D: We talked already about keep your eyes on the prize. Why do you want to network. Do you want new customers?
E: Yes, I want to increase my customers base.
D: When you find new customers and you leave this dentist office, would they come with you?
E: yes, the patient follows the doctor to new place. Recently, I got a new job and I saw my patient who visited me on the previous clinic. She is Taiwanese living in Canada and comes back to Taiwan once a year. She said that she found my information on the internet and came to me. I felt surprised when she said her father asked her to come to me. I can’t remember her father even when she showed me her father’s picture.
D: Haha, you should have asked her to take some close-up pictures of her father’s mouth. When you continue to practice and a card is very important for you to introduce yourself. It’s much easier to say “Can I give you my card?” than “ Hi, My name is Eric, my Chinese name is blabla… I’m a dentist, I am doing graduate studies…“ That’s really hard to say. There is also a way to ask the other person that “ Can I have your card? ” So, if you say to me at the club meeting that “ Can I give you my card?”, I will say “yes, I will give you mine, too.” It’s natural.
E: I have two kinds of cards. One is with my personal information.
D: Perfect, That’s where I am going. Many people have the one with personal information and it is called calling card. There is my calling card with my phone number, my line but not facebook because facebook is pretty personal sometimes. So, if I meet someone the first time, maybe we will be friends. I don’t know. What do you have on your calling card?
E: I have my e-mail, my line, phone number and a website for a short introduction.
D: Do you always have your calling card with you?
E: Yes, I keep it in my pocket all the time.
D: If you are not sure how to introduce yourself, this is how you do it. You start chatting with somebody. It’s comfortable. So you say, “ Can I give you my calling card?” That gets things going further. It’s a good way to introduce yourself. Remember that is not a business card.
E: Calling card is better than business card. It’s personal.
D: If you give your business card, and next year they want to contact you, they will call the clinic. You might have gone. You are starting to network. If you give them the clinic phone number, this people you met at the seminar, conference or convention might call the clinic and leave the message for you. It’s not good. It’s your business. In the future, what are some other reasons you might have to network?
E: I would like to start my own business and if I am successful I will help other people.
D: Right now your main place for networking is two clubs, cooking and book reading club. Cooking club will be a place to network because you have a chance to talk a lot. In the reading club do you talk much?
E: No, we discuss the book and share ideas. But, we have dinner time to talk after the reading club.
D: What are some good places to network? A club is good because they see you month after month and they might like you. They are comfortable talking to you. But they are limited in the number. There is the same 15-20 people every time. What’s another good place?
E: The people I meet in some races, like running events?
D: Well, people are kind of busy. They don’t have any pockets. Seminars are very social things. You can learn at seminars. But also right now at your level, you’re working as a dentist, and you’re taking your masters degree, maybe you can contribute to a seminar. Maybe you can stand up and speak about something.
E: Actually, my professor gave me a chance to speak about a topic in a seminar. It’s in August. It’s a kind of workshop. I have 20 minutes to speak.
D: You have so much time. Right now you don’t know, you have time to prepare. What will you talk about?
E: I will talk about some mistakes that new dentists make. Because I am new and I made these mistakes before.
D: haha, Tell them that “Believe me that I am professional. I know all about mistakes because I am a new dentist.” And they will like that. they well laugh. There is a saying in English, it’s quite common but the idea is very popular. “Learn from your mistakes” But in orthodontic work, how long does it take for you to know that you make a mistake?
E: It’s one month. I take photos every appointment and I check the teeth moving. But the mistakes are not permanent injures. Some mistakes make the teeth move slowly. When I look at the pictures and find the teeth in the same position, I know something is wrong.
D: Let’s have a look at networking. I have some suggestions for you.
Start networking before you need it.
It’s a good time for you to be growing your business. Right now you want more customers because you want to do a good job at the clinic but money is not the problem. You don’t need to pay the rent or pay for an employee. You’re not in that situation. It’s a perfect time for you to network because you don’t need those customers, you want them. You also need to think about the future. You should walk into a room and think “ How can I help these people?”
Forget your personal agenda.
You think about not just yourself. You think about your whole network. “Who can I put together?” because you put two people together, now it’s three of you. If you put two people together with two other people. Now, It’s five of you. They remember you.
Never dismiss anyone as unimportant.
You meet someone new.
“Nice to meet you, what do you do?”
“ I work at 7-11”
“Oh, nice to meet you, goodbye”,
but really, he is a very good guitar player. You just cut them off.
“What are you interested in ? What do you love?”
“I love music, and I maintain a band, I play guitar, and I love teaching music”
“Oh, can I give you my calling card?”
It’s interesting that when we meet someone and we ask them “What do you do?” they immediately tell us their job. They don’t tell us their hobbies or what they are interested in. Western culture makes us value a people who make a lot of money. So they always tell you about their job. If their job isn’t making a lot of money, they are going to say “just.” “I’m just a clerk at 7-11.” But he is not just a clerk at 7-11, he is many things.
Figure out how you can be useful.
Just open the door. Keep in touch. You should be thinking “how can I help you?” You can help them or help them to meet someone who can help them. In your culture, is it ok to say “If you need anything, please reach out to me?” Say it and and present your calling card. If you are afraid of doing something, do it!
Follow up and follow through.
Remember that when you introduce someone to the other person, there are not two people but three people. You are there. It also gives you permission to ask for their help in the future. Some people don’t understand networking. You send them information but they never answer. And they never send you information about dentists or your hobbies. When should you stop? I will say If you send them a message twice but they don’t answer, stop it.
Believe in the power of networking.
You help two people because you introduce them and now maybe they will introduce you to somebody. In the future when you want to open your own clinic. You also want a classroom in that clinic because you want to teach and have a clinic. You can be looking for a house to rent or buy. You tell your network and look for help. Your network will help you because you helped them. That’s why you maintain your network.
