A business presentation by Dayo Olomu on How to Multiply Your Networth Through Your Network

1. 1
How to Multiply Your Networth
ThroughYour Network
President, AfricanBBF
..........dedicated to networking, business mentoring and business building

2. 2
What is Networking?
• Networking is building and maintaining
productive personal, business and professional
relationship that benefits both parties
• It is a long-term strategy based on trust, sincerity
and reciprocity of relationship – (Williams, 2000)
• Experts say networking is about exchange
and building relationships

3. 3
What Do You Want From
Networking?
• To find employment
• To achieve goals
• To find opportunity for
growth
• To build business
contacts and associates
• To expand your
network
• To increase market
share and customers
• To find new ideas
• To find new
colleagues/friends
• To pursue a hobby or
interest
• To gain new perspective
on topics of interest to
you
• To go into business for
yourself

4. 4
Is Networking Worth The
Investment?
• The phenomenon of business networking has been studied for
the last 25 years, but recently, there has been a renewed
interest. There are sound, peer-reviewed studies from US,
Germany and China that have positively linked networking
to:
• Salary Growth (Wolff H.G, et al, 2009)
• Increase promotions (Michael J and Yulk G.H, 1993)
• Perceived career success (Langford P.H., 2009)
• Job satisfaction (Wolff H.G. and Moser K, 2009)
• Production of creative ideas (Zhou J. et al, 2009
(Byham, W.C ,
2010)
• One of the four key essential leadership skills is relationship
building/network building – Developing Business Leaders for 2010, in The Conference Board

5. 5
Result of My Networking
• Started a Music & Movie magazine - 2003
• Motivational Speaker - 2004
• Founding President of Croydon Communicators Toastmaster
Club – 2005
• TV Presenter - 2007
• Presence in 180 Countries - 2008
• School Governor - 2011
• Chair, CIPD Lambeth Group – 2011
• President, African Business Building Forum - AfricanBBF

6. 6
Which Kind of People Would You Like
to Attract to Your Network?
For yourself
your career or
your Business
Your Bank
Manager
Your
Supplier PR
& Marketing
Headhunter
Solicitor
Trusted
Employee
Valued
Client
AccountantMentor/Coach
Manager
Your
Line Manager
or CEO
Investors

7. 7
How Can You Expand Your
Network & Contact?
• Join a career related organisation
• Become a board member of an active
association
• Volunteering
• Join a public speaking club
• Join your old student association or Alumni
• Join social media – E.g. Linkedin or Ecademy
• Go to a Networking Event

8. 8
Questions Time
• Do you make opportunities to meet new people?
• Do you regularly attend meetings at work or
socially?
• Do you introduce yourself to speakers at training
courses, conferences or dinners?
• Have your contacts grown in number over the last
few years?
• Do you talk to peers in other organisations?
• If you needed urgent help with your career or
business, do you know people who would be
prepared to help?

9. 9
Networking Essential Skills
• Public Speaking/Self Promotion
• Research
• Listening
• Nurturing
• Building rapport
• Persistence
• Organisational
• Ability to follow up

10. 10
What Is An Elevator Pitch?
• An Elevator Pitch is a concise, carefully
planned and well-practiced description about
you and your benefits
• It is the basic introduction of who you are,
what you do and what you are looking for
when networking
• It is something you should practice and
perfect

11. 11
Creating Your Elevator Pitch
• A “Hook” – Grab attention
• Keep It Short & Simple (KISS approach)
• What Is In It For Me? (WIIFM)
• What do you want them to do for you?
• Not more than 90 seconds

12. 12
Where Networking Can Take
Place
• Social Gathering
• Product Launch
• Award Ceremony
• Religious Gathering
• AGMs/Conferences
• Networking Event

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How Can You Prepare For a
Networking Event?
• Venue
• Time
• Cost (if any)
• Attendance
• Dress code (if any)
• Will you be expected to introduce yourself to
the whole group? If yes, for how many
minutes?

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Networking - Ready To Go
• Practice your elevator pitch
• Dress for success - make sure you present a
good visual image
• Take a supply of your business cards in your
wallet/case
• Put on a smile and go to the event
• Arrive Early

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At the Networking Event
• Use all your networking skills
• Use your „elevator pitch‟
• Meet new people
• Build trust by listening
• Arm yourself with common ground for conversation
• Be there
• Leave them feeling better
• Collect business cards and keep them safely
• Have fun

16. 16
Starting a Conversation At
Networking Event
• F – From/Family: Where are you from?
• O – Occupation: What do you do for a living or what
is your profession, what do you enjoy most about
your profession or how did you get started? Or
What is the best thing about your job?
• R – Recreation: What do you do for fun or
recreation?
• M – Motivation: What motivates you to do what you
do or which one sentence would you like people to
use in describing the way you do business?
- Power, M.P, 2009

17. 17
After the Networking Event
• Evaluate the event. Was it successful? Should
you have done things differently
• File the business cards information you have
collected
• In golf as in networking it is the follow-through that
count – Nigel Risner

18. 18
Leveraging Your
Network/Contact
• Coming together is a beginning, staying together is
progress, working together is SUCCESS – Henry
Ford

19. 19
What is Leverage?
• Leverage is the ability to use other people‟s money,
expertise, technology, time, ideas or network to
achieve more, with less effort.
• Leverage =Speed=Goals – (Hansen & Allen,2002)
• What really distinguishes high performers
from the rest of the pack is their ability to
maintain and leverage personal networks. –
“The Social Side of Performance”, MIT Sloan Management Review

20. 20
Leveraging Your Network
• Leverage Other People (colleague, headhunter,
business partner, mastermind group, joint venture or
a mentor)
• Leverage their Contact (their friends & network)
• Leverage their Systems
• Leverage their Knowledge, Skills & Time
• Leverage their Platform (e.g TV, Radio etc)
• Leverage their People‟s Money (borrowing or
tapping into their financial resources, VC & BA)
• Leverage their Customers (e.g. a customer database,
Mailing List)

21. References/Further Readings
Barrett, A and Beeson J (2002) Developing Business Leaders for 2010, a report
from The Conference Board
Byham, W.C (2010) Business Networking Can Be Taught, Training &
Development, May
Cope, M (2003) Personal Networking: How to Make Your Connections Count,
Prentice Hall
Cross, R, et al (2003) The Social Side of Performance, MIT Sloan Management
Review, Oct 15
Hansen, M.V & Allen, R.G, (2002) The One Minute Millionaire: The
Enlightened Way to Wealth, Three River Press, New York
Olomu, D, (2005) 4 Indispensable Strategies for Success, London
Power, M.P (2009), How To Become An Irresistible Networker, London
Priestly, D (2010) Become A Key Person of Influence, Ecademy Press, London
Risner, N (2009) You Had Me at Hello: The New Rules for Better Networking
London
Williams, T (2000) Networking As A Way of Gaining Business for Training
Consultants, Industrial and Commercial Volume 32, No 5, pp 169-172

22. Dayo Olomu
Offidayo@dayoolomu.com
Website: www.dayoolomu.com