Our First Networking Event

Kia Ora,

New Zealand Business Womens Network MeetingThe launch of the NZ Business Women’s Network last week was an amazing success on many counts and a big thanks for all the positive feedback. Also thanks to all of you who were able to battle the traffic and tube strikes to make it. We still had over 50 Kiwi women to the evening which was just fantastic. A big thank you to those that sent out personal invitations to your contacts, it shows the power of NZ women to make something happen!

We thought we would send out a brief summary of the evening for those who didn’t attend to get a taste of what happened and a refresher for those who participated. The intention of the New Zealand Business Womens Network is to hold an event every two months at various London locations which will allow us to learn, network and connect.

The evening kicked off with a couple of drinks and then our guest speaker Maggie Eyre took centre stage to give us a little bit of her background and some important tips on how to network. A number of you wanted more information about Maggie and would have liked to have spoken with her personally. For more information see www.maggieeyre.com. Maggie enjoyed herself so much she has commited to support us by regularly attending future events where her busy schedule permits. She will also provide us with top networking tips before each event. As explained on the evening Maggie is in the process of writing her next book on networking and is very keen to be actively involved in a networking community.

On a side note Maggie recently appeared on New Zealand’s Number 1 Drama (or should it be Soap) TV show - Shortland Street for a cameo 2 week stint. While making waves here in London she is often called on to consult top CEO's and Management in boardrooms across London and frequently travels back to New Zealand where she is highly sought after. So naturally we are eternally grateful to her for putting in the time to speak.

Maggie gave us a number of great tips which included developing your Elevator Pitch (as in a lift).  The Elevator Pitch is your chance to get someone’s attention in just 15 seconds, when introducing what you do she suggests you talk about ‘What you are not what you do’. Maggie’s example pitch was “I transform people into Star Performers”, not ” I am a Professional Coach”. Other elevator pitches Maggie uses are “I help people look and sound confident'' or '' I help my clients to speak with more confidence'' rather than I am a business consultant specialising in Presentation skills''. Other examples from the night included Joanna & Varney from Kohatu and Petros, “We make people happy” rather than we design jewellery and “I make women look beautiful” rather than “I am a designer”.

Maggie also explained the “SHINE” technique:

Smile (relaxes people, shows your sincerity & your warmth)

Handshake (creates intimacy, is polite & professional)

In common (find something in common as it builds intimacy in relationships)

Name (being nice when you introduce yourself breaks down barriers)

Eye contact (shows you are engaging with ease, as they say the eyes are the window of the soul)

 

Maggie also explained another technique when you meet people and are asked about your ‘work’ use the following as a template:

1.       Talk about your present, past & future

2.       Then ask about their present, past & future

 

We then put some of these techniques into practice by introducing ourselves to others on our table. We each spoke for 2 minutes allowing us to meet 6 instant new contacts.

The formal part of the evening wrapped up with a door prize. This was kindly donated by Joanna and Varney from Kohatu and Petros, www.kohatuandpetros.com and many congratulations go to Samantha Male who was the lucky winner.

The evening concluded with a few more drinks and viewing of some fantastic NZ products displayed by some of the ladies at the event. On show was:

Contemporary Jewellery designed by Kohatu and Petros, www.kohatuandpetros.com if you are interested in holding a private viewing in your own home contact Joanna or Varney via the website

Amazingly versatile clothing by Blue Flamingo www.theblueflamingo.com

Limited Edition tables and designer furniture by Brigid Strevens www.brigidstrevens.com

Bespoke handmade jewellery by Michelle Baker – Michelle can be contacted at michellebaker1@hotmail.com

For more info on Maggie see www.maggieeyre.com. For personal coaching contact Maggie directly on fresheyre@gmail.com. Or follow her on twitter www.twitter.com/maggieeyre

Maggie’s book can be bought through Amazon

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0716021986?tag=ll06-21&camp=1406&creative=6394&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0716021986&adid=05924YH4J6HC0DW6XB73&

Or from the publisher Constable Robinson

http://www.constablerobinson.com/?section=books&book=speak_in_public_with_confidence_9780716021988_paperback

Remember if you want to join the Royal Commonwealth Club www.thercs.org/membership/join there is a discount for NZ Business Women as the joining fee of £200 is waived. Also if you are a Kea member www.keanewzealand.com (which is free to join) the membership is reduced from £240 to £130!

So where to from here ?

Our next evening will be in mid to late August so keep an eye out on the website (www.nzwomen.co.uk) for further details. In the meantime starting in July there will be an opportunity to participate in something amazing! Maggie Eyre is currently collating material for her new book and she is giving away her time for FREE so she can gather some inspirational stories about networking, it is a Win-Win.

Over an eight week period we will be running small focus groups discussing the best ways to network and share our stories in small groups of 6-8. You will come away with new contacts by meeting more Kiwi women in London and Maggie will impart more techniques for you to try. Groups will be limited to 8 people at each session.

To register your interest for these FREE Networking workshops please email Bronwen at bronwen@nzwomen.co.uk please be sure to make the subject line read “FREE networking workshops” to assist our organisation and planning.

What else is on?

There are a number of Kiwi events coming up including Kea’s Entrepreneur Series on June 24th which is now sold out, Toast on the 27th of June and New Zealand Society events. See each respective group’s webpage for details and booking tickets.

There also were a huge number of suggestions for future events. If you would like to present or showcase your business, run an information session or help with ideas for event topics please email Bronwen. To assist the growth of our group please forward this email to any NZ Women who were unable to attend last week.

Until the next update keep learning, networking and connecting with NZ Business Women.