A Cup of Tea With Gail
Grab a cup of tea or coffee. Light your favorite Mia Bella Candle,
and visit with me for a few moments.
When we have finished chatting,
I hope you will feel more informed,
but most of all, refreshed!
March 2007
Food For
Thought......
THE ART OF NETWORKING
I recently moved to a new area and in the process I have found A new marketing passion for my business.......networking. The idea of networking can take on different forms. I break them up into three different categories.
Lifestyle Networking
In-House Networking
Business to Business Networking
Lifestyle Networking: Walking through your day with purpose and vision. Always have a plan or look for opportunities to bring up your business or product whether you are chatting with a teller, a clerk, a receptionist, or sitting on the soccer field. Take your product and business wherever you go.
Because I am in the candle business I keep my candles product/business info in the car and have them ready to go at a moments notice. A scent sample attached to a business card is a sure conversation starter as you open your purse up and let the great scent waft into the air.
In-House Networking: Maximizing your marketing opportunities in your place of employment and with your close circle of friends and family.
While this type of networking may seem limiting because your audience is limited, establishing a referral program helps capitalize on this avenue. Put a plan in place that rewards those who refer others to you. I offer a free votive and votive holder to anyone that refers a customer or prospect to me. Others may offer a $5 - $10 Starbucks gift card. Be creative. Everyone likes to receive something FREE.
The third networking venue, and my personal favorite, is Business-to-Business Networking. Creating and Building relationships with other business minded individuals.
Business-to-Busniess Networking focuses more on what you, the networker can do for the “prospect” in terms completely unrelated to your business or product.
The idea is to leverage yourself. Connecting with the right network marketing team helps you maximize the use of your time and dollar..
When marketing you need to decide whom you are going to market too. The right audience means the desired sells and revenue you seek.
Business-to-Business Networking is not merely about exchanging cards and few laughs over dinner, it’s about looking for ways to help each other grow together. As one national networking group has coined, “Givers Gain!”
Always, keep in mind that although the person you are talking to might not be your target client, you can never be sure what fifty people they know. Truly talking about your business can make the difference in creating a thriving business.
When answering the question “What do you do?” Do not start an hour-long conversation about the meat and potatoes of your job and start relaying a grocery list of your skills and capabilities. Rather, talk about giving them something to be interested in talking about and something to make them spread the word about you. When looking for that interesting factor, think back to when you first started your business. What excited you and drew you to start this business? What makes you stand out from the crowd and makes others excited to hear about your business?
Provide a hook or a reason for potential clients to remember you and your business. Give them a reason to ask more. What makes you stand out from others like you? Ask a question that will provoke an emotion. This will enable the person to think of you every time that emotion is felt. For example, ask “Have you ever been frustrated after purchasing a candle that smells great on the shelf but as soon as you get home and light it the scent is gone after the first burn? Or perhaps the wick drowns only after a couple burns?” I am a distributor for a gourmet candle company that has developed an incredible candle that fills the house with its’ unbelievable scents from the first to the last burn. Our jar candle has two wicks which allow it to burn evenly.” The next time they burn a candle, they will think about you.
Here are a few ideas for Networking Groups.
BNI.com
http://www.ewomennetwork.com
Your Local Chamber of Commerce
Look in your local paper in the Calendar section for upcoming Mixer and Networking events.
I recently moved to a new area and in the process I have found A new marketing passion for my business.......networking. The idea of networking can take on different forms. I break them up into three different categories.
Lifestyle Networking
In-House Networking
Business to Business Networking
Lifestyle Networking: Walking through your day with purpose and vision. Always have a plan or look for opportunities to bring up your business or product whether you are chatting with a teller, a clerk, a receptionist, or sitting on the soccer field. Take your product and business wherever you go.
Because I am in the candle business I keep my candles product/business info in the car and have them ready to go at a moments notice. A scent sample attached to a business card is a sure conversation starter as you open your purse up and let the great scent waft into the air.
In-House Networking: Maximizing your marketing opportunities in your place of employment and with your close circle of friends and family.
While this type of networking may seem limiting because your audience is limited, establishing a referral program helps capitalize on this avenue. Put a plan in place that rewards those who refer others to you. I offer a free votive and votive holder to anyone that refers a customer or prospect to me. Others may offer a $5 - $10 Starbucks gift card. Be creative. Everyone likes to receive something FREE.
The third networking venue, and my personal favorite, is Business-to-Business Networking. Creating and Building relationships with other business minded individuals.
Business-to-Busniess Networking focuses more on what you, the networker can do for the “prospect” in terms completely unrelated to your business or product.
The idea is to leverage yourself. Connecting with the right network marketing team helps you maximize the use of your time and dollar..
When marketing you need to decide whom you are going to market too. The right audience means the desired sells and revenue you seek.
Business-to-Business Networking is not merely about exchanging cards and few laughs over dinner, it’s about looking for ways to help each other grow together. As one national networking group has coined, “Givers Gain!”
Always, keep in mind that although the person you are talking to might not be your target client, you can never be sure what fifty people they know. Truly talking about your business can make the difference in creating a thriving business.
When answering the question “What do you do?” Do not start an hour-long conversation about the meat and potatoes of your job and start relaying a grocery list of your skills and capabilities. Rather, talk about giving them something to be interested in talking about and something to make them spread the word about you. When looking for that interesting factor, think back to when you first started your business. What excited you and drew you to start this business? What makes you stand out from the crowd and makes others excited to hear about your business?
Provide a hook or a reason for potential clients to remember you and your business. Give them a reason to ask more. What makes you stand out from others like you? Ask a question that will provoke an emotion. This will enable the person to think of you every time that emotion is felt. For example, ask “Have you ever been frustrated after purchasing a candle that smells great on the shelf but as soon as you get home and light it the scent is gone after the first burn? Or perhaps the wick drowns only after a couple burns?” I am a distributor for a gourmet candle company that has developed an incredible candle that fills the house with its’ unbelievable scents from the first to the last burn. Our jar candle has two wicks which allow it to burn evenly.” The next time they burn a candle, they will think about you.
Here are a few ideas for Networking Groups.
BNI.com
http://www.ewomennetwork.com
Your Local Chamber of Commerce
Look in your local paper in the Calendar section for upcoming Mixer and Networking events.
Recommended
Reading
Candle Of The
Month
March SPICE SHOPPE
A rich, spicey blend of ginger and cinnamon plus zesty orange and tangerine. Smooth vanilla gives the fragrance a homey spin.
Projected Future COTM Scents (Subject to change)
Ginger and Cedarwood
Sicilian Lemon and Rosemary
Liquorice and Grape Seed
Cactus and White Peach
Fig and Wild Berry
Hazlenut Coffee
Join the Candle of the
Month Club (COTM)
Give yourself a gift.
Join the COTM club and have the latest Jar Candle, 12 votives and a Soap Bar delivered to your door every month!
SIGN UP NOW!
*****************************
Don't forget to sign up for the company drawing on a daily basis.*****************************
March SPICE SHOPPE
A rich, spicey blend of ginger and cinnamon plus zesty orange and tangerine. Smooth vanilla gives the fragrance a homey spin.
Projected Future COTM Scents (Subject to change)
Ginger and Cedarwood
Sicilian Lemon and Rosemary
Liquorice and Grape Seed
Cactus and White Peach
Fig and Wild Berry
Hazlenut Coffee
Join the Candle of the
Month Club (COTM)
Give yourself a gift.
Join the COTM club and have the latest Jar Candle, 12 votives and a Soap Bar delivered to your door every month!
Don't forget to sign up for the company drawing on a daily basis.
ENTER OUR WEEKLY DRAWING FOR A FREE 16 OZ MIA BELLA CANDLE.
SIGN UP HERE!!!
Developing your WHO
Last month I shared wtih you my training on Developing your WHY. Knowing your WHY is what generally starts you on your journey.
Knowing your WHO is what guides you down your path of success. It is what sets you apart from everyone else.
Listen to a training call I presented on
DEVELOPING YOUR WHO
*****************************
Awarded Top 10 Sponsor Monster for 2006
*****************************
Recommendations
Check out this wonderful artist. Give the very best and purchase an original greeting card or have a something special commissioned for your home.
JODISTYLE
ARCHIVED NEWSLETTERS
Last month I shared wtih you my training on Developing your WHY. Knowing your WHY is what generally starts you on your journey.
Knowing your WHO is what guides you down your path of success. It is what sets you apart from everyone else.
Listen to a training call I presented on
DEVELOPING YOUR WHO
Recommendations
Check out this wonderful artist. Give the very best and purchase an original greeting card or have a something special commissioned for your home.
ARCHIVED NEWSLETTERS
GOT A LONELY WEBSITE THAT IS STARVING FOR TRAFFIC?
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Valentine Goodies
SPRING INTO FUN
For potlucks that are kid-friendly, I naturally think of recipes that can be served in individual portions. These luscious ladybugs, from the kitchen of Barbara Beery, founder of Batter Up Kids, Inc. cooking school in Austin, Texas (www.batterupkids.com), are always a crowd-pleaser, and a snack parents won't mind their kids filling up on.
RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
Red grapes
Strawberries
Mini chocolate chips
Honeydew melon
1. For each one, push half of a red grape onto a trimmed wooden skewer for the head.
2. Next, push on a hulled strawberry body and score the back to create wings.
3. For spots, use a toothpick to gently press mini chocolate chips, tips down, into the fruit. Arrange the skewers on a honeydew melon half.
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Do you have a recipe you would like me to share with our readers? Forward it to me and I'd love to share it.
Get out the bikes.
Enjoying Spring Close Up
