NetWeaving – “Good things happen to people who. . .MAKE good things happen”
“When you open up the door for someone else, you never know who YOU will meet as a
result”
Bob Littell, Chief NetWeaver chiefnetweaver@gmail.com
The Enrichment Company and NetWeavers International
Part 4 – NetWeaving Referrals vs. Hosting Meetings – The Big Differences
Most persons in sales will tell you that the secret to success is working referrals rather than cold
calls. In a traditional sales and marketing framework, that means getting OTHERS to refer
business to YOU, rather than simply calling people cold whom you don’t know and who don’t
know you. When you are in a NetWeaver’s mindset and you’re talking about referrals, you must
change your entire perspective.
It’s not about getting someone to send YOU referrals, it’s all about putting OTHER people
together, and YOU are the referrer.
In short, virtual referrals and hosting meetings involve connecting together two (or more) other
people just because you have reason to believe they would benefit from meeting each other - in
a business, family, or personal context.
The connection can either be strategic. . .meaning you already anticipate HOW they may be able
to work together for their mutual benefit, OR the connection can be non-strategic . . .meaning
these are just two good people whom you believe are givers, not takers, and you have faith that
they will find ways they can help each other and discover people they know in common whom
they never would have guessed had you not made the connection. Some of the most fun
connections I have ever made (virtual referrals, or hosting meetings), have been non-strategic.
There are 3 levels of virtual referrals and then hosting meetings are level 4.
Level 1 Referral (Loaning your good name) – you simply give someone the
name (and probably phone number) of someone else whom you
believe that person would benefit from meeting. All you’re doing is
allowing the other person to use YOUR good name as a means of
entry. You are leaving everything else up to them.
You’re talking with John on the phone: “John, you know while we
were talking, I just thought of someone I know whom you need to
meet. Her name is Mary Jones. Here’s her phone number. Give
her a call. Tell her I told you to call her.”
Level 2 Referral (Loan your good name plus include a note) - in addition
to loaning your good name and reputation to one of the two persons
whom you are suggesting should meet, you also send an email or a
personal letter to the other person with a bio/resume and info on his/her
company, and possibly saying some nice things about the person with
whom you’re wanting to connect them, and describing why you think
the two would benefit from meeting.
You’re talking with John on the phone: “John, you know while we
were talking, I just thought of someone I know whom you need to
meet. Her name is Mary Jones. Why don’t you send me your bio and
some information on your company and I’ll forward that on to her with a
note from me saying to expect a call from you. Here’s her phone number.
Give her a call. Remind her I said in my note you would be calling.”
Level 3 Referral (Good name, plus note, plus phone call) – in addition to loaning
your good name and writing a note or email, you follow that note up with
a personal phone call to further validate the importance of the person’s
worth and the value in meeting the other person. You can also do this
right on the spot with a 3-way phone introduction. The strength of a
phone call from you could also eliminate the need for sending a note or
email.
You’re talking with John on the phone: “John, you know while we
were talking, I just thought of someone I know whom you need to
meet. Her name is Mary Jones. Why don’t you send me your bio and
some information on your company and I’ll forward that on to her with a
note from me saying to expect a call from you. Here’s her phone number.
Give her a call. Remind her I said in my note you would be calling.”
“In fact, I’ll tell you what John. . .do you have a few minutes right now;
let me see if I can get Mary on the phone and I’ll introduce the two of
you and suggest why I think the two of you should meet.”
Level 4 Hosting (NetWeaving at its best) – Even though the effectiveness and
benefits derived from any of the above referral connections are good, they
dwarf in comparison to mixing in one or two NetWeaving hosting meetings a
week.
Why is hosting a NetWeaving meeting so superior to just making a referral?
1. With any of the referral levels, you’re leaving the work of setting up the meeting to the two
others (although sometimes in Level 3, you can actually help set up the meeting at time
of introduction). With hosting, you are the one doing the work of setting up the meeting
and it IS work, with everyone’s busy schedules and sometimes needing to address the
questions of, “Why are you doing this?” and “How am I going to benefit from meeting this
other person?”
2. With hosting, at the initial meeting, you give a little overview of WHY you felt the other
two persons would benefit from meeting each other, and actually explain a little bit about
the whole NetWeaving philosophy. You could even explain more about the concept and
skill sets if and when you are comfortable doing so. This sets the tone of the meeting as
one of, “How can I help you?” We suggest that you go to the NetWeaving website:
www.netweaving.com and download two copies of the NetWeaver’s Creed and hand a
copy to each of the two people who you have connected. Just watch their faces as they
finally understand why you have brought them together
3. With “hosting”, you are there to experience the magic and energy that almost always
flows forth, once the parties start talking. But, what is most interesting is that in the vast
majority of cases, I’ve found that the most significant thing or things the two people find in
common, or the key benefits derived from being introduced, are not what you had
assumed up front when you set up the meeting. They often discover persons they know
in common - go to the same church - belong to the same club, or have same hobbies,
etc. OR they discover ways they can help each other. . .with connections and/or
resources you never would have thought about.
There’s a Middle Ground
Although physically hosting a meeting in person is always best, time constraints and demands, as
well as distances prevent this from being something which can always be done.
If you are in your twenties or early thirties and don’t yet have a family; are still developing your
skills as a communicator and especially as a matchmaker, you could, and I recommend, should
spend 50% or more of your time hosting meetings for others and by age forty, you’ll be wellknown and probably wealthy beyond your wildest dreams.
But, there’s a middle ground which everyone should practice and do more often. It involves doing
Level 2 and 3 referrals (sending an introductory email and/or calling one of the parties to
recommend that they meet with the other party), and if possible, making a 3-way introduction over
the phone.
So, “Level 2 and 3 referrals” and “telephone 3-way hosting” are the next best things to “in-person”
hosting and start thinking about people whom you should introduce and connect, simply because
you believe they would benefit from knowing each other.
And interestingly, at the end of almost every “hosting” meeting, one or both of the persons who
have been connected by you, will turn the table on you and ask, “Now how can we help YOU?”