Make a match. Risk-free !

This is a very simple but highly effective networking tip !
The more people you know, the more people you can actually help.

If one of your contacts is looking for someone to help him or her to get in touch with someone or something, don't hesitate to introduce this person to someone in your network who might be able to solve the problem.

If those two people have a successful match, your reputation and credibility will get a serious boost.

I often hear the fear for damaging your reputation if a match wouldn't be successful. I think you can perfectly get this under control. Let me show you with this example :

One of your contacts is looking for someone to help him with a task which needs very specific skills and knowledge.

First possibility :

You do know someone who can do this and this is someone you have known for ages.
You can highly recommend the services of this person. You would dare to say that this person is very accurate, professional and will probably be able to solve the problem.
Second possibility :
You don't have anyone in your direct network with the necessary skills for this job.
A few months ago you have briefly met someone at a networking event who claimed to have those skills. You still can make a successful match !
You have to tell your contact that this person is NOT a warm contact, but someone you have recently met on a networking event and possibly has the required skills and knowledge.
I usually advise to keep looking around for a warm recommendation, but if you come up empty please do contact this person because there is a good chance to a solution.
In both cases your reputation stays 100% intact and you have a chance to a serious reputation-boost if the match is successful !

A Spotlight on your networking contacts

We survived this years New Year’s speeches and receptions and most companies are already back to normal speed. We do have the impression that the financial crisis is way behind us and this new year will bring many new opportunities.

Today I want to share the possibility to put a ‘Spotlight’ on some of your networking contacts. By doing this you will make a statement that these are very close and reliable contacts.
It might even bring them some new business !

On some business networks like Ecademy this is a feature which is included in the menu.
You will find ‘Spotlight’ in the submenu of your profile. To add someone to your ‘Spotlight’-page, just visit the profile of this contact, click ‘Spotlight’ in the profile submenu followed by ‘Add to my Spotlight’.

Because of the huge success of Facebook we often receive the question if there is also a ‘Spotlight’ feature on this popular network.

It is perfectly possible to gather specific friends in a list and display these in the left column of your Facebook profile. To do so, you can either create new lists or feature existing friend lists.
When you add someone to a featured list, they will receive a notification letting them know that you are featuring them on your profile.

To feature friends on your Facebook profile:

1. Click the "Edit Profile" button in the top-right corner of your profile.
2. Select "Featured People" from the left-hand menu.
3. Next to "Featured Friends" choose to add either an existing friends list or create a new one. 4. When you’re done, click "Save Changes"

If you have selected multiple lists, you can change the order they appear on your profile.
To do this, simply drag each list to where you’d like to place it. Then, click "Save Changes".

Instream management for your networking group

Don’t you just hate it ?
One of the very first blogs I have ever written was about the feelings I had when I had to attend events where I didn’t know any of the other guests.
When attending receptions and events outside of my usual networking groups, I still spot the same behavior I wrote about many years ago.
People are automatically drawn towards those they already know. Pick any event you want and each and every time you will see this same behavior happening again. People greeting each other and gathering in small groups of 4 to 6 people, neglecting the other guests of the event.

I still think this is an important issue to be addressed by organisers as well as steady members of a networking or business group.
As organisers or members we mustn’t forget that each year you have a natural outstream from your members group. Some people just got bored, others have moved away too far from the location, some people may have even passed away.

If you want your groups and events to stay successful in the future you need to pay enough attention to the instream of new members. In my opinion good instream management doesn’t stop by selling a membership card or a ticket to one of your events. Excellent instream management also means making sure that new members get integrated in the group(s). In the same way a moderator tries to engage conversations online, the hosts of any event should ensure that nobody stays aside during his or her first events.

This is the only way to ensure that new members will also stay for many years, becoming the new steady members of your group.

Small Business Owners are the true heroes of our economy

Following up on my New Year’s message I want to express my sincere admiration to those small business owners who really excelled themselves to struggle through the financial crisis.

As a small business owner myself and a proactive networker attending many business events, I have seen the rock-hard impact of the financial crisis at very close range. I have seen the impact on the lives and businesses of many friends and how they reacted to it.
The first industries which were hit within my network were recruiting and IT companies.
Both of them services on which companies will start saving when times are bad.

While lots of large companies have closed their books in the last two years, I have seen lots of small business owners struggle hard to survive, often kicking and screaming. But somehow, despite a record count of folds in 2010, most of them still survived because of their pride and tremendous willpower.
Instead of closing the books they have cut costs, paid extra attention to their customers and invested even more of their personal funds and efforts in their business and marketing.
I personally know at least a few business owners who have chosen to stop paying themselves a wage for a year, creating the necessary cashflow for their business to survive another year.
I would love to see which employee or which CEO of a large company would do the same, if law would even allow it.

On the other hand we have the CEO’s of banks and other large companies who often appeared in the newspapers being laid off with a large bag of money as a goodbye present.
Were those CEO’s overpaid ? If they didn’t get the job done they sure were. But if you can find a good manager who really gets the job done, you should pay him enough. If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys to do the job !

The worst part is however the fact that public opinion doesn’t make any difference between small business owners and the CEO’s of large companies they know from the news-bulletins. I often heard people talking bad about business owners, accusing them of getting rich on the backs of their poor employees. They are also widely accused of fraud and avoiding taxes. I just wish they could see the efforts small business owners make each and every day to stay alive, to keep their business alive and viable and to create the necessary jobs for our economy and community to survive.

When attending networking events I always see people profiling themselves as successful managers of their companies, building their credibility. When talking with them in private I often heard those stories of struggling to survive. I think we shouldn’t be ashamed to admit that we fight to survive, for the fact that we simply refuse to choose the easy road and fold, that we fight for the economy to keep on running and for the fact that we are making sure that 2011 is indeed the year that everything kicks back into gear again. All those small business owners are working like ants, moving our economy forward.

Don’t you think our networking efforts would have been more successful if everyone admitted how hard it was in 2009 and 2010 … and everyone would have gone the extra mile to help each other to survive this together. Times of crisis or not, small business owners are always the true heroes of our economy !

Networking and Entrepreneurship in 2011

Dear Networking and Business contacts,

For starters we wish you a happy, healthy and successful 2011. May the years of financial crisis and “getting-back-on-our-feet” stay behind us for good and let’s shift the economy back into a higher gear together !

It’s a tradition to start the New Year with a letter of good resolutions. This year I would like to title my New Year’s resolutions : “Networking and Entrepreneurship in 2011”. Let’s start by looking back at last year.

2010 was the year “after the financial crisis”. It was the year where a record count of companies had to close their books. It was the year where the blow really hit us, after most companies where already digging deep into their financial backups. It was also the year where it was more than ever before needed to network because only by joining forces we could conquer this storm.

Networking is something we all do online and offline through multiple networks and business clubs. Trendwatchers call this “inline networking” combining online and offline.
When entrepreneurs and businessowners used to be able to stay in touch with 125 to 150 people, by adding online networking they are now able to stay in touch with 500 people or more. The more people you know, the more opportunities will come by !

The social part of this avalanche of contacts is of course awesome, but as entrepreneurs we mustn’t forget to have a look at the business part. On many networks you hear great slogans emphasizing the business intentions, but on average it mainly stays a social community with occasional referrals. Let’s try to become active in 2011 and work on this business part of our networking efforts. Let’s try to go for the next step and kick our economy in the butt.
Networking in these hard times is necessary more than ever before and especially “sharing with your network” has to be part of it. When every entrepreneur actively tries to share with his or her network we can all survive these difficult times. Last year I had set myself a goal to share at least 10.000 € with my network through referrals. It was no problem to reach this goal. Every week you will hear contacts that are searching for someone or something.
It’s a very small effort to guide them in the right direction through connecting them with someone in your network. My goal for this new year is to refer at least 11.000 € of business to my networking contacts, referring to the year '11.

“I can highly recommend Geert as a leading social networker and event host in Belgium, and am grateful to him for valuable business referrals and networking opportunities.”
Levent Korkmaz, Salesforce.com CRM Consultant & Non-Profit Implementation Partner, BECAUSE sprl

I also wish for Belgium to finally get out of its political jam, because this is a very bad situation for all Belgian entrepreneurs. The world’s economy is watching us with many concerns and it gets more and more difficult for Belgian entrepreneurs to get credibility abroad.

Of course we are also preparing to make the next step toward a successful 2011. We have started to distribute our new company-flyer and we have prepared a nice calendar of ‘open’ Social Media Workshops.

We also look forward to meeting you again at one of our presentations or workshops, at one of the many networking events … or monthly through our newsletter !

Warm regards,

Geert CONARD

Netwerken en Ondernemen in 2011

Beste lezers, klanten en zakenrelaties,

Allereerst wensen wij jullie een gelukkig, gezond en succesvol 2011. Laat de jaren van financiële crisis en het “terug recht krabbelen” voorgoed achter ons liggen en laat ons met zijn allen de economie terug in een hogere versnelling schakelen !

Traditioneel starten we een nieuw jaar met een nieuwjaarsbrief vol goede voornemens. Dit jaar wou ik heel graag deze voornemens in het teken zetten van ‘Netwerken en Ondernemen in 2011’. Hiervoor blik ik dan ook eerst even terug op het vorige jaar.

2010 was het jaar “na de financiële crisis”. Dit was het jaar waarin een recordaantal bedrijven de boeken moesten sluiten. Dit was het jaar waar de klap pas echt keihard aankwam, nadat de meeste bedrijven al heel diep in hun reserves zaten. Dit was ook het jaar dat netwerken meer dan ooit nodig was omdat we alleen samen deze storm konden overleven.

Netwerken doen we voortaan allemaal zowel online als offline via meerdere netwerk- en businessclubs. Trendwatchers spreken nu over “inline netwerken” als combinatie van online en offline. Waar men vroeger als ondernemer met gemiddeld 125 a 150 personen een goed contact kon onderhouden, doen we dat nu met de online netwerken erbij moeiteloos met 500 of meer personen.

Hoe meer mensen je kent, hoe meer opportuniteiten er zullen voorbij komen !
Het sociale aspect van deze overvloed aan contacten is uiteraard schitterend, maar als ondernemer mogen we toch ook het business-aspect niet vergeten. Op veel netwerken klinken voortdurend mooie slogans met betrekking tot het genereren van business, maar in de praktijk blijft het toch vooral een sociaal gebeuren met slechts sporadisch enkele doorverwijzingen. Laat ons in 2011 eens actief werken aan het business-aspect en ervoor zorgen dat we samen een flinke stap vooruit zetten in onze business en de economie een flinke schop onder de kont geven.

Netwerken in deze moeilijke tijden is inderdaad meer dan ooit nodig en vooral het “delen met je netwerk” wil ik hier benadrukken. Wanneer alle ondernemers actief moeite doen om te delen met hun netwerk overleven we allemaal moeiteloos deze harde tijden. Vorig jaar had ik mezelf tot doel gesteld om minstens 10.000 € aan business door te kunnen geven aan mijn netwerkcontacten. Dit streefbedrag heb ik ook probleemloos gehaald. Wekelijks hoor je mensen die op zoek zijn naar iets of iemand en het is een kleine moeite om deze mensen op de juiste weg te zetten als je ze via je netwerkcontacten kan helpen. Mijn streefdoel voor het volgende jaar is dan ook om analoog met het jaartal minstens 11.000 € aan business te kunnen doorgeven aan mijn netwerk.

In het kader van een coachingsproject voor UNIZO was ik dringend op zoek naar een CRM-partner. Mijn toenmalige CRM-partner had net de boeken neergelegd. Eén telefoontje aan Geert en ik werd geholpen. Een dag later zat ik rond tafel met Levent Korkmaz. Intussen werken wij een jaar samen en staan nieuwe projecten op til in 2011. Dank je wel Geert!
(Karl Mortier, Quattro Development)

Verder wens ik net als u allen uiteraard ook dat België eindelijk uit zijn politieke impasse komt, met als voornaamste reden dat deze situatie allesbehalve positief is voor de Belgische ondernemers. De wereldeconomie kijkt momenteel heel erg bezorgd naar België en het wordt alsmaar moeilijker om als Belgische Ondernemer ook over de grenzen jezelf te bewijzen.

Zelf doen we uiteraard ook ons uiterste best om er iets van te maken in dit nieuwe jaar.
We zijn alvast gestart met het verdelen van onze nieuwe folder en het opmaken van de kalender met onze ‘open’ Social Media Workshops (zie website).
Verder kijken we er natuurlijk naar uit om jullie opnieuw te mogen begroeten tijdens één van de vele presentaties of workshops, één van de vele netwerkevents … of maandelijks via onze nieuwsbrief !

Met vriendelijke groet

Geert CONARD

Location based marketing finally popular in Europe

Almost from the start of the very first Location Based Networks in 2008, they stimulated retailers to launch promo's for those customers who "checked in" at their local stores, pubs and restaurants.

During the first year I noticed lots of successful actions and promo's starting up in the USA and UK, some even nationwide (e.g. promo's of Starbucks, Domino's Pizza, ...)

Pioneer Foursquare has a great business page, listing the latest promo actions nearby.

It seems that after the summer of 2010 Belgium and Holland also noticed the positive aspects of these promo's and finally jumped on the wagon. Especially near larger cities, it happens more and more that when you check in somewhere, you'll be attended to "Special Promo" actions nearby.

Only yesterday I was attended to a promo by a local bookstore in Maastricht (NL) where they hand out free bestselling books to customers who have checked in to their store at least 10 times.

If you are active in retail or horeca ... take action now and get more customers.

Location based networks are very clever marketing tools and free to use !!!

The Social Network

Today, Oct. 27, the hit movie 'The Social Network' hits the screens in Belgium.
This movie about the early days of marketleader in Social Networking Facebook has been hyped for many weeks now. The movie is based on the book 'The Accidental Billionaires' by Ben Mezrich.

Why should you be interested to watch this movie ?

- Because 26 year old Mark Zuckerberg is a self made billionaire, this year marked at #35 of the Forbes Billionaires List.
- Because Bill Gates was the man who brought the PC to our living room, but Mark Zuckerberg is the man who made us communicate on Social Networks.

Tonight I'll be doing a 30 minute presentation, introducing this movie at Kinepolis Hasselt.

Privacy on Social Media (Video)

Just before the summer holidays I was booked for a Social Media workshop by Procter &  Gamble in Brussels.

Around that same time there were a lot of stories in the news about online privacy and more specific about how your employer would react when he sees your "wild weekend" pictures on Facebook.

In my opinion it's pretty simple if you use your common sense. Don't post it if you don't want it seen by everyone. In the video below I give you my view on this and also tell you how to use it to your profit !


Visit our video-channel at www.youtube.be/geertconard

Essential tips to find a job on LinkedIn

1. Make sure your profile is complete

LinkedIn is, after Google, probably the most used tool to search for your name. Even when they only search for your name on Google, your LinkedIn profile will probably show up on the first page of results. You can make sure people will like what they find !

Use your profile to display your skills and talents. If your profile is 100% complete it will show you as an expert in what you do. Make sure you have added some recommendations and always list your job history.

A wise man once said : You never get a second chance to make a first impression … so make sure you have the impact you want !

2. Add a headline to your name

Your headline is the first thing people will see when you show up in the search results. Make sure it is clear. Tell people who you are and what you do.
Adding a headline will already position your profile above many others.

3. Add your job history

For networking reasons it’s always a good thing to add your past jobs, because people might remember you as “Mr. Jones of Coca Cola”. By searching on your name and this past job you will show up in the search results !
Also, it could be that the HR manager who searches for new people has a good experience with one of your former companies which might get you on top of the pile for this job.

4. Recommendations

In short : The more people that recommend your services, the better the result will be. If you have less than 10 recommendations, people will not take you seriously as a professional.

In online networking the first impression is everything, make sure to ASK for recommendations whenever you have the opportunity. When a client compliments you with a successfully ended project, immediately ask for a recommendation. He will probably be very glad to do you this small favor.

If you don’t give recommendations, you also won’t receive any. Make it a habit to give recommendations without being asked for them. Lots of people will copy the gesture !

5. Be open for connections

LinkedIn advises to only connect with people you know and trust. In my opinion this rule will make it hard to connect with potential employers or other people who could open the right doors for you.

When looking for a job, you just don’t know who might be your best connection to get to the people you need to talk to. If you connect with an open mind, you will automatically detect who can help you the best.

When you are proactively connecting to people, always include a decent message that tells why you want to connect to them. (Even if it’s just to grow your network for future opportunities)

If you connect by using the default sentence that LinkedIn provides, lots of people will ignore the request and don’t even bother to think if they already know you or not.

LinkedIn has a very strong feature which you won’t find on many other networks. When you search for someone you want to get in touch with, you will always find the people in your network who can be the ‘hot link’ between you and your target. You can ask those people for an introduction which will work far better than contacting them out of the blue.

6. Always send a clear message

Professionals always have limited time, so make sure your messages are clear and to the point. Being mysterious doesn’t work in social networking, make sure the facts are on your profile.

7. Don’t let your profile fall asleep

The people who are the least successful on LinkedIn are those who put up their profile and let it fall asleep.
Make sure your profile is always 100% up-to-date and take part in the conversations on the forums.

Each time you do anything on LinkedIn, your name will show up in the newsfeeds of everyone in your network. This will remind them of you time after time, triggering them to read your new content and take note of your updates.

8. Join Groups

“General networking” on platforms like LinkedIn is good, but adding niche networking to your efforts will increase your credibility as an expert in your trade. By taking part in the conversations around your field of expertise, people will notice your knowledge and skills.

Within these niche groups around a certain industry or topic there will also be a more intense kind of networking with a lot of interaction.

9. Start your own group

Once you have built a network of a few hundred people, you can start a group around your field of expertise and invite them to join. This gives you a platform to talk to your audience.

By sharing your knowledge people will return to the group and engage themselves in the conversations.

10. Be interactive

On LinkedIn there is a great feature called ‘Answers’, which gives you the opportunity to ask questions to your network. This is a very valuable feature for all entrepreneurs and jobseekers.

Keep an eye on the ‘Answers’ section and when you see a question in your field of expertise take part in the conversation and show your knowledge.

11. Connect to your other Social Media profiles

To create more action on your LinkedIn profile, you can connect it to other online presences on platforms as Twitter, Slideshare, your blog, …

By connecting your online profiles, you will drive visitors to each of those profiles, to your blog and your website. Visitors can become clients, suppliers, employers or just friends …. The more people you meet, the more opportunities will cross your way.

12. Do the magic thing

Connect people to each other whenever possible. If someone tells you about a need and you know someone who could be the solution to that need, connect them. It may not be a 100% solution to the problem, but it is always a 100% chance to solve the problem.

In most cases I don’t use LinkedIn for this, but I send an email to both people, introducing them to each other and sharing their contact details.

People sometimes ask me if I’m not afraid to harm my own reputation when connecting people together. If the match goes wrong it could potentially damage my reputation too. I think there are two ways of connecting people :

- I can connect you to one of my close contacts. A professional I know for years and I’m very certain he will deliver high quality. This match can’t go wrong.

- Maybe I don’t have any connection that can help you with problem, but I remember a guy I have met at a networking event a few weeks ago who might have the knowledge you are looking for. When I introduce this contact including this message, I remove the risk of getting burned. My contact knows that this is not a close and direct contact of mine.

You can’t buy a network, you have to build it yourself every day. On average, it takes 3 years to build a network that’s strong enough to support you. Don’t give up when you don’t see results immediately, once you have built your network and keep the contacts warm, you can keep the network for the rest of your life. LinkedIn is one of the strongest tools available to build your professional network.