It is interesting to look around at all the fantastic business networking organizations out there, offering so many benefits and so much help to SMB's, yet some of these groups do fail.
The Small BusinessCommunity Network's first Chapter came to be in November 2003, and this is one business networking organization that has continued to grow and offer help to SMB's over the past 8 years. Sadly many business networking groups are started and fail, and this could be for a number of reasons:
- The group has no structure, long and short term goals.
- Lack of leadership and vision. At least one organizer should be able to offer leadership and a vision.
- Resists change. Nothing can or should stay the same, growth is healthy. Offering the same programs time after time, and not looking at the needs of the attendees shows a lack of enthusiam and could be seen as not caring about the organization.
- Seeing the opportunity as a fast way to make money. Business networking groups need time to gain credibility and gain exposure. Rushing the process can only lead to failure.
- Lack of support. This can be from the organizers or the local SMB's. Not knowing your target market and failing to connect with SMB's.
- Failing to keep the fees affordable. Obviously expenses need to be paid but many SMB's do not have a budget for anything let alone networking.
There IS enough to go around, business networking organizations are very important at all stages of business growth and attending events on a regular basis is crucial in order to become known, be consistent and build relationships based on trust. I know from my own experiences that business networking is a very personal thing, and some people may feel comfortable at a very large event, whilst others prefer the more intimate setting. In the end it is about offering a a good menu, via all the different business networking organizations and people will pick and chose what is right for them. Monopoly is not a word I like to hear in the sense of business networking, everyone is individual and has different needs so there should never be just one event, or just one way to network.
The Small Business Community Network put a lot of throught into the name when we first thought of the idea 8 years ago.
- Small - we wanted to offer networking opportunities to SMB's - this could range from the sole proprietor right up to 500 employees.
- Community - the word community has gained in popularity of the past few years. a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, The word can also refer to the national community or international community Since the advent of the Internet, the concept of community no longer has geographical limitations, as people can now virtually gather in an online community and share common interests regardless of physical location.
-- Wikipedia
The SBCN knew that we could combine face to face networking and online networking, via social media sites with our own groups and this fits in perfectly with our desire to help a larger community of people, globally and smaller communities local to our Chapters.
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