Fraternising With The Competition – It’s Good for You.

August 3, 2008 7:29 pm admin Networking

I received an email recently seeking my networking guidance, it went on to ask… “I am a solicitor and thinking about becoming a member of a networking organisation, should I find out how many other solicitors are members of the group before I join and if there is too much competition? Melissa

Dear Melissa,
Even if the networking group you are considering joining had over 100 solicitors as current members you should NOT be using this to calculate the value you will gain from also joining. Fraternising with your competition can pay dividends. I’ll expand out with a few pointers on what I mean.

The 80/20 Rule:  Joining an organisation is easy for anyone to do, it’s what happens after and how actively you participate that will decide the outcomes of your networking activities. Only 20% of people can be bothered actually doing anything, so this wipes out 80% of your competition straight away.

What Competition?: Most people prefer to do business with someone they can relate to. None of us can be everything to everyone. In the end it’s about giving people options for where they do business. Therefore, it’s very important to always be surrounded by your competition so potential clients have the opportunity to benchmark your products, services and personality type against others.

Big Picture: Networking and mixing with your competition can lead to many opportunities including the sharing of information, clients and future job prospects just for starters.

Connections: Networking is not about selling, it’s about developing relationships that are supportive of commonly shared goals. So the reality is that you could network effectively in a room full of solicitors and gain much value – but it might not necessarily be an outright sale – but it could lead to you securing one down the track now you are skilled up with new concepts, ideas and competitor knowledge all gained through networking.

I would love to hear your comments. And if you’ve been fraternising with the competition and had a win let me know.

Lynette Palmen AM is the Founder and Managing Director of Women’s Network Australia, the leading business and professional women’s networking organisation in the Nation. Subscribe FREE to WNA’s weekly eNoticeBoard

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Contributed by Lynette Palmen.   Lynette Palmen AM is the Founder and Managing Director or Women's Network Australia. She started WNA 20 years ago to offer support, inspiration and services that would inspire women to succeed in their career and business endeavours. WNA is now the Nation's premier networking organisation for business and professional women. T: 1800 052 476.

Lynette Palmen has written 43 article(s) for us.

Visit http://womensnetwork.com.au

  • I wholeheartedly agree that socialising with competitors is a great idea! Not only have I developed strong friendships with my competitors, our relationships have breathed credibility into our industry. These competitor relationships have twice grown into business acquisitions too. Clients look at you with more respect if you don't rubbish the competition, but can instead play nicely.
  • I think just like you, it is actually an advantage to be able to socialise with competitors. There is always something to learn from others.
  • Networking is definitely about developing relationships. I have learnt that if you do somthing for the person you have met, however small, it will come back to you in the future. I have met many people at conferences where I present workshops in time management and productivity and de-cluttering, with the organisation Inspired Honey. I usually check out the person's website and will often forward it onto friends or clients if I think it may interest them. They remember me more in the future. And my contacts benefit too. It's win-win for everyone. if only life was always like that :)
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