 Welcome to The Journey. Today we're going to discuss the importance of joining a professional network. This is my co-host, Sam, and I'm going to start off with just grilling, Sam. What is a professional network? So, it's a business networking group that has some mandatory monthly meetings where they come together in person so that they can connect. And now, with the help of technology, they're also online. All right, Sam, thanks for breaking down the definition. But I'm a busy gal. You listening in. I'm sure you're busy as well. So I just got to know so I can prioritize what are the benefits of joining a professional network? There's many that go into that. One is increased referrals. Word-of-mouth referrals are worth their weight in gold because the people that you're referred to, they trust you. That makes sense. Think about it with photography. I have a lot of friends who are photographers. And I've seen this happen time and time again. One of my friends, they do mostly like models. They shoot for fashion. And they get approached with, hey, will you shoot my wedding? I don't do wedding photography, but my friend, Kelly, is a great wedding photographer, great referral, and it's very trustworthy. So next is improving your SEO, how you show up online. So being part of a professional network, you're now included in their social channels. It can show up in articles that they write and even on their website. Oh, great point. Sam also makes me think of social media. I know with social media networks and groups and events, they have a chance to then get more exposure because they might post a photo from that event. And then just imagine if that gets shared or other people comment, just more traction and more exposure to help build your network. So the next thing is it's also good for a confidence boost. Having that allows you to be able to take that little, you know, boosting your confidence to the next thing. And when you get into that next client meeting, you're able to crush it like a champ. So next is being connected to your competition. It's okay to be connected to those that are still in the same industry as you because there's some benefits there. Yeah, you can add back to my friend who does wedding photography. I know that she's very active about going to specific events for photography to see what her competition is doing. There's a lot of wedding photographers out there. And it just helps her to know, how can she stay ahead? What should she be doing to market herself on social media with her website? How she's setting that up? Maybe even how she's booking clients and deciding on who to choose. I know she separated herself in wedding photography by really focusing on the gay and lesbian community as well. And so this is something that really set her apart and that's where she gets a lot of her clients because she focuses on that. So next is being connected to other business owners, other experts like you and your field. You don't have to know everything yourself. You can actually tap into that and figure out what they know so that can increase your knowledge as well. So next is inspiration to succeed. Connecting and bouncing ideas off of others can allow you to come up with ideas that may never crossed your mind before. Yeah, actually that brings up a personal win that I had recently which brought me here. Same for you, Sam. I expressed the interest after people was doing a lot of public speaking and webinars and it just took one person that came up to me. It was like, this is really effective, but have you ever thought about doing video? And I was like, it's crossed my mind, but no, not really. And then it was just like domino effect. I started talking to more people about it who are in the industry or worked in video. One thing led to another. I was inspired and here we are today. And also, let's not forget about face-to-face networking. So we have some tips there. Face-to-face is still alive and well. And some takeaways that I learned from my own experience with networking and my industry is having a meaningful conversation. You know, we're often so quick to hand out the business card and take someone else's, but I'm all about leaving something a memorable effect, if you will. So bring a little bit more personality or a personal story to the table and passion. And also just listen to that other person. You're like, I would go around trade shows, hop into different booths, talking to different companies that inspired me that I had hoped to work with or do a webinar with. But if I just went up to their booth and just pitched them webinars, I'm just sounding like a robot. So it made a point to make good eye contact, listen to them, have something of conversation that's totally off topic of webinars and just something memorable. Also, just how are you enjoying your time in Las Vegas or wherever we are? What do you think about Las Vegas? And just have a conversation. Yeah, just be a person. So Emma, I have a way that I network in person and I would love to show you. So say you had a networking event and you know you had a great conversation, then told you how you enjoy the conference that you were at, and now it comes that pivotal moment, business card. So Emma just gave me her business card and now I'm going to make a memorable gesture. So Emma, I'm going to actually send you my business card, but it's digital. So you go to your cell phone and you already have it pulled up because you want to save time. And I have a template that I just send out. I've already known what conference we were at. It was the International Coffee Roasters and Skateboarding Conference. It was very fitting for me to be there. Of course. And then once I send it to her, I'm going to make sure that I open it up and I'll show her what it looks like so she knows what to look for when she sees it as my picture. So, you know, how many times do you get? That's you. That is me. That's your wife. Exactly. Because that's my brand. That's what makes me, me, myself, me unique having me stand out. And then I'll make sure I go back to that message. And here's the key. I say, Hey, Emma, let me make sure I save you in my contacts so that they know that I'm genuinely interested in connecting. And then I do what we call taking an Aussie. So we'll go here. You ever heard of that? No, probably not. And we'll go and we'll take a little photo. Make sure I get my good side where the beard connects. Let's do that again. Okay. And it got my good side. It's mostly a photo of him. Of course. It's all about me. And then we save it. And then you save the contact in your phone and you're good to go. You're golden. That's how you make yourself memorable because at the end of the day, we all want people to know that when we're talking to them, they're actually taking a note of what we're saying and we want them to keep in touch with us. Also, the photo comes in handy because I know when I have gone to trade shows and I get back to my office and then I pull out all these business cards. I'm like, who is what where? I don't know where to start. So I have to send this generic email follow up. Hey, saw you at the coffee skateboarding expo. We had a nice conversation. Anyways, email me back and let's set up a call. It's so generic. Exactly. You want to be more specific and make sure that you let that person know that you were genuinely interested in connecting. All right. Thank you, Sam, for showing me that definitely is a game changer in my networking world. I do want to point out a few more face to face marketing tips starting with quality over quantity. Definitely can't talk about that a lot. I do as well in general, especially with social media, but it's important when it comes to face to face conversation. Also, connect with the organizer. This can be really beneficial to know about the purpose of the event that you're at as well as being aware of future events. In addition to that, always plan a polite escape. Polite, Sam, polite. So leave us a comment below and let us know what professional network are you currently in or would you like to join? Also, be sure to like this video, subscribe and ring that bell so you know when the next video comes out. This is The Journey. We'll see you next time.