Do you invite and sponsor your networking contacts into Biznik?

Invite new networking connections to join Biznik and then sponsor and personally welcome them. This is just one more way Biznik can enhance your relationship with your network.

Written Mar 10, 2011, read 3593 times since then.

When I first joined Biznik the sponsorship program was pretty new. Within my first couple of days someone sponsored me based on liking a comment I posted in BizTalk (thank you Rachael Whalley). It made me feel very special. Since then I’ve made a point of sponsoring folks as often as possible.

When I’m at non-Biznik networking events I will often mention Biznik to people I meet then follow-up by sending them a personal invitation to join Biznik. If they join, I immediately sponsor them and send them a personal welcome note and overview. The idea for the overview was prompted by a friend I invited who found it hard to figure out what to do with his new Biznik membership.

I hope you’ll find this useful if you’re new to Biznik yourself and particularly to share with those you invite to join. Here’s what I send out.

To get the most benefit from your Biznik membership, complete your profile with details, an offer and what you want. There’s also the ability to do blog and Twitter feeds in your profile. Keep the profile up to date and change the offer and needs at least monthly.
You’ll receive two emails a week from Biznik. One features the “hot sheet” list of hottest articles of the week. The other lists upcoming workshops/events in your area. Both are pretty useful and quick to scan. I try to read at least one article a week and attend 2-3 events per month. It gets me out of my rut.
You can search on your location to see who’s there that you know or would benefit from knowing and introduce yourself and ask to be in their network.
The one month sponsorship allows you to post both a logo and video (which go away if you choose to drop back to a free membership after your one month free at the Pro level). It also allows you to exceed the 3 email a day limit the free version has.
There’s a context sensitive menu bar. So if you’re in your own profile you can look up your network, your events (past and future), your groups, your articles, etc. If you’re in someone else’s profile those tools are for them.
You can set how far from your location you want your searches to be. You can also search without a location limitation.
There’s a top level menu bar that takes you to key places to explore including events, articles, groups and Biz Talk.
Biz Talk is a forum where you can introduce yourself as well as find areas of interest. When I was new I lurked there. Then I posted a few comments. Someone liked what I said and sent me the first month free and I’ve never looked back. I didn’t know at the time (it was a new feature) that all paying members are given a bunch of these a month to give away. I think it’s an effective marketing tool. Makes me look good and hooks people into a very affordable level of payment.
There are specialty online groups you can join by topic. I’m in some local ones and some online only ones. You can also start one if there aren’t any that meet your interests (unlikely). Here’s a list of some I’m in that might interest you (links included specific to the new member).
Eventually you may even decide to WRITE articles for Biznik. My first Biznik article definitely gleaned Google Juice and attention from peers. It even brought in a new client.

This is just one more way Biznik can enhance your relationship with your network. I’d be interested in what other points you think might be useful to add to this list.

Learn more about the author, Sheila Hoffman.

Posted by Bill Bradfield, EA, Blaine, Washington | Mar 10, 2011

Sheila,

Very good article and some excellent information for all of us. Thank you for taking the time to write it. You certainly hit the high points about how to benefit from Biznik.

Have you read my most recent article about Biznik? I have found it to be very beneficial to my business.

Bill

I keep the IRS off your back and out of your pocketbook
Posted by Sheila Hoffman, Seattle, Washington | Mar 10, 2011

Thanks Bill. I haven't seen your article. Why don't you post a link for us? May as well cross-pollinate.
Posted by Russell Smith, Seattle, Washington | Mar 11, 2011

Shelia,

This is a clear and informative piece on how to easily spread the word about the benefits of networking through Biznik, and how you can help others along the way. You also deliver a key message about completing your profile first. This is certainly a key message.

Thanks,

Russell
Posted by Karen Mathieson, Portland, Oregon | Mar 12, 2011

Sheila, this is a neat listing of ways to use Biznik, and I can personally vouch for the value of most of them!

You asked Bill about his recent article, which leads me to add another item to your summary: On our profiles, articles are listed in descending chronological order, so if we go to Bill's we can easily spot what he has been writing lately.

Thinking about the Biznik profile pages leads me to note another cool updated feature for paid members, the listing of fellow Pros who have visited in the previous week, as well as how many "unidentified others" have dropped by.

I usually write a note to the named members to thank them for visiting, which helps to build connections. Even the raw number of unnamed visitors is helpful: If it's very low, I realize that I've been neglecting the community, so I get involved again with a post, some comments or an article.

~Karen
Posted by Sheila Hoffman, Seattle, Washington | Mar 12, 2011

@Karen...thanks for your kind words and very helpful addition. I will add it to the note I send. I love your idea of thanking those who visit. I've never been that pro-active. Great idea. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by Taylor Ellwood, Portland, Oregon | Mar 14, 2011

Great Article and great idea Sheila.

Thanks,

Taylor
Posted by Theresa Tucciarelli, Watsonville, California | Mar 15, 2011

Thank you, your article is very helpful to me being a newbie
Posted by Sheila Hoffman, Seattle, Washington | Mar 15, 2011

Thanks Taylor. Welcome Theresa...I'm so glad it was useful. I'd like to find a way to get this out to more newbies.
Posted by Joanne Rice, Seattle, Washington | Mar 17, 2011

Lots of good ideas. I will send some of this information with my next invitations to join. I think I haven't communicated the benefits clearly enough in the past.
Posted by Christine Prenovitz, MSW, RYT, Seattle, Washington | Mar 17, 2011

Hi Sheila-

Great article, you are a good mentor! This is new information for me. I appreciate your clarity in explaining some of the workings of the biznik site and the practical ways it can support and deepen our business relationships. Thank you, Chris
Posted by Anni Ala, D.C., Seattle, Washington | Mar 17, 2011

Sheila,

I concur! Excellent article!

Another nice feature is that you can give people "compliments" that will be displayed on their page for all to see. It is kind of like a yelp review... Biznik style.

Thanks for your insights :)
Posted by John Davies, Bothell, Washington | Mar 17, 2011

no, but I will
Posted by Arden Clise, Seattle, Washington | Mar 17, 2011

Great article Sheila. I love the reminder about sponsorsing people. That's a lovely way to welcome someone and make a positive impression.

It was also a good reminder to write more articles. Biznik is good to us writers, giving us good Google juice, as you said, but also really great exposure, if not clients.

Thanks for sharing these tips.
Posted by David Wynn Smith, Fresno, California | Mar 17, 2011

To be honest I have never used this site because I have never been able to figure it out! I don't have the time either to make it work for me. It does not seem user friendly at all!
Posted by Sheila Hoffman, Seattle, Washington | Mar 17, 2011

Thanks all for your kind comments.

@Anni...thanks for adding a helpful reminder about the compliments feature. Always a great one to use.

@David...I'm sorry that's been your experience. I hope the article and discussion will help to improve your Biznik interactions.
Posted by Steven Sieden, Seattle, Washington | Mar 18, 2011

Very informative, easy to digest and helpful to me. Thanks.
Posted by Sheila Hoffman, Seattle, Washington | Mar 19, 2011

It has been brought to my attention that not everyone knows what the Sponsorship Program is.

You only get the ability to "sponsor" folks when you have a paid membership. Then you get something like 10-15 sponsorships to give-away per month. When you have this ability, the option shows up under each persons profile in the same place where you could send a compliment or give a referral, etc.

Also, to see who has accepted a Join invitation, their names ARE added on your profile's Network tab then under Connections. They're alphabetical by first name. Hope that helps.
Posted by Barbara Breckenfeld, Mountlake Terrace, Washington | Mar 24, 2011

Sheila - Like you, I have loved Biznik and often enthuse about it when talking to others about business and networking.

One of my favorite things about Biznik is that we connect online AND face to face. Simply by hosting events and attending events, I have built some wonderful relationships - including with you - that have benefited me in a wide variety of ways, the sense of community being one of the best.

I have received a number of wonderful compliments from people who have attended a free event that I have hosted, and have expressed their appreciation in the form of a compliment. I think that's a pretty cool feature of Biznik, too.

I have also liked being able to have links to my blog and my Twitter account on my profile.

It's easy to forget that not everyone knows how powerful a Biznik profile can be. Thank you for spelling it out so clearly!
Posted by HÅKAN SÖDERBOM, Redmond, Washington | Apr 25, 2011

Hi Sheila, thanks for sponsoring me! And thanks for the Biznik introduction!

Hope to see you at the next WordPress Meetup!

/Håkan