So, this business lark…. just what is it all about? How do you set up a successful business from scratch? What are the sales and marketing secrets? What is the best way to use social media channels? How can you ensure you get the right people on your team? An enormous number of questions and perhaps not what an entrepreneur – who always expected to be flying solo – ever expected to be asking!
Regular readers will know that I am a member of two business networks – 4N and BNI. Although ‘Heir Hunting’ (intestate research) takes up a lot of our team’s resources, our more in-depth referred work generally comes directly from or via connections made in 4N or BNI. The crucial part of both networks for us at FWL is that we build relationships with people. As an adoptee, you are not going to suddenly open up to someone you hardly know and ask them to help you trace your birth family! You need to trust that person and know that they will do a good job….
4N and BNI work on different levels for FWL. 4N is 50% social, 50% business and it works. In the one-to-one business appointments people book with us, we often find that people want to give us business there and then! Our business is unique in the networking world and so most people don’t expect to meet anyone like us at a networking event. Through BNI, we have gained many personal referrals for family history/tracing work as well as connections with various solicitors across the globe and several companies now refer their work direct to – and only to – us.
Recently, we have been featured by BNI National Office in a Success Story post – an amazing case which turned out better than any of us could ever have hoped for. We change lives – regularly actually – which makes our work pretty exciting! More than that, by joining 4N and BNI, we have connected with other businesses who help us in our everyday work. I’m Your PA, On The Button, Cobbold and Company, Goughs, Wards and many more….
Do we know everything about business at FWL? Erm…. no. But we have surrounded ourselves with people who can help and advise us about things we don’t know about! Good business sense that.
