Driving back from London the other day my car felt odd all of a sudden and then a vibration, having stopped to check no flat tyres etc I carried on but it only got worse and then a grinding so at 8pm I stopped on the M6 Toll and called the RAC.

Only a few weeks before I had been contemplating stopping my membership, I drive a fairly new car which is regularly serviced and so does the rest of the family. My car also has run flat tyres to I can drive home even with a puncture!

So the problem was a blow out and even on run flats there was no way I could drive with a hole in the inner wall so big I could put my hand in it! The RAC was brilliant and we got home on a spare wheel they had by about 11.30pm.

Why is this of importance to my business blog? Well I hear quite often from FSB members “I haven’t needed the services, I have an accountant that can tell me that information or I will never use it”.

However, The FSB is just like the RAC at times. You hope you will not need it but when you do you are really pleased you were a member.

We also have members who will call the advice line every single week and there is nothing wrong with that at all, in fact we encourage. The RAC on the other hand maybe suggesting you buy a new car!

So apart from tyre problems, last week was not the usual run of networking meetings as we started off with our rejuvenated Women In Enterprise event at Veenos in Manchester. What an event we had, the inspirational Cody Gapare who built her very successful business C-Lash out of necessity and a refusal to give up. The whole event was organised by the effervescent Merce Cozens who’s never ending enthusiasm is refreshing and contagious.  The event was hosted once again by Heather Gray who goes out of her way to make sure she gets the best out of our guests.

Tuesday saw me and Regional Chair of the FSB in the North West Chris Manka attending the Chairman’s dinner for Pro Manchester . An organisation who gets Manchester businesses together for the benefit of the Mancunian Economy. Some great stories were heard and lengthy discussions about how we could improve the challenges businesses face. Big thanks to the Lowry Hotel for hosting the event.

Due to family commitments on Wednesday I was sorry to miss Leonherman’s quarterly meeting at the Met always a good sociable event with business in the background.

Thursday was the usual 6.15am start for the breakfast meeting I have attended for a client for the last 12 months which unfortunately is coming to an end and then it was straight over to attend a new group to me Old Links New Links in Bolton. I had been kindly invited by Peter Cunliffe of Fieldings Porter. I hadn’t realised that I was the guest speaker! I had only mentioned the other day to a client I am no good when I don’t have notes but when you haven’t got a presentation too. Pleased to say my 10-15 minute presentation was probably better than the one with slides talking about the work Premium Collections do and the benefits of the FSB which was well received and plenty of questions too.

Once a month we have a SUBS meeting in Altrincham a unique concept in networking where the event is free laid on by local businesses who pay a subscription to be highlighted and seen as giving something back to the business community . David Bellin and Steph Tucker get 60 local business owners in the room and it is two hours on introductions and presentations which is always well received.

David is now selling the franchises and I have said I will help him to find suitable candidates so if you are thinking of new ways of promoting your business with a small amount of residual income then let me know.

So if you are thinking of cancelling a membership to an organisation check out the benefits you receive and if you think there is the slightest chance you may need these services then think very hard before cancelling.

So we are all about networking this week and a few questions first.

Why go networking? Does it do any good and is it worth the effort?

So why do I go?

1.      To raise the awareness of my business and my client’s businesses.

2.      To speak to potential suppliers

3.      To gain more business.

So this week it is not only my exploits but also a few comments on things I have observed throuout the week and why I still think networking is the best way of promoting your business.

As Will Kintish would say if you don’t go you will never know! So why would you book on an event and not turn up? Monday saw me hosting the FSB Trafford event where we had the popular speaker on social media Alex McCann. Unfortunately, some people had booked on but did not arrive. I, as host like to match business people a host and if you try to introduce a business to another it is helpful if the other business turns up. So it s embarrassing for the host but could be a catastrophe for the business that does not turn up.

Research is also a key to networking and so it was a 5.30am start to be in Nottingham for an insurance industry event on behalf of B-Compliant . We need to speak to a many people in the financial industry and this event was ideal. Furthermore, having done some social media posts the interest in us was increased to the extent that Jeremy one of the directors asked me what I had done for all the views on the company’s profile. Networking should always be a combination of physical and social media which of course may reach businesses you can not.

Wednesday started with being a sub at a BNI group in Manchester City Centre, I went as Premium Collections and having some stats always help people focus on what you are saying. So much so that three people came up to me saying they may have some outstanding monies they need chasing.

I had the opportunity on Wednesday to attend the Dynamic event in Wilmslow and to see so many people in the room was great and to get the opportunity to not only speak with a good number but also to present my pitch to all of them.

Thursday was the start of our first Business Network event. But also my Thursday morning group which starts at 6.15am. As I had not been there last week giving six referrals, some for business which had already been done nice and helping others is great as a seasoned networker. Also as one of the other members had asked for a specific referral and I was able to introduce him to that specific business and one of the directors.

Our very first Business Network event was well attended and went so well with three visitors saying they wanted to attend. There was a real buzz in the room which was helped by a very well presented pre-lunch seminar by Merce Cozens and a lunch time talk by Sharon Taylor. As the host I need to make sure that everyone sees a return on their investment and it was so good to hear that two of my members are now working together and a visitor is now speaking to one of our previous members. Great to catch up with fellow member and client Chris Moran of JCM Business Solutions.

It is now onto the July event and ensure that we build on the success of our first. A little a side WinWorkz , Win Edmondson’s new business picked up it’s first client too after the event.

Friday has to start with the Manchester Business Breakfast Club and it was sad to hear we were losing two of our members! One as she lived too far away now and can not do the 180 mile round trip and the other because one of the other members had been so impressed with the work he had done for him that he is now employing him full time. I was happy to give Niel Cope of People Matters one minute whilst he was away.

Finally it was the Altrincham and Sale Chamber of commerce’s Property Lunch with a great line up of speakers. A few months ago I had had the pleasure of sitting on a round table for the Guardian newspaper with Urban Splash’s Tom Bloxham who I have always admired the regeneration his company has overseen in Manchester and to see the work they had and are doing in the city was inspirational and along with Capital Centric it was fascinating to hear these two companies’ ethos about the way they build and market their properties. I also came home with a bottle of Prosecco from the business card draw.

But two stories from the event which go back to our theme of networking I read a social media post saying that a contact wanted an introduction to one of the speakers and the reply came back saying that they could of have spoken to them direct if they had attended.

Secondly, the table I was hosting had two local businesses, one a growing business who already have an office in Barcelona and looking to extend that to Holland too and the other a well established and well known law firm who are also based in Altrincham but have contacts with lawyers in Europe and can help them establish their new office. To quote Mr Kintish again “be more interested than interesting”. By listening to the directors proudly telling their story the lawyer came up with a solution for them.

“Networking” you have to be in it to win it!

So it has been ages since my last blog!

It has been a couple of busy months and finding time to sit down and write something has proved more difficult than I had expected.

Since my last missive EPS has evolved quite significantly, our regular clients Premium Collections , The FSB , People Matters and JCM Solutions have been joined by B-Compliant plus we have seen the launch of Wundamail (the smiley face). For more details on Wundamail check out the link from our web site.

Probably the biggest news is the addition of Win Edmondson to help me with all the admin plus to prove that I can’t be in three places at the same time. Win is my long suffering wife who has just started her own company Win Workz a virtual PA business offering all the usual services including bookkeeping, diary management and general office duties.

This also coincides with our other big news! We have just bought The Business Network South Manchester from Simon Coy. I had been a member of Simon’s group for the past three years and based on my return on investment it had been a very worthwhile exercise.

When the opportunity arose to buy the group we jumped at the opportunity and although we have not had a meeting yet we have been able to introduce two members to potential new clients and we are working on more experiences as well as discounts/benefits for our members.

So back to our other clients in early May we spent a couple of days at the Accountex show down in the Excel centre in London with Premium Collections . This business exhibition is one of the largest I have been to and we spoke to a lot of accountants both new to us as well as existing clients.

It was the Greater Manchester Business Expo with People Matters HR. It was definitely quality over quantity compared to Accountex and we are following up on the leads we generated. The great thing about all our clients is that you get very a personal and a professional service.

Which leads me very nicely onto our latest client B-Compliant who give hands on advice and help to financial service companies. We are looking to speak to financial services companies and businesses dealing with financial advice which can even be car dealers.

At JCM Business Solutions the addition of Zoho Expenses has been warmly welcomed helping t save companies around 1% in claims for just a few pounds per month per user!

So next week brings us to our first event as The Business Network. Bookings are good and we are looking forward to a busy meeting with visitors and some new benefits for members!

Manchester, Preston and Devon but this was a quiet week!

Do I start getting twitchy if I am not networking?

Well it definitely feels odd when I don’t do as much as normal and this week was a bit quieter than normal.

So it was chasing leads and catching up.

I think everyone knows I was in China a couple of weeks ago? I couldn’t have mentioned it anymore than I have done!

I met up with one of the businesses I met whilst over there who our are now our suppliers for the Level 1 Tier Investment. If you are looking for investment this well worth looking at and I am happy to introduce businesses who just wish a chat to find out more.

I caught up with the mighty Will Kintish twice this week. Always a pleasure and always insightful. I am sure Will would agree that the networking event is just the start of a relationship. The follow up and the one to one is the beginning of an opportunity to do business.

So a few of those one to one’s this week, its great to find out what you have in common with other business owners and I would always recommend meeting up despite what your first impressions are of that person as these meetings always lead to some synergy.

Of course as Will says “if you don’t go you will never know”!

Back to the usual round of networking and Friday began with the MBBC, one of Manchester’s oldest networking group over 20 years old and still going strong. It is where I meet good friends and the number of referrals passed is consistently high.

From there straight off to Preston to the Shout Lancashire Business Expo and to the People Matters HR stand.

I had never attended this before, located in Preston’s Guild Hall and very well attended. It was busy and the number of quality leads were very encouraging. Lots to follow up for the next week.

Devon was the final destination but more about that next week. However, always networking I managed to set up an introduction for one of my fellow BNI friends whilst playing golf on the South Coast.

Finally the smiling logo has been with me all the way but what is it? Well this week we will be unveiling all the details.

Always networking :)

The last couple of weeks started off quietly with the usual rounds of meetings/appointments for our various clients.

A nice result for Premium Collections for a new client which now helps me introduce our services to the rest of the client’s offices around the UK.

We have been following up on he leads from the Northern Business Expo from the previous week for new clients JCM Business solutions in collaboration with Zoho, which has already led to one quotation and a deal struck with a local Chamber of Commerce for a new CRM system.

Networking started off with the brilliant Sonya O’Sullivan speaking at Altspace in Altrincham. Sonya teaches people how to present. I am sure I am not alone in feeling out of my comfort zone when presenting so Sonya’s tips were very well received.

We followed on with Sale, Northenden, Altrincham and then Friday but more of that later!

Thursday evening was spent with Myerson solicitors and the Chamber talking about Brexit. It was refreshing to hear practical advice for companies working in Europe rather than the doom and gloom we have had to suffer recently. Obviously it is going to be difficult but the world is going to carry on turning and business must carry on so lets make sure we do it the best way possible.

Well done Myerson’s and the Chamber I know the attendees got a lot out of the event from a very professional team.

So what happened on Friday?

Subs is a great organisation and meet once a month in Altrincham where over 50 business owners meet at the Cresta Court Hotel. This month saw photographer extraordinaire Martin Hambleton giving a few hints and tips about taking photographs. However, think about how long you want that photo to be in the public domain.

If it is longer than a few months then have them take by a professional.

I always ask my clients for a wish list of who they want to speak to so straight from Altrincham it was of to Manchester to see an accountant for Premium Collections and we are now really looking forward to working with them on a regular basis.

Friday though had not finished it was then back in the car to Liverpool to a Professional Liverpool’s “No Cannes Do” lunch.

Traffic and car parking problems meant I walked in late and then to be faced with a see over 600 faces only to find out our table was right in front of the stage and the compare/comedian had just started speaking! 

Don’t ask me how I did it but I managed to get sat down without being noticed.

Who was I with? Well that must still remain a secret as the product is still waiting to be launched but when it does it will be very exciting.

The one thing I can say is networking in Liverpool is completely different, very noisy and very friendly and when they have finished they have an after lunch party! I can only imagine what time some people got home.

Finally dinner with my wife and friends, I always try to keep away from business especially on a Friday but when someone says they are looking for something I can never resist so the following week saw another introduction and another quotation produced for a new telephone system.

Happy Days :)

Up coming event

JCM - Zoholics 23rd and 24th April - London - USE DISCOUNT CODE - ZJCM

https://events.zoho.com/Zoholics-TheUnitedKingdom

People Matters HR - Bury Football Club - 30th April - Health and Safety Matters

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/health-and-safety-responsibilities-for-smes-tickets-58641503315?aff=e...

Accountex, The Excel London 1st and 2nd May

https://www.accountex.co.uk/

So back to normal after the trip to Shanghai?

Well as normal as we get at EPS. Monday was obviously recovering from travelling 6,000 miles but Tuesday and Wednesday working on the Zoho stand at The Northern Business Expo.

Our brand new client JCM Business Solutions were asked to man the stand at the Expo as they are the largest reseller of this very popular CRM systems and we have been asked to be their sales force.

The Northern Business Expo is great for catching up with the great and the good of the Manchester business community furthermore we picked up some great leads which we are now following up on.

It is also an opportunity to meet up with the exhibitors as after the first day there is always a drinks reception and that is where we found out about a new exciting product which looks as if we will be marketing in the next few months.

I must admit after Shanghai and then two days at the exhibition I may have been suffering from either jet lag or old age.

On Thursday again an early start for BNI networking and then onto Bury Football Club to meet up with new clients as of April People Matters HR. Niel and the team were giving a seminar on mental health in the work place. A fascinating and worrying topic as when you know the signs you are surprised how many you will spot.

Thursday ended with one of my favourite roles of the year, as a judge at the Manchester finals of Young Enterprise. It is a privilege to be asked each year and I am amazed by the standard of businesses these young students create. If you feel this is something you would like to be involved with I am more than happy to put you in contact with the Manchester representative.

So that was another quick week but just a quick reminder about our services at Premium Collections in light of the debacle on Regent Road where sub contractors have lost out as the larger company has gone into administration and then speaking to an FSB member who has lost out to the tune of over £30,000 don’t believe that you will just get paid.

If you have a client dragging their feet pass them over to us, yes we take commission but paying a percentage to us is so much better than receiving nothing at all. We are always more than happy to have a no obligation chat.

People Matters HR Seminar 30th April – Bury Football Club – Health and Safety Responsibilities                             https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/health-and-safety-responsibilities-for-smes-tickets-58641503315?aff=e...

Premium Collections are exhibiting at Accountex 2019 1st to 2nd May, London Excel-Priority Code ACX107   https://www.accountex.co.uk/london/

So last week we ended the week with COS Bookkeeping at the Greater Manchester Business awards and then finished this week giving a talk to Karen and Di’s team of bookkeepers about the benefits of the FSB.

It has been an interesting week, Monday was spent in Liverpool meeting the two guys who set up Wundamail an online system for businesses with teams whether it is sales, management or just an office based group.

On Tuesday, we confirmed we are now working with JCM Business Solutions a family company offering bespoke CRM systems who’s strap line is “Business First, Software Later”. The company also believes it has an ethical obligation so a proportion of their profits go to a homeless charity based in Manchester who are also looking to eradicate child poverty.

It was at this meeting that Chris Moran the MD of JCM reminded me of “Scotsman” as a very useful sales tool.

S olution C ompetition O riginality T iming S ize M oney A uthority N eed

So firstly, we have to establish their NEED if we know what they need we can look at the SOLUTION, does our products unique features and ORIGINALITY to fulfil their requirements and what does the COMPETITION offer. Of course we need to establish the SIZE of the job and what is their budget is there enough MONEY to pay for what we are offering and as to the TIMING of the project, is it feasible for their time line. Of course we should always establish as to whether the person we re dealing with has the AUTHORITY to give the order.

Some people will know I have been invited to China to give a couple of talks in Shanghai so I spent quite a lot of time sorting my Visa out.

Back to the networking circuit with Thursday attending breakfast and lunch meetings on behalf of Wills, Protection and Beyond as well as Premium Collections

Friday started with the Manchester Business Breakfast Club followed by a meeting with the manager of Barclay’s Eagle Labs based in Albert Square, Manchester. What a great facility for new start up businesses.

So going forward I will be using SCOTSMAN for all my upcoming meetings, what do you think will you too?