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Many of you know that I was on the Today show a couple of weeks ago to talk with Kathie Lee and Hoda about my new book, Business Networking and Sex (not what you think).  Some of you might like to hear the “real” dirt on what Hoda and Kathie Lee are like off camera. Ready for it??  It’s really juicy!  Here it comes . . . they are fun and professional.  OK . . . maybe that’s not juicy but it’s the truth. Both women were very friendly and welcoming to me before the interview started. ...

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Business Networking and Sex (not what you think) is officially released this week in bookstores.  This book was more fun to work on than any book I’ve ever written.  My co-authors: Frank De Raffele and Hazel Walker were fantastic to work with. You may be wondering what sex has to do with networking.  You may also be excited to learn how to use your sexual prowess to influence business deals.  Well, get your mind out of the gutter!  Sorry to burst your bubble, but this book is really more about gender than...

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In this video, I’m talking with my good friend JT Foxx about his ideas on making connections with the wealthy and how to effectively get them to take notice of your business. JT has some great advice when it comes to the art of networking with extremely successful people who can often be very difficult to network and connect with, and I can say from my own observations of JT’s networking tactics that he certainly walks the walk and has proven time and again how effective his approach really is. If you lik...

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The first edition of my book The World’s Best Known Marketing Secret, which details how to build business by referral, was released back in 1994 and went on to become an international bestseller.  I am excited to announce that the 4th edition of the book was just published and my co-author Mike Macedonio and I have substantially rewritten the book and added a significant amount of information. Here is just a brief sample of what is outlined in the new book: The best way to grow your business Referrals and refe...

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Last week I had a couple of blog readers comment that they felt they would benefit from a detailed description of each of the items on the checklist of materials for a successful word-of-mouth campaign.  Thank you to Betsy Maniotis and Adam Erstelle for taking the time to send in their feedback and I’m more than happy to comply with their requests for the list below. 1)  Testimonial letters from satisfied clients–Testimonials are one of the most effective ways to showcase the quality of the products or ...

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In order to run a successful word-of-mouth campaign, you need to build an arsenal of credibility-enhancing materials.  You should always have these at your disposal to make the most of every networking opportunity. Below is a checklist of items you may already have available or wish to begin assembling, which can be used as collateral materials in developing your desired image.  These are not ranked in a particular; they are all key components of the toolkit of a successful word-of-mouth campaign. Note: Please keep...

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Someone I met recently used an expression that I got a big kick out of yet it really resonated with me at the same time.  Talking about a networker she knew, she said to me, “The guy is a Networking Vampire!” Watch this video to find out what exactly a “Networking Vampire” is and then come back and weigh in on how to spot them (they can often be very elusive–do you have a trick/strategy for discovering them?) and what to do about them once you identify them. Also, if you have any inter...

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The BNI Business Index is a website that was created to consistently gauge the ever-changing economic state of business based on quarterly global survey results of retailers, service companies, and manufacturing companies all around the world. The statistics gathered from the survey results are intended to keep small business owners, entrepreneurs, and companies, as well as the media and the general public, educated and informed as to the changing state of the global business economy and the current business trends t...

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Do you have a burning question about networking that you just can’t seem to get a decent answer to?  I have great news . . . You can go to www.AskIvanMisner.com and submit your question directly to me!  Watch this video where I explain what the website is all about and then go to www.AskIvanMisner.com to submit your question and get FREE access to the quarterly Ask Ivan Misner live telebridge call.  After you’ve visited the site, come back to this blog and leave a comment letting me know what you thin...

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It’s amazing what a word-of-mouth campaign can do for your business.  People rely on recommendations from trusted sources much more than they do from mere advertisements.  The best thing is, the costs associated with running a successful word-of-mouth campaign are usually a fraction of what a traditional advertising campaign can run! However, as the saying goes, “there is no free lunch.”  What you save in dollars spent, you must replace with time and effort.  Simply saying to yourself that you are going to ...

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An important and invaluable lesson I’ve learned over the years is that clear, open, honest, direct communication with people solves most problems. So often I have seen relationships deteriorate to the point where people are talking “about” each other instead of talking “to” each other. This can happen more easily than you might think.  For most people, when things don’t go the way they expect in a relationship, the tendency is to talk to EVERYONE they know EXCEPT the person they h...

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In my last blog, I discussed step 4 of the eight-step referral process and in the weeks prior to that, I went over steps 1, 2, and 3.  Today I’m going to cover steps 5, 6, and 7. Step 5.  Report Back to Your Source Report back to your referral source and let her know the outcome of your meeting (unless, of course, she went along with you).  Ask her to follow up with the prospect to find out about his impression of you.  Let her know how important it is for you to make her look good to the ...

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Business Networking and Sex is the book that my co-authors (Hazel Walker and Frank DeRaffele) and I have coming out next January and in this short video, we talk about an interesting research finding that will  be published in the book. There’s one specific question that we are asking BusinessNetworking.com blog readers to weigh in on and it’s this: Which gender–men or women–do you think spends more time networking, and why is it you think that? When you watch the video you’ll see that ...

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In this short video, I talk about the vast array of educational content relating to business and networking offered on NetworkingNow.com and Mary Funk, the Web Coordinator for this online library, announces a code for a FREE six month subscription to the site. The free subscription is a gift from BusinessNetworking.com and all you have to do is enter the code (“freesixmonths”) on NetworkingNow.com to gain access to the entire library of content!  Please note that you will be required to enter a credit ca...

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BNIBusinessIndex.com has released its worldwide business survey findings for the first quarter of 2011.  Almost 1,500 business people participated in the survey—people from every populated continent around the world—and the results (see graph on the right)  indicate that, overall, the global economic state is improving.  69.4% of the respondents for the first quarter of 2011 feel that business is growing or growing substantially (compared to this time last year).  This number has increased since the prior BNI...