Center of Influence Meetings:

I wanted to update you on how I utilize my Center of Influence.  Like all of the ideas that I share, I do this hoping you will find something that you can use in your own business.

I am a big proponent of going deep with your contacts.  I want to create an environment where we help each other.  This takes time, but it works very well.  For example, one of my best sources of business is a strong banker.  Now I have known this for a long time, but stating it in a way that my centers of influence truly know what I want has been a bit of a challenge.

So, I turned it around a little.  I spoke with one of my banking relationships; and I asked him why he refers me out.  He spent a lot of time with me and it led to my writing up an email that I could send out to my stronger connections.  In reality, I sent it to a very good business partner who tweaked it to where it was easily understood.

This has led to several new banking partners that know the value of working with me.  I just started this new approach; and it is clear that it is very effective.  By meeting and utilizing my existing business partners (and asking for their help), I am creating more connections which feed into my pipeline.  That is really my message here.  Do that for yourself.  Work with your problem-solving type connections and ask for their help in getting connections to what is important to you.

We all work very hard on our marketing.  And, sometimes, we just need to slow down to find out what is truly important to the connections we seek.  For those that hesitate asking for help, do it anyway.  Most of us want to help others when we can.  Trust that the business partners that you have helped in the past would love to help you back.

Anyway, that is it for this week.  If you wish to discuss this further (or require my strategic financing assistance), then feel free to give me a call.  Have a good week.

Articles of Interest:

The SJ Mercury News reported “Bay Area rent increases leave wage gains in the dust.”

NREI reported “How Investors Can Cash In On Empty Bank Branches.” The title of the article is a bit misleading.  However, it is worth the read as empty bank branches will become more of a reality.

CNBC reported “The perk companies should be offering employees: Help with housing.”  This idea has been around for years; and I feel (if a company can work out the HR potential issues) it can be a great benefit to both the employer and the employee.  It also can be a way to share in the equity.