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Source: Partner’s Report—the Monthly Update for CPA Firm Owners
Improve networking by avoiding the following mistakes:
- Don’t network indiscriminately. Network with people who potentially will refer clients.
- View networking not as an end in itself, but rather as a way to increase business. Prepare an action plan that includes how you plan to be of value to those with whom you network.
- Ask for introductions. Unless your contact helps set the appointment for you, the referral will be tantamount to a cold call.
- Create a team of other professionals. Introduce team members to prospects or other referral sources even though you get no direct referral yourself.
- Think of your contacts as partners helping each other grow. Work with a small group of people committed to each other, rather than with a wide group of people who are not.
From Partner’s Report—the Monthly Update for CPA Firm Owners, October 2005, p. 9. For subscription information contact Institute of Management & Administration, Inc., 3 Park Avenue, 30th Floor, New York, NY 10016-5902. One-year subscription $329. 212-244-0360, [email protected] |
