The Path to Success Starts with a Handshake

Professional networking is the key to unlocking the vault to all of those unadvertised business opportunities presented through personal introductions. To grow your business or your career, it is essential to focus on continually expanding your circle of friends and associates. Connections with the right people will speed you along the path to success.

Do you and your company have a networking strategy?

P. W. Elcoat & Associates Ltd. has developed interactive techniques that create, build and sustain mutually beneficial relationships through networking. We work with business professionals and individuals to plan and execute a course of action to identify and connect with resources of opportunity.

P. W. Elcoat & Associates Ltd. Skills Summary:

• Identifying ways to maximise the visibility of your company
• Establishing best practices for promoting your company and yourself without being seen as a sales person
• Learning how to identify and connect with key business contacts
• The essential skills required for upward mobility in today's competitive world can be learned through our targeted Services

P. W. Elcoat & Associates Ltd. Training Services:

The One Hour Workshop – An entertaining and informative talk on networking

Interactive Workshops - Programs include exercises where participants practice their newly acquired networking skills

Role Playing Sessions - Provide a greater opportunity for interaction and testing your progress through real life scenarios

Convention and Trade Show Preparation - Prepare your event team with the tools they need to engage prospects and increase your opportunity to secure new business

One to One - For those who prefer to learn networking in a 'low exposure' environment prior to getting out there and testing their skills

We offer tailor made programs designed specifically for the needs of your organisation and develop each program to meet the needs of the audience. Some examples would include working with management teams who want to polish their networking skills to build business, career centres and outplacement firms to help their candidate's network for a job or a promotion, and preparing teams for a trade show or conference.

If your palms sweat at the thought of a room full of strangers or you are unsure how to 'mobilise' your existing network, we offer the tips to successful networking whilst allowing you to maintain your individual style. 

Our courses will cover all or a combination of the following topics:

The Basics

These are the basic essentials for those who want to be skilled in the art of networking.

What is networking – good and bad practice

Your packing list – preparing for success

Name badges – the first impression

Business card tips – the lasting impression

Handshakes – the good, the bad and the ugly

Body language – what hidden messages could you be sending

Working the room

Following up – email, telephone calls, voicemail and letters

Developing a Strategy

After mastering the basics, what are the best ways to use your skills to meet the right people and ask the right questions?

Selecting the right event

What is your goal

Introducing yourself

Discovering if the person you are talking with is a decision maker

Ways to end a conversation without being rude

Following up and the difference between persistence and stalking

One to One Techniques

One to one networking is challenging whether it is on the telephone or in person. This session will prepare you for these opportunities and how to maximise them.

Best times to call or meet

Planning the message before the call or meeting

How to introduce yourself

What to say

Setting expectations

How long to talk

Determining next steps

Evaluating the success of the call or meeting

Expanding your Network

What do you do with all of those business cards? Efficient organisation of your contacts will benefit everyone in your network.

How to organise your network

Using MS Outlook

Finding hidden opportunities

How to reconnect with contacts from the past

Where to best spend your time and with whom

Increasing your visibility - speaking opportunities, professional institutes and volunteering

'Ask not what the network can do for you, ask what you can do for the network'

Conference and Trade Show Preparation

The networking basics

Networking techniques at conferences and social events

Feeling confident when approaching people

Time wasters and buyers – sorting them out

Asking strategic questions

Your packing list – preparing for success

The networking 'one hour workshop'

This entertaining program is perfect when time is limited as it can be delivered in an hour. Guaranteed to motivate your team and leave them with simple techniques to 'get networking'.

What is networking

The unadvertised opportunities bank

Why networking doesn't come naturally

Introductions and the 30 second commercial

The Handshake

Small talk

How to spot a 'nervous networker'

How to look like a professional networker

The business card exchange

How to pick organizations to join

Which events to attend

How to reconnect with people

Exit strategies

See Also:

Training Courses

Profiles