The ultimate networking event .... ?

[Vanessa]

As we all know, there are many property networking events around the U.K., all of which have different formats.

My question to the tribe, is what are the elements that make up a successful networking event?

What are the features that you have found give you the most value?

Between us, let's build up a formula for the ultimate property networking event!

[REI]

Great question.

1. Clear agenda in terms of what will be discussed. I will make an extra effort to attend if the focus is something I have an interest in. If the topic does not grab me I am less likely to just wander over.

2. Good turn-out. This does not mean the turn-out has to be large. Quality is important. If I do not know who will be there then the quantity is important. More people, more chance of meeting someone interesting. I find an event with about 70-90 in the room means you can circulate yet still have fresh things to discuss even when you happen to know many in the room.

3. Cost. Keep the cost proportional to the value. Lower is better than higher if the value is not clear.

£10 or less is perfect as the amount is close to a trip to Starbucks (Venti drink plus food), an inexpensive lunch or a paperback book. In other words £10 falls below the radar. More than that and the person has to consider if the event is going to be 'value for money' compared to an alternative. In a large city there are alternative events. In a small community there might be only 1 event per month so people will be more focused on the specific event.

4. Simple logistics. Make the location easy to get to and make it easy to deal with. Nothing surprising here.

5. Room to network. Over crowded venues are a bit of a pain. Note this is number 5. I will deal with the crowds if the other 4 above are positive.

6. Follow up.

Some meetings are very much a meeting while others are part of a broader system. With Property Tribes you can meet people at the Guildford meeting, you can follow the meeting activity through Twitter, you can use the forum and you can meet many of the people at other networking events. You can connect with the Tribe many different ways and you can adjust how you connect based on what suits you each month. While providing a rich set of choices it also means there is less reason to show up to a specific event.

John Corey
Follow me on Twitter -> www.twitter.com/john_corey
www.ChelseaPrivateEquity.com/blog

[Vanessa]

Thank you John. Those are some excellent points.

How important is the speaker in terms of their profile? Or is the topic more important?

What about having the Birds of a Feather or Special interest tables at the beginning or end?

What topics would the tribe like to see covered? We have so much knowledge, experience, and talent in the tribe. If you would like to speak at one of our events, please get in touch.

[Ant Lyons]

I agree with all of John's points and would also add that if the event has a key speaker it should be someone who is willing to give quality in depth information on a particular subject and has a proven track record of their success in that area.

I have been to too many events where there is an overt agenda from the speaker to sell.

In terms of the attendees it's nice to go to events where there is a variety of experience and investing strategies. Many events are very focussed on buying with No Money or buying lots of BMV property. I have only seen a handful of talks that are geared towards the buy, refurb / develop investment strategy which remains the bread and butter form of investment that can deliver significant returns from relatively small projects. Those talks that have covered this area have been really fascinating, saw a great talk by a father and son team Dick and Peter Dabner last year.

Maybe it's just that this is a gap in my own knowledge whereas I consider my own negotiation skills to be up to speed and I don't need to be told why I should be buying property.

Lots of events sem more geared to aspiring investors or people who need to buy NMD. I really do believe in the principles of BMV investment of buying at the right price but I am sure there is so much more to be said and to learn.

[REI]

Vanessa,

My take on your questions below.

1. Topic is more important than the speaker to me. In many cases I do not know a speaker but I know I want to learn about a topic. In some cases I will attend a meeting to hear a specific speaker if I have read about them in the past.

2. Informal networking structures (Birds of a Feather) are not the same.

I am all for sub-groups who want to talk about a specific topic. At the same time that is not why I would attend a meeting. I want to see something interesting and consider a BoF as a bit of icing for the meeting.

I think the BoF or special interest tables are a great way to direct the networking and to increase the circulation. A good way to enhance the non-speaker aspects of the meeting.

Stated another way people do not show up at meetings just for the networking. As much as they say they enjoy the networking the numbers show how people will attend more frequently when there is a speaker with interesting things to say. Fresh == interesting. Topics that have been covered by other speakers or in prior meetings see a fall off in numbers.

John Corey
Follow me on Twitter -> www.twitter.com/john_corey
www.ChelseaPrivateEquity.com/blog

Vanessa said:

Thank you John. Those are some excellent points.

How important is the speaker in terms of their profile? Or is the topic more important?

What about having the Birds of a Feather or Special interest tables at the beginning or end?

What topics would the tribe like to see covered? We have so much knowledge, experience, and talent in the tribe. If you would like to speak at one of our events, please get in touch.

[Marcus]

Great opinions on this thread so far. Some thoughts:


1) The subject of a presentation should rightly take precedence over the speaker…but not always. I can think of two exceptions:

• An erudite, confident speaker talking about a less appealing topic will hold my attention more than a monotone drawler speaking about a ‘trendy’ subject. This is something I experienced at one of the big events - problem with this is you may need to stumble across the speaker by accident beforehand.

• If the event agenda includes specially arranged segments then that may well override my reticent for the headline subject, e.g. Birds of a Feather, panel discussion etc. (As proof, I’m grabbing my passport and attending next weeks Chelmsford event for no other reason than I like the format.)

2) Whether I pay £20, £10 or nowt for admittance to an event has no effect on me as I’m swayed by the content. For the type of event we are discussing, my ‘rip off’ switch seems to come into play around the £25-£30 level, anything below and I’m not bothered.

3) The Birds of a Feather sessions are an excellent way for someone to benefit from the opinions of several different people at one sitting. I found being ‘let in’ to the intricacies of someone else’s current deal rewarding and educational. I would always put this towards the end as I think it’s healthy for people to connect first.

4) Raw networking is extremely important. I like taking relationships to the next level and meeting with people in the flesh. I view this as an opportunity to further connections made online and explore business ideas. I would slot elements of this in at the beginning, middle and end of events - plus post as well.

5) Agree with Ant, I hate overt presentations that promise a lot and then deliver bugger all. The worst example is asking a presenter a question and them replying “You’ll need to attend my course next week.” My preferred response to this is “Frig off you Numpty!”

Marcus

[Roberta Ward]

Speaking from running my own events, I would agree with the guys here.

I have always found that it is a combination of topic and speaker that draws a bigger crowd. But, as john said, its not always about numbers. We've had some very lively meetings where the numbers have been lower, and yet I would have great feedback after wards. People seem to like being able to fire questions at the speaker, and we often have cross pollination with audience members adding in their knowledge too.

I too think money is an issue to a degree, since I changed my pricing structure and method of payment it has made it much easier for me and I have had an uplift of attendees.

Getting good speakers who are proper experts ( in a been there done that sense) can be a real challenge, and as an organiser its not always possible to trot around half of the UK to find them prior to a meeting and check them out. I have tended to rely on those who 'know their stuff' rather than who are 'known' as such.

I like to let everyone know that our speakers are open to questioning, and Ive found the format we run works well for us, in that we have an hour or so for everyone to catch up with each other prior to the speaker starting and plenty of time after for networking too.

Most attendees will not know how good or bad a speaker is prior-but will attend if the subject is something they need extra knowledge on-or if they think someone in particular will be there that they want to meet. For example; when John came to speak for me we had several lawyers in the room who were trying to find out more about 'the bundle of rights' which we advertised as part of the pitch. ( Ironic I know!)

To a degree it also depends what level your audience are at.Many networking events seem to be aimed at the newbie investor who is learning from scratch. Most of my attendees are not first time investors-but more experienced, so we tend to pick speakers and topics which are a bit more advanced and therefore current.(And also more interesting.)

Roberta
http://www.mypropertymentor.co.uk
http://twitter.com/RobertaWard

Marcus said:

Great opinions on this thread so far. Some thoughts:


1) The subject of a presentation should rightly take precedence over the speaker…but not always. I can think of two exceptions:

• An erudite, confident speaker talking about a less appealing topic will hold my attention more than a monotone drawler speaking about a ‘trendy’ subject. This is something I experienced at one of the big events - problem with this is you may need to stumble across the speaker by accident beforehand.

• If the event agenda includes specially arranged segments then that may well override my reticent for the headline subject, e.g. Birds of a Feather, panel discussion etc. (As proof, I’m grabbing my passport and attending next weeks Chelmsford event for no other reason than I like the format.)

2) Whether I pay £20, £10 or nowt for admittance to an event has no effect on me as I’m swayed by the content. For the type of event we are discussing, my ‘rip off’ switch seems to come into play around the £25-£30 level, anything below and I’m not bothered.

3) The Birds of a Feather sessions are an excellent way for someone to benefit from the opinions of several different people at one sitting. I found being ‘let in’ to the intricacies of someone else’s current deal rewarding and educational. I would always put this towards the end as I think it’s healthy for people to connect first.

4) Raw networking is extremely important. I like taking relationships to the next level and meeting with people in the flesh. I view this as an opportunity to further connections made online and explore business ideas. I would slot elements of this in at the beginning, middle and end of events - plus post as well.

5) Agree with Ant, I hate overt presentations that promise a lot and then deliver bugger all. The worst example is asking a presenter a question and them replying “You’ll need to attend my course next week.” My preferred response to this is “Frig off you Numpty!”

Marcus

[Samantha Collett]

Vanessa, please don't take me the wrong way - but what is important to me is that I am going to meet people there who i want to network with. Having seen so many of these events advertised the focus is so much on BMV that really I wonder what sort of people will go. As an experienced investor and business lady I am pretty busy and i want to spend my time talking with people of a similar level. I am sorry if that sounds snobbish, but i would like to add my honest opinion to this discussion

[Marcus]

Samantha Collett said:

Having seen so many of these events advertised the focus is so much on BMV that really I wonder what sort of people will go. As an experienced investor and business lady I am pretty busy and i want to spend my time talking with people of a similar level. I am sorry if that sounds snobbish, but i would like to add my honest opinion to this discussion

Ooh! Get you Mrs Bucket ;-)

You are of course right to be skeptical, I feel the same. People on here hate the Bull Marketing Value hype as much as you do and adopt a far more professional approach to their businesses, possibly with the exception of yours truly.

What manor yous from…sorry, scratch that. Where exactly is your Manor? There’s a networking event in Chelmsford on Tuesday where you can rub shoulders with the tribal hierarchy if interested. If not then the tribal gathering takes place late September. Check the events section for details.

Best wishes

Marcus

PS: Did I just hear you shout “Let them eat cake?”

[Roberta Ward]

Thanks Marcus for quoting my own networking event in Chelmsford (Essex).

You are right Samantha that it can be a challenge to find the right event which works for you both in travel/ time logistics and in the caliber of people who attend. Most of the newer events are still following what consider to be an outdated format-circuit speakers and sales/ affiliate marketing being a priority. Great for them but not for the listener/ attendee.

Many events focus their attention on getting newbie investors in so that they can 'sell' to them. Of course there is an element of selling at all events, but those with less time tend to prefer a more focused event with knowledgeable speakers and lots of time to make connections. It is networking after all-not selling which is the primary idea.

I can only speak from my own attendees, that we try to attract and keep a more 'intermediate to advanced' level of investor at our meetings so that is a real way to further knowledge for everyone.
As an example this year alone we have covered:
credit card and bank loan wiping/ offshore trusts and tax issues/ options/ buying property at auction/ social media in property/ HMO's for cash flow/ evictions.

I like to have speakers who really know their onions rather than just trot out the same speech we've heard a thousand times before elsewhere. Hopefully this keeps it fresh and interesting for all.

Roberta
http://www.mypropertymentor.co.uk
http://www.twitter.com/RobertaWard


Samantha Collett said:

Vanessa, please don't take me the wrong way - but what is important to me is that I am going to meet people there who i want to network with. Having seen so many of these events advertised the focus is so much on BMV that really I wonder what sort of people will go. As an experienced investor and business lady I am pretty busy and i want to spend my time talking with people of a similar level. I am sorry if that sounds snobbish, but i would like to add my honest opinion to this discussion

[Samantha Collett]

Hi, Thanks Roberta for that, I understand your points. Unfortunately i'm up north tomorrow so won't be able to attend, but I will keep an eye out to see if i can make one of the later meets. Have fun! Sam

[Wasim]

Hi Vanessa and the Gang,

The perfect networking event would be:

1. Based in the Midlands (or somewhere between Birmingham and London but not Milton Keynes lol)
2. 2-3 Items on the agenda that most people will find of interest
3. Deals with property investment in the real world and not just BMV/NMD. I would love to learn about HMO's, Fire Regs, Repossession Procedures etc
4. 30 minute breaks to allow attendees to network
5. Break out sessions to help people with their particular property related challenges ie Deal Stacking and Deal Structuring, finding your own deals using the property portals etc
6. No get rich quick schemes...im too old for those.
7. No presentations that are thinly veiled sales calls.

Thats about it i think.

Regards
Wasim
@Mortgages_uk