Referral marketing is word-of-mouth recommendation at its best in the business world. If you’re looking to grow your business, visiting referral marketing events in Lancashire could be the answer.
Company owners and personnel in a sales, marketing or new business development role attend regular meetings (online or in-person). The purpose of attending such events is to build professional relationships with a view to gaining new opportunities that wouldn’t otherwise be presented.
As people get to know each other, a like and trust culture develops. Seeing people in a professional business environment every couple of weeks and learning about their respective professions helps to build trust and credibility.
The benefit of professional networking is clearly visible as tangible opportunities appear within a few months – often sooner. These opportunities take the form of working collaborations, sharing of knowledge, support across social media and online platforms, and of course, new leads and sales.
Everyone is welcome to attend a referral marketing event to see if the format and culture works for them. It doesn’t always and that’s OK.
As a visitor to a referral marketing event, you shouldn’t feel any pressure to make a decision to join. Or even to return for a second visit if you feel uncomfortable. A first-time visit can be a little confusing if you’ve never experienced a meeting of this nature before because the format is new. You should, however, gain a sense as to whether it’s an environment you could prosper in after the first visit.
Many referral marketing groups operate on a sector-exclusive basis which means that only one company within a specific business sector can attend. As an example, if a solicitor joins a Lancashire referral marketing group then that person locks out the possibility of any other solicitor visiting the group during the period of their membership.
There will be differences in how business networking clubs and referral marketing meetings are run across Lancashire (and nationally). This will depend on the organisation running the meeting and whether they are held online or in-person.
Meetings may be industry-specific or form part of a larger exhibition format. Typically they are held at a local level with a membership model in place. The membership or advocacy structure can include a trial period of three months but you will normally need to invest in a twelve-month term.
Often, a two-visit sample is available where you can experience the entire meeting before you need to make a decision to join. A nominal fee will probably be requested to cover the cost of food and drink.
Refreshments range from coffee and cake to a full meal depending on the time of day the meeting takes place. You can choose from breakfast, brunch, lunch or an early evening meeting in most cases.
Most networking groups in Lancashire will start with open networking before a structured segment.
The structured part of the meeting will give advocates and guests the chance to introduce themselves and talk about who they are looking to do business with, who they can help and why.
You may also experience a short break, a longer presentation from one of the advocates and a contribution section towards the end of the meeting. In the latter section, advocates share valuable inputs as to how they have helped or have been helped as a result of attending the meetings. As a guest, this is a chance for you to see the return on investment gained from referral marketing. You will hear members talking about invoiced business, partnership opportunities and support gained.
NetworkIN is a referral marketing community that includes a level of business networking.
NetworkIN focus on building team groups of around 20-25 people. The numbers are important because if a referral marketing group becomes too big the intimacy involved in a flourishing long-term relationship is lost and your time input may far outweighs your financial gain.
Attending a networking event will increase the awareness of you and your company within the area you want to gain business from – in this case, Lancashire.
Being part of the NetworkIN referral marketing organisation enables advocates to tap into a huge number of benefits including:
Regular structured meetings
A chance to build your credibility
Free introductory training and business planning
The opportunity to publicise your own events and courses
Access to a return on investment tracking system
Sector exclusivity to become the go-to expert in your field
Additional publicity using online promotional resources
Corporate social responsibility opportunities to work alongside the NetworkIN charity consortium
NetworkIN is a thriving business community with fortnightly meetings held across Lancashire, Staffordshire and Cheshire.
Breakfast or mid-morning meetings are available and guests can sample up to two meetings to see if the referral marketing concept will work for their business.
Advocates who join NetworkIN are skilled individuals from a variety of sectors. They look out for each other, pass on sales opportunities and work as collaborators for the benefit of their respective businesses.
Lancashire Teams are currently located in the areas of Tameside, and Manchester and the surrounding towns of Altrincham, Stockport and Cheadle Royal.
The North West England county of Lancashire has a population of around 1,500,000 and is referred to as a ceremonial county. The area is known for its Lancashire hotpot and butter pie and is the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. The county has good transport links and is close to Manchester and Liverpool airport. It is a relatively new county and does not appear in the Doomsday book!
If the referral marketing way looks like the opportunity for you to get out there and raise awareness, get in touch with the team today.
Be IN the know and IN the now with NetworkIN.
percent of consumers identify word of mouth as a key influencer in their purchasing decision – Ogilvy, Google, TNS.
percent higher profit margins are achieved from a referred customer - Annexcloud
percent increased marketing effectiveness generated using from word of mouth - Market Share
percent of consumers trust referrals from people they know - Nielsen
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
More information about our Cookie Policy
