Even if you’re great at networking you may struggle with maintaining business relationships. It can be a struggle to keep up with those contacts that you have met in various different circumstances. Your App Lady and networking extraordinaire, Betsy Furler, joins the My Biz Bestie podcast to discuss the power of networking and the often forgotten role of maintaining business relationships. Listen in to this conversation to learn from Betsy’s expertise and discover how important networking and maintaining relationships are.
Betsy is a speech pathologist that turned into Your App Lady
Betsy Furler is a speech pathologist with a passion for helping people with disabilities. Her work in speech pathology has led her to connect with many people with disabilities. This led her to help companies create disability-friendly workplaces. She loves apps and is passionate about the use of apps and technology to help those with disabilities. Her company, For All Abilities, helps people with disabilities navigate challenges in the workplace and brings disability awareness to workplaces around the world. Listen to this episode to hear how
TWEET THIS: BUILD GENUINE RELATIONSHIPS, NOT JUST BUSINESS CONTACTS. THAT’S THE KEY TO BUSINESS #NETWORKING
You may want to rethink taking a break over the holidays
Many people take a break from their business and networking over the holidays. But Betsy learned that even during downtime networking can lead to real payoffs. She shares a story about how continuing to network over the holidays paid off in a big way. She attended one networking event which led to another and ended up making connections which sparked a domino effect. That one networking decision to attend an event during Christmastime landed her 4 amazing meetings with people that were highly connected all over the world in her field. Those 4 meetings resulted in 2 consulting gigs.
Build genuine relationships, not just business contacts
Betsy is not a shy person she is the epitome of an extrovert. She knows a lot of people and loves to meet people randomly. The great thing about Betsy is that she speaks to everyone as if they are her best friend. What makes her conversations different from many other people is that she always exchanges her contact information and stays in touch with the people she meets. Betsy is intentional about continuing the connections she has made. She loves to nurture those connections and build real relationships. She is genuinely interested in people’s lives, not just as business connections.
The importance of maintaining business relationships
Betsy understands just how important it is to maintain business relationships. She knows that networking doesn’t stop at attending conferences and cocktail parties. To maintain her professional relationships she keeps track of her contacts by using a simple spreadsheet. She tried different apps but found the best way to keep track of her networking contacts is with a spreadsheet. She has columns for their name, their contact information, where she met them, when they met, and other interesting information about the contact. She keeps it updated as she gets to know them. She goes through the spreadsheet about once a month. She is trying to be more intentional about nurturing her relationships with people on a more regular basis. Learn how to create and maintain business relationships on this episode of My Biz Bestie with Betsy Furler.
In this episode…
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[3:12] You never know when networking will pay off
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[9:57] What makes Betsy’s network so amazing?
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[14:45] A cautionary tale about keeping track of connections
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[18:09] A simple spreadsheet is all she needs to keep track of her networking
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[21:25] How she met a group of tech company CEO’s
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[26:27] Betsy only attends conferences where she could make connections
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[37:09] Look for paid events
Connect with Betsy Furler
Connect With Maelisa and Amber
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