One basic marketing principle is that it takes ‘seven touches’ before a potential client becomes a customer. These contact points could include anything from:
But how does this apply to business networking?
- A physical connection (including networking)
- Seeing your logo
- A social media post
- A newsletter
- A phone call
- A referral
- PR
- Email marketing
Now, obviously the entire concept of ‘seven touches’ is a tad arbitrary and many argue that these contact points need to be many more before in our inundated world where we are simply inundated with messaging. However, given that all the experts pretty much agree that it takes a fair amount of concerted effort to get your customer’s attention, there seems little doubt that there is a fair amount of truth to the principles of ‘seven touches.’
However, what we find at iwant2network is that a number of business owners interpret this by spreading their efforts across as many marketing strategies as possible in the hope that they will see the most return if they invest a little bit of their money into social media, a newsletter and a piece of PR. Sadly, this can prove rather ineffective – as this scatter gun approach will simply lead to confused messaging and, more than that, will target different people at any one time. What these seven touches of marketing really calls for is creating a coherent strategy that presents your business in the best possible light. So you want to choose two or three of those strategies and then carry out a thorough analysis of the process involved and which one will not only resonate most strongly with your customers, but also the one you enjoy the most – as there is little point slogging away at an activity you despise. Once you have a robust understanding of your preferred marketing channels, you should create a coherent strategy that allows you to reach your consumers at the appropriate times.
Now, naturally at iwant2network we are pretty big fans of networking. And, unsurprisingly, we would argue that this is one of the most powerful methods of networking. Allowing you to be the referral of a friend or family member, one of the most compelling ways of getting business; it really is a phenomenally impactful marketing mechanism. But, often we find that newbies to networking forget that in making the most of their ‘seven touches’, they need to attend the same networking group time and time again for maximum effect. The most important part of networking is meeting the same people and building long-lasting connections so they are able to know, like and trust you. Sometimes, we find individuals attending lots of different networking events, in the hope that the more people they meet the more business they will gain. Sadly, this is rarely the case – obviously there are moments when you might magically pick up a piece of work, however the most effective way of networking is to visit a number of different groups and then choose which one works for you – depending on format and different types of businesses present, you choose who you could work with as well as the people in the room. Choose two or three groups and don’t forget to arrange additional meetings to really get to know your new contacts.
If you are looking for any networking groups in your local area feel free to check out our website at iwant2network.com or drop our team an email at networking@iwant2network.com