When I first started my company over eight years ago, a business advisor recommended I join a local networking group to meet other people in business in my immediate area. At the time I was working very long days, covering shifts in the nursery, working on finances in the evenings and juggling family commitments too - a scenario many of you will be familiar with, I'm sure. The prospect of 'not-working' or standing around chatting to people who had no relevance to my business did not seem a good use of my time, and my first experience confirmed this. The majority of attendees at an evening networking event were men in suits (no offence, gentlemen, but it can be a little off-putting) and I lost count of the number of these people who looked at my name badge, saw the word 'nursery' and rather dismissively muttered something about 'playgroups' before moving on to someone more interesting!
I decided that I could spend my time better, and gave networking events a wide berth. However, after a couple of years of running my business I had lots of questions that I wanted answers to. How do other people manage their staff? Who is well connected in the local area and could recommend a good marketing firm? How do other managers reduce staff turnover? The list was considerable, and having exhausted friends and families, someone suggested I foster some local business links through networking groups. This time I tried a predominantly female group, which I found very supportive. Its members were more interested in building relationships than handing out business cards. Since then I have been to numerous networking events, all of which vary, but some of which are very useful.
However, I soon realised that it was essential to be a bit picky about which events to attend, or I could spend every day out of the business, and no time in it, making it work. Breakfast events were a non-starter, as I was occupied at home, getting my children to school, and evenings weren't great either. I started going to the odd lunch meeting or late breakfast meeting and found that events with guest speakers often gave me a chance to learn something as well as meet other people in business.
Overall, networking can be a valuable tool to help develop your business. Locally, it can make other businesses more aware of the services you offer and can help to promote your setting. It can also introduce you to people who may be able to help you with your business - this doesn't necessarily mean you are looking to spend large sums with professional advisors, as you may be able to share experiences with other business owners or even 'trade' skills at no cost.
So do consider giving networking a go and see what it has to offer. Just remember, there is nothing more off-putting than people thrusting business cards in your face; instead, go with the 'what can I do to help you?' attitude, see it as a chance to build relationships and wait to reap the benefits.
