Business networking needs to evolve in order to retain its usefulness to business-to-business (B2B) salespeople. The biggest challenge facing business developers is finding the right types of opportunities within the right types of companies. The second biggest challenge is having the appropriate resources at hand to deliver the product or service once the deal is closed. Luckily, business networks are adapting to accommodate both of these problems.

When people think about business networking, two images typically come to mind: Chamber mixers and traditional leads groups that cater to people who sell to small businesses and individuals; or “old boy’s clubs” known for closed-door meetings in smoky backrooms where “under the table” deals are made. Neither of these scenarios is very fruitful for the average entrepreneur, consultant or salesperson who is trying to sell to established businesses at senior decision making levels.

The other problem with these antiquated networking strategies is that they are dependent on a network being geographically-focused or controlled by a few powerful personalities within a specific industry. If a salesperson’s territory is regional or national in scope, networks focused on specific zip codes or cities that work well for insurance, financial services, real estate and other community-based leads are relatively useless. And if they represent a smaller company, they can forget about penetrating the “old boy’s club.”

Some innovative companies such as LinkedIn.com, Xing.com, MySpace.com and other online social networks are allowing geographically dispersed-colleagues and long-forgotten friends or acquaintances to exchange ideas, leads and help stay connected. Other networks try to add value through online message boards or interest-specific email distribution lists. While these valuable tools help connect people technologically, their adoption hasn’t been as rapid as some would expect, because people are hesitant to blindly trust technology as a replacement for face-to-face networking and relationships.

The solution is a hybrid approach that combines local face-to-face meetings with technology-enabled meetings that expand the reach of the individual so they can collaborate with other business developers interested in common geographies, industries and/or providing complementary products or services.

This new approach takes into account the fact that technology is an augmentation to interpersonal connections, not a replacement for them. It also allows people to form alliances nationally and internationally, so they can develop and deliver business on a scale that would have previously been nearly impossible.

A culture of collaboration is sweeping the business-to-business sales world. And new technology is coming into play to enable national and even international collaboration, so small and large companies alike can change the way they uncover, close and deliver new business opportunities. Business networking must continue to evolve in ways that enable this collaboration, and companies must understand networking is not a face-to-face or technology-enabled interaction alone, but requires both online and offline components working together to be truly effective.

What Is Carico International?

Carico is a network marketing company that distributes a wide array of products and services including cutlery, tableware, stemware, fine China and health and wellness products. Carico International has worked alongside the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association and the National Wellness Foundation.

Accompanied by the product line is the business opportunity allowing distributors to earn commissions on product volume sold and new distributors sponsored. Carico has targeted a few segments of the population that are buyers and I see this company going places. Plus they have partnered with some reputable organizations.

Typical Marketing Approach

Most network marketing companies do not always provide their distributors with the best marketing advice. Usually you will be told to create a warm list of family and friends, cold call leads, buy leads, hold home meetings, pass out free samples, pass out fliers and even prospect strangers. The only problem with these methods is that the majority of the people you talk to never had the intention to purchase products or start a business. Plus people hate to be sold to.

A Smarter Approach

What if you could position yourself in a way to be found by people who are actively looking for what you had to offer? Don’t you think you would have an easier time sponsoring people and selling more product? Of course you would. This is accomplished by using the leverage and power of technology, more specifically the internet.

By following the online formula you can attract only the most qualified and serious people into your Carico International business. Also, by taking this approach, you can fill your team up with motivated business builders, who will help you get to where you want to be. Thousands upon thousands of network marketers have finally experience success because they built their business online.

With the advent of the internet technology, global business network connections are no longer impossible to obtain. In fact, most businesses today can generate more customers simply by relying on their networking ability. It would be particularly difficult for a business to flourish without increasing your customer base.

You can guarantee a prolonged existence for your business by making sure that you can keep your existing customers and be able to obtain new ones at the same time. You can even generate more business profits by reaching out globally. You only need to have access to the internet, a social network and an online marketplace.

Your business can make good use of the internet to expand your network connections. It can be a good way to expose your business to new horizons and it is the easiest way by far. You no longer have to travel to different destinations just to gain new customers along the way. All you have to do is simply log on to the internet and make your presence be known. The internet can serve as a helpful means in generating nonstop flow of profits. Creating strong business connections globally through the internet is a must on your list of priorities.

If you are aiming to increase your professional contacts, joining several international social networks would be a good step to take. At present, a lot of companies have found social networking as a useful tool in tapping potential markets. You can reach out to any parts of the globe right in the comfort of your home or office, no need to spend a lot of cash in the process.

If there is a college or university in your region, you can give a short visit because you can meet several international students there. You can access potential customers from other countries through this marketing plan. And at the same time, you will also get the chance to raise awareness for your products and services locally.

There are a lot of good deals that you can find on the internet that is the reason loads of international shoppers love to make purchases online. You can access numerous well-liked online marketplaces where you can post your products for sale. If you have a superior ability at selling, increasing your network connections won’t be much of a problem. If international shoppers will find your product worthy of being recommended to others, they are going to willingly tell family and friends. Thus, adding more potential customers to your business.

Business Networking International otherwise known as BNI was founded by business consultant Ivan Misner in 1985. The company forms referral networking groups all over the world. These groups meet on a weekly basis and the objective to attend and become a member in a BNI group is to increase your referral business.

Benefits

There are many benefits to joining a BNI networking chapter or any other networking group. The number one reason anyone joins a networking group is to gain referrals and increase business. The larger your network is the more business you are going to create. Another great benefit of networking is the knowledge and information you will receive from other professionals in various different fields. Your public speaking skills will also improve with practice.

Drawbacks

There are several strict rules and guidelines that members in BNI have to abide by. Some of these rules include: Only one member from each profession or industry are aloud into a BNI Chapter. You are only aloud to miss two meetings per year. Members of a designated chapter are not aloud to visit other chapters. This is called cross chapter networking.

Costs and Start-up

BNI recruits business owners to start chapter networking groups in their community. The presidents receive training to start and run a networking group. The president of the new chapter receives a free membership for the first year of the group starting up. The president position is rotated every year through an election process. The president does not receive any compensation for running the group. The membership cost for BNI members is $330 with an additional first year registration fee of $100.

Conclusion

BNI has been a very successful business model for many years and seems to be very effective for small business owners to generate referrals. The only real problem that I see with BNI is their inability to pay the presidents that run and manage the group. The presidents do a lot of work soliciting and recruiting potential members to the group. They are benefiting for their business, however this takes a great deal of time away from them actually running their business.

There are many competitive business networking groups out their and BNI is definitely the largest networking organization out there. I would make sure to research diligently and choose the right networking group for yourself.

There is a new business networking organization that is looking to revolutionize the networking arena. The Biz Society is based on a social networking platform and pays their presidents 20% of all membership. This organization allows any business professional to start a group in their area. They give them the tools and instruction on how to start and run a successful group.

Before getting our teeth into this subject I think that it is important to qualify that in my opinion business networking does actually work. I have said it many times, it’s not a quick way of getting sales leads but it is a way of getting quality referrals and by that I mean that a referral is a lead that has been qualified.

Subscribe to an organisation like Glenigan and you can have a multitude of leads to follow up but my experience is that many of the leads are a dead end. Working by referral however results in not just a meeting with a potential client who is interested in your product or service but also that client is interested in buying the product or service from you. The reason for this of course is because you already have a good working relationship with the person who’s provided you with the referral.

Because it’s a referral based on a genuine business need, it’s unlikely that your going to get a lead like this every day but at least you can attack it safe in the knowledge that there’s every chance that you can turn it into a sale.

In essence, the message is quality and not quantity. Relationships built on trust over a number of months really can deliver the quality that you are looking for.

So getting back to the plot, I’ve posed the question whether Business networking International or BNI as it is more familiarly known works and by that I mean in comparison with other business networking organisations.

I suspect the answer is “no” so I’m going to have to explain what I mean and why I think that this is the case.

Dependent on the business networking events that you attend there are a number of differing formats to the meeting. Some business networking groups have a very structured format to the meeting whereas others are more relaxed yet it’s BNI that is at the more structured end; Structured even to the extent that you must bring in at least one referral to every meeting.

I guess that this structure at least makes sure that every member is committed to their business networking group but is it correct to prioritise quantity over quality? If you genuinely haven’t got a referral to give and you’re under pressure to offer one, what are you going to do? If it were me, I’d be offering half a lead, a name I’d come across during the week, certainly something that less than what should be a fully qualified referral.

To that end I’ve got to question whether BNI is the organisation for me. I don’t want something that’s completely relaxed with no structure but I do want to ensure that when I give a referral (or get one for that matter) it’s out of a genuine need to help one of my fellow colleagues and not simply in order to meet my quota. I wouldn’t thank anyone for wasting my time so I’m not prepared to waste the time of my colleagues.
That said, for many people the structure that BNI offers works for them, after all they are one of if not the largest business networking organisation globally so they must be doing something right. But if you sympathize with and understand where my business networking advice is coming from then maybe try one of the alternative organisations.

International business is all business transactions-private and governmental-that involve two or more countries. Why should one be interested in studying international business? The simplest answer is that international business comprises a large and growing portion of the world’s total business. Today, almost all companies, large or small, are affected by global events and competition because most sell output to and/or secure suppliers from foreign countries and/or compete against products and services that come from abroad.

More companies that engage in some form of international business are involved in exporting and importing than in any other type of business transaction. Many of the international business experts argue that exporting is a logical process with a natural structure, which can be viewed primarily as a method of understanding the target country’s environment, using the appropriate marketing mix, developing a marketing plan based upon the use of the mix, implementing a plan through a strategy and finally, using a control method to ensure the strategy is adhered to. This exporting process is reviewed and evaluated regularly and modifications are made to the use of the mix, to take account of market changes impacting upon competitiveness. This view seems to suggest that much of the international business theory related to enterprises, which are internationally based and have global ambitions, does often change depending on the special requirements of each country.

Another core issue is the company’s growth and the importance of networking and interaction. This view looks at the way in which companies and organisations interact and consequently network with each other to gain commercial advantage in world markets. The network can be using similar subcontractors or components, sharing research and development costs or operating within the same governmental framework. Clearly, when businesses formulate a trading block with no internal barriers they are actually creating their own networks. Collaborations in aerospace, vehicle manufactures and engineering have all sponsored the development of a country’s or a group of countries’ outlook based on their own internal market network. This network and interaction approach to internationalisation shows the substance of being able to influence decisions when knowing how the global network players work or interact.

For example, a crucial market network is that of the Middle East. Middle East countries are rich, diverse markets, with a vibrant and varied cultural heritage. This means that although there has been a harmonisation process during the past few years, differences still exist. Rather than business being simpler as a result, it should be recognised that because of regulations and the need those countries have to restructure as they enter the global market, performing any kind of business can be highly complex. It should be remembered though that the Middle-Eastern countries have a low-income average and like to have their cultural differences recognised. Those firms that will or have recognised these facts have a good chance of developing a successful marketing strategy to meet their needs. Fortunately some firms have realised these important differences and reacted adequately when strategic decisions had to be made regarding their penetration to this kind of markets.

International Silver Network, or ISN as it is better known is the latest company to make stake a claim in the gold and silver MLM landscape.   ISN went live on January 1st, 2011 positioning themselves between the top tier numismatic coin companies and those companies offering silver bullion.  The primary competitors for ISN are Preservation of Wealth and Numis Network.

International Silver Network has chosen to focus on the promotion of MS 69 American Silver Eagle coins.   ISN has done this for a couple of stated reasons.  First of all ISN believes that an MS 69 coin offers protection from potential government seizures of precious metals, because it is considered a collectors item.  Secondarily, the cost of an MS 69 is much closer to that of silver bullion, therefore it is considered by ISN to be much more attractive to bullion investors.

ISN offers 3 levels of enrollment.  The first level is a Preferred Customer level.  This level is designed for those who want to accumulate coins on a regular basis, but are not interested in a home business opportunity.   Preferred Customers receive an automatic shipment of one MS 69 graded coin each month at 10% off of the current retail price.  The next enrollment level is the Direct Sales Rep level.  At this level, the individual pays a small monthly fee for the back office and marketing tools, but they do not receive any monthly shipments of silver.  Direct Sales Reps receive commissions on all tier 1 and tier 2 sales.   The third enrollment level offered by International Silver Network is the Collector Rep level.   Collector Reps receive a monthly coin shipment as well as access to the back office and all of the business building tools made available by ISN.    A Collector Rep is eligible to earn compensation up to eight levels deep with unlimited width.  They are also eligible to earn from the global bonus pools offered by the company.

The compensation plan offered by International Silver Network has four basic components.  The first component is the Unilevel Commission.  The Unilevel Commission pays 5% on all commissionable team volume up to eight levels deep on all qualifying tiers.   The next component of the compensation plan is Rolling Compensation Bonus.  This bonus is paid on the tier of the organization with the most commissionable sales for the month.  The third component of the ISN compensation plan is the Global Pool.   A Collector Rep is eligible for this pool once they have personally enrolled 4 additional Collector Reps.  The final piece of the compensation plan is retail profit.  This is simply the difference between the Collector Rep cost and the retail sales price of a particular coin.   Other incentives will be awarded from time to time based on the productivity of a Collector Rep and their business team.

As with any of the gold and silver network marketing companies, it is important that a prospective ISN rep understand the principles of building a profitable network marketing business.   Although gold and silver are in high demand, a prospective rep will need to position their business in such a way that they are able to effectively connect with other prospective reps.   The market for an International Silver Network business will primarily be with other network marketers and those who are purchasing limited quantities of metals.