that come from reporting to an employer everyday and they then think the money is easily acquired. This article will look at both the positives and negatives of owning a home-based business.

An important part of working from home is letting others know you have a business and this is done through networking. Network marketing is not always easy for everyone. There are individuals who are very natural at talking with others and find it quite easy to be in a room full of strangers and talk about what they have to offer. Then there are those terrified of the idea of network marketing and would prefer to stay home and pay someone else to do this portion of the business for them. Network marketing does not have to be a horrible experience for you and you do not have to have a panic attack at the thought of attending one. When you prepare for network marketing and do not go in with your eyes closed, you will find that it will make an enormous difference in the productivity of your business. Network marketing can be beneficial in building a plethora of resources and contacts that you can have at your fingertips to propel your business forward.

Decide in advance how many people you want to talk to and do just that. If it is your first time, you may only want to talk to three people. Although once you are there, you will probably find yourself relaxing and notice that you came home with more than three contacts. Do not forget the business cards of the people you meet. In the excitement, you may forget their names. It is a good idea to jot down some relevant information on the back of the card to help you remember why or why not you like that particular contact.

In order for your home business to be successful, you have to make your presence known. You can do this through advertising and word-of-mouth. However, staying inside your protective home and never letting anyone know whom you are will not generate many clients or bring an increase in your profits. Go out, have coffee, and talk to others about your services. Walk into businesses that you think will profit from your services and let them know what you have to offer. If you have children in school, you can offer your services to the PTA or other groups that your child may be involved. Do not discount your sphere of influences because it is from this circle that your business will grow.