Be THE ONLY!

Did you know that the strawberry is the ONLY fruit with seeds on the outside of the skin.




There is real power in referal marketing for being the ONLY at something! When you're the ONLY at something, it makes it easier for your referral sources to refer you. It gives them a unique selling position to share with others when speaking about you and your services. It helps them to distinquish you from your competition. It adds to your credibility. It even adds to your approachability since people want to be around other people who are unique and special!

Here's a few of mine ...
...I'm the only person to write a book with Dr. Ivan Misner who is not a BNI franchise owner.
...I'm the only referability expert in western Pennsylvania.

Are you THE ONLY something?

What's your unique selling position that your referral sources should know about you?

Don Corleone

This blog entry is a contribution from a Certified Networker graduate, Brian Panichelle of Panichelle Insurance. Thanks, Brian for your creativity!

"Being a guy of Italian decent, I have this habit of watching the Godfather movies on a regular basis—not quite monthly but close. As a professional that's dedicated to life long learning, building my business by referrals, and wanting others to succeed at the same, I have this other habit of always trying to look for good examples of great networking to share with others. When my two habits crossed recently I decided that Don Corleone is a great networker! Let me explain.

I read recently from Jeff Gitomer that it's NOT who you know, but who knows YOU. Think about it. In the movies, Don may not have known everybody, but they knew him! Maybe some wanted to meet him, others I'm certain did not, but they knew him. About a year ago, I met someone who is now one of my biggest promoters. When we were first introduced she said, “So you're Brian.” She already knew who I was. I had never met her, nor did I know who she was, but she knew me and by business by reputation and desired to meet me. This is one of the goals of networking, to have people promote you so that others will want to meet you and do business with you. People knew who Don Corleone was and they sought him out for his assistance.

Don Corleone, practiced givers gain! In the movie, the funeral director was in trouble. Who did he go to for help? Don Corleone. What did Don Corleone ask for in return. At the time, nothing, he simply stated that the man would be able to do him a favor sometime in the future. Okay maybe not a picture of altruistic behavior, but none-the-less, he understood how to build up his account with others, even if they didn’t have a choice but to drain theirs to get his help. The point is that as you make contacts, look out for their interests, help them build their business and expect nothing back. As you do this, it'll all come around at some point when they'll be able and more than willing to help you when you need it.

Okay so maybe it's a bit of a stretch ... maybe fear, power, greed and the like was what really is exemplified in the movie. Hey, I’m an optimist. Glean what you can when you can and NEVER stop learning. "

Thanks for indulging me.

Brian

On Fire!

Today's title could refer to alot of things ... like the fact that it's 90 degrees in Pittsburgh today (what's up with THAT?) or the fact that your referral marketing system is generating great business opportunities!

For me, this title refers to a card I received in the mail today. The outside said, "You're ON FIRE!" It was a "Send Out" card from a referral partner who found out that I presented at the recent BNI National Conference and was congratulating me for a job well done. Now that certainly made an impression! And, it made me smile amid the 90 degree heat.

Touch point networking is very important to not only build a relationship but to maintain a relationship. Touch points include many things, however sending a card "just because" or "to recognize an achievement" is one of the best in my book! Especially when it's a total surprise like this card was today. My favorite card system, SendOutCards.com, makes it easy, cost effective and time efficient. If you don't know about SendOutCards, check out the website or email me and I'll connect you to my friend who represents their product.

Regardless of the means by which you touch your network ... do it. As the old ad said, "reach out and touch someone". People don't care how much you know until they know how much you
care.

Are we there yet?

I can remember countless road trips with my parents as a child. Mostly we were going camping with the whole gang (5 kids + King, our family dog). If anyone has traveled with children, you can relate to THE question ... "are we there yet?"

When we traveled, we had FUN! We took a variety of road games, walkmans, and even made up many other games along the way. The bottom line ... we made the trip fun. And it really wasn't that hard to do.

Working with a referral partner is like being on a long trip and you're the driver. If you've picked the right traveling companion, the trip should be fun! If you're a good driver, you'll know how to make it fun.

When you work closely with referral partners, you develop long lasting friendships. As friends, you'll end up spending casual time together. My referral partners all formed a bike riding team. We called ourselves the SIX AMIGOS and even toured to raise money for the American Diabetes Association.

What kind of FUN will you plan for your referral partners? After all, you all want to enjoy the ride!

#1 Mistake!

Last week, I was on an expert's panel for the Butler County Chamber of Commerce on the topic of networking. They asked me this question: "What's the number one mistake that networkers make at networking events?"

That's easy ... most of us have been the recipient! Have you ever been to a networking event and had a "power networker" practically force their business card into your pocket?

That's it! To me, that's the number one mistake that networkers make on a regular basis. The minute you give your business card to someone who has NOT specifically asked for it, you are SELLING and in essence, you are performing an in-your-face cold call! That's why we don't like it when it happens to us. It feels and smells like a cold call! YUCK! It actually will repel people away from you.

Word to the wiser ... never give your business card to anyone who does not ask for it first! That takes self control. In the long run, you'll be a better person for it! And, you'll give your cards to people who really want them!! If you want someone to ask you for your card ... that's simple ... ask for their card first. Most likely, then they'll ask for yours!

Try it ... you just might like it ... and other people will like you for it too!

"GU" ZONE

I'm writing this from the BNI National Conference in Bethesda, Maryland. It's always great to be at this conference. It's a wonderful time to reconnect with people from across the country and get new ideas on networking, helping chapters in BNI, and referral marketing.

I heard a phrase today that made me think of how we some times limit our opportunities. The term was "GU" standing for "geographically undesirable".

How many times have we said, "I'm not going to travel to there" or "I can't really expect to get business there because their too far away"? Sometimes, we limit our opportunities by not being willing to travel to a potential client or by not wanting to connect with someone too far away from us.

My advice is this ... you never know who someone knows! Just because someone may be geographically undesireable, doesn't necessarily mean that they don't know people who are NOT geographically undesireable! It never fails that every time I moan about traveling somewhere that's "too far" or "out of my way" something very positive comes of it.

Don't limit your opportunities ... you just never know whos waiting to meet you!!

Cola Jell-O?!

Did you know that Cola-flavored Jell-O was introduced in 1942? Do you see it on the shelves today? That's because it flopped and was discontinued within one year! Other failed Jell-O flavors include celery, coffee, and apple. YUCK! However, without any doubt, these flavors are very, very popular as flavors in their own right, however as Jell-O flavors, they were definately a no-go! Do you have a palate for celery Jell-O? If so, obviously, you are in the minority.

This made me think of the people the we know who are GREAT people, as people go. For example, let's call one JOHN. John has a very high likeability factor. John's very popular and generally knows alot of people. Many people love John ... kind of like cola, coffee, and apples.

However, just like cola would not make a good Jell-O flavor, for specific reasons, John might not make a good referral partner for you. Perhaps John does know alot of people, but to how many of those people would he give the keys to his new BMW? This could mean his many relationships are shallow. Perhaps John really wants to help you grow your business, but he can't find the time in his busy schedule to meet with you or he cancels most meetings with you at the last minute.

It might seem like a great idea to have John as a referral partner, however upon closer exam, you may discover otherwise. I'm sure it seemed like a good idea at the time to have cola-flavored Jell-O ... however, you already know the end of that story.

Is there a referral partner that you have now that looked good on the surface but now you might need to discontinue?