Monday, July 27, 2009

Cincinnati Networking

How do you network Cincinnati? Do you attend one meeting per week or do you attend as many as you can? I do realize that you must work at your office or home to actually make money, but who said you have to only work 4o hours per week? I can’t remember the last time I only worked 40 hours. In this type of economy you must always push forward no matter what business you are in.

I do realize that how much you work does not always turn into dollars earned…today! Sometimes when you get out to a networking meeting, you may not do business with anyone for a while…….don’t be worried….you may do business with them later.

I have seen plenty of people come to a networking group once, twice, even three times to see what they can get out of the group……I have also heard people say they can’t join until they get some business from it……That mentality can potentially hold you back! TBN Cincinnati will always be for people that understand what is needed to succeed in networking. You must focus on what you give, not on what you get. With that focus TBN will always be around. We suggest you attend as many meetings as you can, if that means joining other groups beside TBN . We now have events monthly, so your Cincinnati Networking has changed from a weekly meeting with most other groups to daily so that you may enjoy the fruits of your networking labor. So again I ask, How do you network Cincinnati?

TBN has grown exponentially in the last 13 months – we have our website http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com/ that has our directory of members, updates, and events. We have our social networking site http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.ning.com/ for our members only to communicate with other members they don’t get to always see at the meetings. We have our FREE LinkedIn group http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=156370 that now has over 1500 local Cincinnatians networking. We have our Meetup group http://www.meetup.com/TBN-Cincinnati/ that is the place for events only. We have our blog http://www.tbneducation.com/ so that networkers can subscribe to so that may get a little education on how to network. We also have the new jobs site http://www.tbnconnections.net/ up and running with a few jobs posted now.

Next time you wish to visit a networking group come visit with us at Tri State Business Network. Our site has a list of meetings so that you never miss an opportunity.

Clayton R. Hicks
TBN
O – 866.945.4238
D – 937.671.6238
clayton@tristatebusinessnetwork.com
http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com/
http://www.tbneducation.com/
http://www.tbnconnections.net/ for job seekers

Monday, July 20, 2009

Business to Business Networking in Cincinnati

Business to business networking has changed here in Cincinnati. Take a look at our site http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com we have just eclipsed 18,000 page views per day. Along with our Happy Hour event we have our Speed Networking events now. The growth of TBN Cincinnati has been enormous and we all have worked very hard.

None of this would have been possible if it weren't for the work from Barbie Doran, Larry Shideler, Ginger Lehman, Lynda B., and our newest addition to the board....Chris Hammond. I personally do work hard to help the community, but again nothing without all the support from my friends and board members. Our newest event TBN Speed Networking, Cincinnati will now witness the newest generation of networking.

TBN Cincinnati has changed the way that business to business networking is being done here in Cincinnati. You should come to one of our meetings and see why so many people are visiting the site and becoming members.

Thanks,

Clayton R. Hicks
O- 866.945.4238
D- 937.671.6238
clayton@tristatebusinessnetwork.com
http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com
http://www.tbneducation.com

Monday, July 13, 2009

All about TBN

I wanted to take this time to discuss what TBN is all about. We are a business to business networking group started here in Cincinnati, OH. Some of you may not have heard about us yet and may need some more info before attending a meeting. In short, our LinkedIn group has almost 1500 members, our own social networking right now is for members only, and our Tuesday email blast goes out to over 5700 people. Our membership is up to 180, which we just had our 1 year anniversary.

We are looking this year to educate more, grow twice as much, and have monthly events. Our TBN Speed Networking event went fantastic in June so we are going to do it monthly starting August 11. We are having our quarterly TBN Happy Hour event tomorrow at O’Charley’s in Mason of which we are expecting over 80 people.

I realize that I listed info about TBN above, but that gets you up to speed on where we have been. Now, we are going to continue to grow and change for the better. Our membership is only $100 per year and pay out referral fees for future members. The money is a committment fee to the progress of the community. Our members focus on what they give not on what they get. So this committment fee tells all the other members your foundation of doing business. We continue to allow more opportunities to our members with over 35 potential meeetings you can attend monthly for the same membership fee. We have many groups online including: Meetup, LinkedIn, and Ning. We have our website http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com which is the directory along with how we spotlight members when they are spotted doing great work to help others and help our new members get noticed. Our Meetup group: http://www.meetup.com/TBN-Cincinnati/ Our LinkedIn group: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=156370 Our Ning group for Members only: http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.ning.com

If you wish to join TBN or just come check us out at a meeting, you don’t have to RSVP just come on out. If you are in transition, you receive all benefits at no cost to you, so join us. If you just wish to join us at our events you can find them on our website or groups online. We are having our TBN Happy Hour July 14, 2009, at O’Charley’s in Mason. If you wish to get educated on Networking please feel free to subscribe to this feed.

Clayton R. Hicks
O – 866-945-4238
D – 937.671.6238
http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com

Monday, July 6, 2009

Hunter or Farmer?

How are you business to business networking here in Cincinnati? Are you a hunter or a farmer? Do you even know the difference when networking? I will tell you the difference and you decide which you are.

Hunter……….Do you run into a meeting trying to take home dinner? Do you walk the room passing out cards looking to jump on the first prospect you can? You might this type, I don’t know…….But, sometimes just hunting one night will not help your cause. Do you hand out a bunch of cards in hopes that everyone will refer your business? That could be dangerous for your business.

Farmer………Do you know what a farmer does? A farmer plows the fields first…..then he plants a seed………then he waters the seeds………then he sees the fruits of his labor. So introduce ourself……….tell them who you are and what you are looking for………take your new business contact to coffee or lunch and find out what they do……..make some business happen.

Now, not everyone can be a farmer in the begininning but you can work your way up to farming. I see it all the time at our meetings when members give out their testimonials. Once the members have sat down and got to know each other, it becomes easier to refer business to each other, which then turns into ROI! The next time you visit one of our meetings come up and tap me on the shoulder, you never know how your business could change overnight or over a year. Take a look at our directory http://tristatebusinessnetwork.com/Member_Directory.html to see who is farming.

Clayton R. Hicks
TBN
D – 937-671-6238
http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com

To subscribe to more of this information go to http://tbneducation.com

If you would like to join us at a meeting send us an email at clayton@tristatebusinessnetwork.com to get a copy of the schedule.

If you would like to join our FREE group on LinkedIN visit http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=156370&trk=anet_ug_hm

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Networking is.......Work?

Networking is………..work?

Do you think networking in Cincinnati is work? Business to business networking in Cincinnati can be, but networking anywhere can be work. Let’s define work……(per Wikipedia) “Work”, one’s place of, or the act of performing… OR “to do something”. So is Networking “work”? YES, a big fat YES.

So you may think working is just “going to work”, but you have to work at Networking too. I believe that is why the word “work” is in the word “net-WORK-ing”. So while you are “networking” in Cincinnati, you are working. How hard are you networking to build relationships???????
If you don’t build relationships how will your business make it? Relationships will be defined soon in this blog so that you understand what you have when you have it. If you “work” at building relationships by giving first, you will reap what you have sown…….
Work towards giving a free coffee to someone by asking them “who they are” and “what they do”. Go to lunch with them and you “buy”. You will see a transformation of productivity in your business and personal life. You must Focus on what you give, not on what you get…..

Your mindset is the “key” to your success. So the next time you think networking is just going to a meeting and selling your business products, think again! You must work at “building” those relationships for the future of your business. So the answer to the question at the beginning is Networking is…….YES, “ WORK”.

Clayton R. Hicks
TBN
O – 866.945.4238
D – 937.671.6238
http://www.tristatebusinessnetwork.com
To subscribe to more of this information go to http://tristatebusiness.wordpress.com
If you would like to join us at a meeting send us an email at crhfinancial@gmail.com to get a copy of the schedule.
If you would like to join our FREE group on LinkedIN visit http://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=156370&trk=anet_ug_hm