Networking Insight

Social Networking Saves Honeymoon

2009-11-08T06:58:39-06:00

In another feel good story about social networking, a couple that was given wrong information on their overseas honeymoon by Expedia reached out to their friends on Twitter and Facebook for help. What happened is that their Expedia travel agent assured them that they didn't need a visa when traveling from Frankfurt, Germany to St. Petersburg, Russia. Of course, they didn't have the visas so were destined to be stranded in Frankfurt.

Their friends reached out to Expedia with phone calls and emails. Here is what happened:

A sympathetic Expedia agent goes to bat for them, and the online agency admits its error, offers a full refund, picks up the tab for expedited visas and other costs, and throws in a jaw-dropping $3,000 credit for future travel.

Not a bad outcome and another story that shows the power of social networking.

To read more about this story, go to Visa snafu snarls honeymoon, social networking saves the day

Do you have any good stories to share about social networking?

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Book Review: Upstarts by Donna Fenn

2009-11-05T22:41:25-06:00

Upstarts!: How GenY Entrepreneurs are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You Can Profit from Their Success was written by Donna Fenn who has been an expert on small business trends and entrepreneurship for over 20 years. She is the author of Alpha Dogs: How Your Small Business can become a Leader of the Pack and a contributing writer at Inc. magazine.

In Donna’s book, she discusses how Generation Y is changing the business world and creating a whole new crop of entrepreneurs. Inspired by the success of past generations of entrepreneurs, these young entrepreneurs are creating cools startups that are changing the way we do things.

Donna interviewed more than 150 young CEOs to learn how they do business, what motivates them, and how they want to change the world. The stories of these young entrepreneurs are very interesting. Many of these people started businesses while in high school, which is amazing.

The book is broken up into the following chapters:

Chapter 1: Extreme Collaborators
Chapter 2: Technology Mavens
Chapter 3: Game Changers
Chapter 4: Market Insiders
Chapter 5: Brand Builders
Chapter 6: Social Capitalists
Chapter 7: Workplace Renegades
Chapter 8: Morph Masters
Chapter 9: The Future of Upstarts

Upstarts examines this entrepreneurial generation and reveals the following insights that are critical to this group’s success:

1. Building collaborative tribes
2. Deploying technology to your competitive advantage
3. Disrupting the status quo
4. Deconstructing the GenY market
5. Generating branding buzz
6. Adopting a social mission
7. Inventing the workplace of the future
8. Reinventing your company

According to the author, if you follow what these young entrepreneurs are doing, then you have a greater chance of success with your own business. Times are changing so you need to adapt to the new normal and learn to work with GenY. After all, there are 77 million of them out there.

Upstarts!: How GenY Entrepreneurs are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You Can Profit from Their Success is a very enjoyable read that is organized around the stories of these GenY entrepreneurs. Every business is different so it is interesting to read the stories of these entrepreneurs and learn about their journeys of success and failure. We can all learn from these young, determined, and driven professionals.

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Parents Try to Find Daughter Through Social Networking

2009-11-03T20:54:07-06:00

The parents of an abducted child have created a video that they hope will spread through social networks. They hope that this video will reach someone who knows what happened to their daughter. While this a very sad story, it is one that shows us the power of social networking and how it can be leveraged to help one another.

See the video below:

How to Stay in Front of Others

2009-11-01T21:52:54-06:00

In order to accelerate your personal brand, you need to always stay in front of others. As you become better known and memorable in your business community, you will build some great relationships.

Attend Events
You need to remain physically visible so attend events on a regular basis. At these events, you will not only meet new people, but also will reconnect with existing contacts. Nothing beats face time to try to attend several events a month.

Speak at Events
Find opportunities to be a speaker or panelist at events. Seek out organizers and ask them if you can speak at an upcoming meeting. If you have something to offer and fit with their needs, then chances are that you will be asked to participate.

Host Your Own Events
Demonstrate your expertise by organizing your own event so you can share your knowledge. Alternatively, you can host an open networking event. Whatever format you choose, new relationships and business will be developed from these activities.

Write Blog Posts
While offline activity is very important, online activity is also critical. If you haven’t already done so, then you may want to consider starting a blog. Blogs are a great way to showcase your expertise. The more posts you write, the more visible you will be online, especially with the search engines.

What do you do to stay in front of people?

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Calling All Guest Bloggers!

2009-10-30T17:51:54-05:00

Would you like some more exposure? I am looking for a few guest bloggers who would like to write an article about relationship building/networking for this blog. Send me an article that is less than 500 words for consideration. This could lead into an opportunity to have a regular column with my blog.

If you have any questions or want to submit an article, email me at jason@jacobsohn.com.

A Little Networking Humor

2009-10-28T18:52:39-05:00

Thought that you would enjoy this cartoon, especially if you are a BNI member.

Please share any business networking humor that you come across.

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With Others, Sweat the Small Stuff

2009-10-26T20:18:56-05:00

The following article that I wrote appeared in the October edition of Magazine Soho. You can also find it at Sohobiztube.com.

With Others, Sweat the Small Stuff

With networking, you don’t always have to help people in a significant way like finding them a job or a client. In reality, people also appreciate little acts of kindness such as thanking them and treating them with respect.

Pay attention to how you interact with others because you want to make a good impression. Over time, these acts of good behavior will be second nature to you.

Make People Feel Good

When talking with people, make sure to let them know that you are genuinely interested in the conversation. Give them cues that you’re a good listener by having consistent eye contact, smiling and asking questions.

By showing a sign of interest, people will feel that you care and have a good impression of you. In return, most people should also show interest in what you have to say.

Make sure to congratulate or compliment others when something positive happens to them. By going out of your way to do this, people will appreciate your thoughtfulness and will remember you.

Exercise Good Manners

Though having good manners usually goes without saying, some people need to be reminded in certain situations. Pay attention to how you interact with others in various circumstances.

When dining or having drinks with others, offer to pay the entire bill – especially if you invited the person. People will often insist on splitting, which is just fine. So long as you make the gesture, you are showing good manners.

If someone asks if you would like coffee or water during meetings or even interviews, always accept. Even if you don’t want anything to drink, it’s still polite to take the drink because you’re showing respect to the person, who is just being a good host.

Remember Birthdays

When you meet people, try to find out important dates in their lives such as birthdays. Make sure to immediately record this information in your calendar so you won’t forget these dates.

When it’s someone’s birthday, send this person an e-mail, call him or her on the phone or mail a card. Whatever you decide to do, it will show that you were thinking about this person.

Most people won’t expect you to remember their birthday. By acknowledging others on their birthdays, you will surprise them by showing that you genuinely care about them and take an interest in their lives.

Think About Others

Other than remembering birthdays, you should always be thinking about ways to connect with others. Contact people when you come across something that may interest them.

Let your contacts know about important items such as events, articles or resources. Whatever you share, it shows that you were thinking about them.

When you do share information, make sure it provides value and interest to the people you contact. Keep good notes about others so you can pass on appropriate information to the right people in your network.

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What is Your Secret to Networking Success?

2009-10-24T08:30:42-05:00

Spend time thinking about some of your successes in life or business due to networking. Are you pleased? Did you find any common elements across your various successes?

All of us have our own unique style and approach to building relationships. The way you conduct yourself and treat others is a key element to networking. Below is a list of items that may have contributed to your success. Consistency is key so continue to do what is working.

Always treat people with respect
Always follow through and do what you say you will do
Never expect anything in return for helping
Consistently find ways to help others
Continuously connect people together
Demonstrate your expertise across multiple channels (i.e. blog, speaking, articles, book, etc.)
Always act with integrity and honesty
Let others talk more about themselves so you can tune into their needs
Always act genuine and be yourself
Always respond to voicemails and emails
Take time to meet people who are referred to you
Don’t immediately say “no” to opportunities
Position yourself as a resource for others
Host your own events
Active volunteer involvement with networking groups or charities

What has contributed to your success? Please share in the comments section.

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LinkedIn Hits 50 Millions Users!

2009-10-22T22:33:13-05:00

LinkedIn just announced that they now have 50 millions users. It has taken them 6 years to get to this number. While it took 477 days in 2003 to get to the first 1 million users, it only took 12 days to get to the most recent million. What is amazing is that they are growing at about 1 member per second.

LinkedIn is just getting started. International growth will continue for the firm, which is about half of their membership.

How many people do you think LinkedIn will have 1 year from now?

To read more about the 50 million user milestone, go to LinkedIn: 50 million professionals worldwide.

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11 Positive Words About Relationship Building

2009-10-20T22:12:09-05:00

When done effectively, relationship building can be a wonderful way to enhance your life, both professionally and personally. Below are 11 positive words about relationship building, which should keep you coming back for more.

1. Partners

2. Friends

3. Employees

4. Sales

5. Capital

6. Helpful

7. Resource

8. Connect

9. Rolodex

10. Satisfied

11. Success

What other positive words come to mind when you think about networking effectiveness?

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