(2900 College Dr., Kettering, OH   45420)

Considering that it was pouring down rain all day long including at 5:30 when this event occurred, the turn out was very good. Vendors were set up in several hallways and there was a lot of “networking” going on. This video is a walk down two halways. As I walked down the hallways you can see that people were meeting each other, introducing people and having conversations.

There was plenty of food provided by Kohler Catering with lots of variety from sandwiches to stuffed mushrooms to vegetables and dip and deserts.

Conversations flourish as things settle down a bit

For those considering going to a Dayton Chamber business after hours event, if you register by phone ahead of the event, there is no charge to participate. I suggest you just skip dinner and have some food at the event rather than rush around and leave. It seems to me that more and more conversations start and more connections are made once people have had some time to look around and settle in a little bit. Soft drinks, win, and beer are available at a slight cost, which if I remember correctly, those funds become a donation to a charity of some kind.

Time for your input!

Were you a vendor participant or did you attend the event. Give your two cents by clicking on the comment button on this post. I would love to add your input to the information available to the people who read this blog.

Peter DeMott • REACH Magazine – Dayton’s favorite direct mail coupon magazine • pdemott@reachusa.com • 937-478-6222

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Michael Ehrler, the owner of the Growth Coach, gave a 10-15 minute presentation as we were eating lunch.

Seems like each time there is a brand new bunch of folks at the group. Carlos is very careful to make sure that the meeting progresses and ends on time. Lunch portion grilled chicken salad hit the spot for me at $8. Excellent food was prepared in a timely manner at The Chop House.

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The fall of Rainmakers in the Dayton Market

This blog entry is a reflection of my personal opinions regarding Rainmaker networking in Dayton, Ohio. It is not meant to hinder the rebirth of Rainmakers here if it occurs. The DO NOT LIKE button is to say that I am disappointed, not that I do not like Rainmakers and the model presented.

You see, I was one of the original 10-20 people that started meeting at the Penera Bread near UD campus at the start of Rainmakers in Ohio. I have been supportive of Rainmakers from the start because I thought the program was interesting and innovative.  I liked the idea of being able to attend several different HUBs to make connections and give and receive referrals. I didn’t have to work very hard to find new connections and I frequently invited my business associates to meetings to introduce them to others.

The value must be there for people to invest money in the program

However, there was a problem.  Actually two problems. First, although some of the meetings were quite large to start with, there was always the presentation including the “here’s what it takes to join” speech.  People were expected to join before they could determine if there would be a return on their investment. We heard over and over that businesses in Indianapolis were getting a very good return on their investment, but I don’t think there was much happening here in Dayton. Even so, people were encouraged to join up at a “discounted” rate and lock it there for the foreseeable future. What a great deal that would be!

With many meetings occurring each month in Dayton, and seeming to be doing well, the headquarters in Indianapolis quickly faded out the discounted rate and started presenting full price at the meetings. Now, you have to understand, in Indianapolis there are/were 30-40 different  meetings each month available to attend and network as a member. There was also a monthly “event” in Indianapolis where everyone was encouraged to come and where hundreds of people attend/attended. But, here in Dayton, there were 5-6 Hub events per month and there was no “Big Event” to attend. The price to join reflected a value much higher (the value of being a member in Indianapolis) than what was being provided (the value available to members in Dayton).

Should I renew my membership?

As I reflected on the invoice that arrived in the mail earlier this year, I could not justify paying it. I had done my “one-to-one” appointments. I had encouraged others to visit. I had given others good referrals from time to time. But, I was not getting a return on even my discounted investment for yearly membership. I was not getting what I would call a healthy number of referrals for my investment of time and money in the group. I decided to attend some more meetings to give it the old college try before sending in another year’s membership dues.

The meetings were evaporating left and right

Here is what I found. Each meeting that I attended was smaller and smaller and the focus became, “what needs to happen to reinvent Rainmakers in Dayton?” (Funny thing was that even at these meetings, referrals were not being given. Suddenly Rainmakers leadership closed down some of the HUBS or they just ran out of people willing to make them happen and/or  suggested that they should join one of the other meetings in hopes of keeping the large meeting chemistry alive. Soon there was only one meeting occurring at all (it is still meeting, I believe) with numbers around 5-10-15 per meeting. (I deleted my posts about Cadillac Jacks meeting, the Troy meeting, the brown street meeting, the after hours Town and Country meeting, all of which are no longer functioning groups.)

What Rainmakers looked like when it was starting up

The internet aspect of the group is also down to a slow trickle with the only posts being a discussion of “what are your favorite motivational quotes”. I guess it’s time to pull the plug on investing time there as well. Again, the value of referrals given and received is not there. The Linked-In Ohio group and the Rain Ohio ning forum are both showing announcements about events from 6 months ago as if they were going to happen tomorrow. I did not want to add to that confusion by leaving up posts that were about Rainmaker HUBs that have been disbanded.

I added the DO NOT LIKE button to this post because I truly did like the model as it was presented during the first meetings of Rainmakers in Dayton. I am very disappointed at how things have gone in recent months.

What were the mistakes?

1) Although the activities at the HUB meetings were great ice-breakers, there needed to be more focus on actually committing to giving good referrals to others at the meetings. Some were excited with just getting to know people with no accountability to providing value in the form of referrals.

2) Prices were raised too fast before the value had developed for the area. 5-6 HUB groups is significantly less than the 30-40 that were going on each month in Indianapolis. It became very clear that the value was not there as the meetings were quickly reducing in size at the time of membership renewal as people had to consider if they would continue on the anniversary of when they officially joined.

3) There are lower cost organizations for networking here in the Dayton market. Although I was very supportive of the Rainmakers model as it was initially presented, management clearly did not have a handle on if there was enough value for members for them to want to renew. This created a death spiral for which we will see if they are able to recover from. Some of that was due to the people who joined because of the excitement of the new group in Dayton without putting forth any effort to provide referrals to the people they met. With FREE and lower cost opportunities to network available, without the value of good referrals being given, why would anyone continue to pay $200, $300, $400, or even close to $500 for an annual membership.

What now?

I will continue to check things out from time to time with Rainmakers in Dayton, however I have removed all my posts about the various meetings that used to be on the calendar with Rainmakers in Dayton (Most have shut down).

I still enjoy visiting other referral networking type groups and will certainly review them here on my blog for all to see. A healthy networking group is worth paying for when people within the group are committed to giving each other support and referrals for their businesses.

My recomendation

Whenever you visit a networking group, plan to visit a minimum of two times before making a commitment to join if there are membership dues. Be willing to give referrals to others before expecting referrals from others, but at the same time look around and see if business is happening on those first several visits to the group. Ask others in the group if they are getting value from their participation, then make a commitment to participate fully in whichever group/s you choose.

Why do YOU think Rainmakers in Dayton has fallen so fast?

If you have thought about what caused the precipitous fall of Rainmakers in Dayton, please click on the comment button and tell me your thoughts.

Peter DeMott • 937-478-6222 • peter@photosbypdemott.com

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I met Danielle Deramo, the owner of Just Say It, at a couple of business networking events. What a lovely and outgoing person. Danielle’s business is about Message Crafting for businesses. It’s all about words, branding, and marketing for businesses.

When I saw her photograph on Linked In and on another web site, I mentioned that her photos were not doing her any favors. I told her that I could show her outgoing personality in a casual business portrait that she could use on Facebook, Linked In, and her web site to enhance her presence on those forums. You’ve heard the old saying a million times. “A picture can say a thousand words.”

Well, you tell me. I think these portraits say a thousand wards about Danielle. If you would like to complement Danielle or connect with her for her outstanding knowledge of marketing and branding for businesses feel free to send her a note at danielle.deramo@gmail.com

Is it time for you to have casual business portraits made for online social media? Find out more on my photography website here:

http://www.photosbypdemott.com/lifestyle-portrait-session-pricing/businessprofilefacebook/

“I was against getting a professional portrait. I didn’t want to take the time out of a busy work day. Peter arrived promptly and got to work making sure the lighting was perfect. Within 45 minutes we were finished with the shoot.
I was able to view the proofs on-line the same day and download my selections within minutes.
As soon as I posted new profile pics on my social media sites the compliments started rolling in!
Peter DeMott is an excellent photographer who I highly recommend.”

Danielle Deramo
Just Say It!

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But, first, are you putting all your internet marketing efforts into something you have no controls over?

If you think that Facebook is a great social internet networking tool for your business, I think that is great. But, here is the big rub. You have no control over changes that may occur from one day to the next which may totally change the value of the work that you have put into Facebook for your business. It is not YOUR platform. It belongs to Facebook and as you can see, right now, they are making changes that you may or may not like. Something that you have been doing up to now that may have been effective for building your business may be changed tomorrow in a way that suddenly makes all that effort and time flush down the toilet.

Alternatively, if you have a self hosted WordPress blog and web site, you can make changes, add content, and build a reputation that bring people to your site…. and it is YOURS. The changes and the content that you add build SEO (organic search results through SEO) over time. Along with that, your information here can be automatically fed into your Twitter feed, and your Facebook profile and Facebook Page. If one of those is suddenly changed (remember, since you do not own them, they could change completely overnight) to where it is no longer effective to bring in new clients and customers, you have still built something that will continue to grow your business.

Here are the changes that are rolling out right now – click on link or picture

http://blog.involver.com/2011/09/22/facebook-releases-new-timeline-profile-at-f8/

Mashable also has a presentation of the changes that are rolling out – click link below

http://mashable.com/2011/09/22/facebook-changes-roundup/

Fast Company has a quick review of how it might effect businesses

http://www.fastcompany.com/1782173/what-the-new-facebook-changes-mean-for-businesses

Peter DeMott • REACH Magazine, Dayton’s favorite coupon magazine • pdemott@reachusa.com • peter@photosbypdemott.com • 937-478-6222

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When does it meet?

This networking opportunity occurs once a month on the third Tuesday of the month from 11:30 to approximately 1pm. Carlos who has a web site call Dayton Pulse runs the event which has had from about 17 to just over 30 participants each month. Here is his web site and a place to sign up for email reminders for the event: The Dayton Pulse Meet Up

Today’s “Meet Up” as Carlos calls it, was pleasant with opportunities to chat with several people that I already knew as well as several people I had never met. According to Carlos, the participation has been very diverse from meeting to meeting so you are very likely to meet new folks at each meeting that you attend.

How much does the group cost?

This is a free group. There are no fees for participation, but you are welcome to buy your lunch while you are there. My lunch was $13. Everyone seemed to enjoy what they ordered, but some just has a side salad instead of a full lunch.

Carlos was telling me that there was room for up to 60 people at the meeting room, however he felt that 20-40 people would be an ideal number so that everyone has a chance to stand up and mention the types of connections they are looking for. He also had everyone pass a stack of their business cards to the left so that everyone could take one.

Good job Carlos! I will be back for more visits for sure.

Now for the Bad…

P.S. I had one annoyance at the meeting. As it happened, I sat across the table from someone with very strong smokers odor about them. Perhaps it was their breath or maybe it was their clothing. In any case it was fairly repulsive. If you are a heavy smoker, I would recommend that you have some of the breath freshening chewing gum when attending a networking meeting. I know, nobody talks about breath and networking events, but there it is. Appearance and demeanor are not the only things that make first impressions.

My apologies to Juliet Wenzler of Time Diva as I came out with my stuff about advertising right from the get go and I am afraid I was a bit off putting since I did not know a lot about her business before doing so.

Peter DeMott • REACH Magazine • pdemott@reachusa.com • 937-478-6222

• REACH Magazine in Dayton, Cincinnati, and more

• Housetrends Magazine

• Christmas Gift Guide coming in our December magazine (Deadline Nov. 1st)

• Wedding Planning Guide coming in our January edition of REACH magazine (Deadline Dec. 1st)

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Ronald J. Solada is the the president of the group and is very inviting and helpful. The group meets the First and Third Tuesday of each month at 8AM in Christophers Restaurant at the corner of Woodman and Dorothy Lane. Ronald tries to have interesting guests at each meeting and I have found them to be informative for the meetings that I have attended. Before the speaker, everyone is invited to share their “elivator speach” or tell who or what kind of business they are looking for this week.

This is a no fee to participate group, but it is a ONE PER CATEGORY group. You can see who are the current members by going to the web site for there group here Kettering Business Networking. One of the members, Paul Anslow of Treasure Your Time, maintains the web site.

Here is a photograph and video of the meeting this morning on August 2nd, 2011. Most of the groups that I have visited tend to be a little smaller during the late summer months. Come fall these tables will likely be full and more will needed to be added.

Here is a short video clip:

Kettering Business Networking Group  (click on link for video clip)

If you are interested in visiting or joining the group, send Ronald Solada an email or give him a call:  ronSolada@gmail.com or 937-293-7473 . Membership is based on attendance if the category you represent is currently open.

Peter DeMott • REACH Magazine & Housetrends Magazine • Dayton, OHIO • peter@photosbypdemott.com or pdemott@REACHusa.com • 937-478-6222

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A little drive to a very nice facility at Antioch University Midwest

I-675 North to Fairborn, turn right on Dayton Yellow Springs Road and drive for a little bit to the Anioch University Midwest building before you get to Yellow Springs. It’s a nice country drive. The building is beautiful and the landscaping is very nice.

When I walked in I was greeted nicely by the folks at the sign-in table

Seeing some display tables over to the left, I headed down that hallway. There was a hallway with display and food in a common area. There were a couple of rooms with displays as well. In the hallway I met Melissa Clough of Frosted Wedding & Special Occasion Cakes. She had a table with a nice cake which diplayed the logo of BellyFire Catering. The cupcakes had the logo of Uniglob Travel. Take a look.

Once I saw all this I went back out front to purchase a ticket for a Sprite. Ticket sales for beverages were in support of something, but I forget what. At that point I went back down the hallway and met a few more people and then started to feel a little frustrated that, “this is it?”, however when I was about to leave I noticed a person or two going down a hallway to another meeting room. Oh my gosh…. there were a whole bunch more displays and people wandering around in this room. I had heard some announcements and I was wondering where the speakers were. In any case, I went up to the announcer and suggested that she tell everyone about this other meeting room which she did do. I figured there could be others like me who did not see this hallway. After the announcement I noticed some of the folks that I had seen in the other hallway making their way into this larger room.

I had a nice chat with Michael Schuh, president and CEO of Michael’s Salon & Spa who was discussing his other business called The Media Group@ Micheal’s. He is working with companies to help them with SEO and various New Media (Facebook, Twitter, Mobile Technology, SEO, etc.) ways to grow their business and get noticed on the Internet and how to translate that into customer engagement.

At one end there was Peter Hirt showing off his Designs-on-Display. He was showing people how his displays are very easy to put up and put away for easy in and out at conventions and business meetings where you need a company display. He gave me a quick little demo:

Grocery list Honey, on your way home…

Now that I had seen all the displays and chatted with quite a few people, I was pleased with the event. I came away with several new contacts and a couple good leads as well. My wife called me with a short list of things to pick up at the grocery on my way home. I had her text me the list. On my way out I gave the rest of the REACH Magazines that I had with me to the ladies at the sign-in table and stopped to see the Antioch University Midwest display. Walt Ulbricht, M.A., the director of marketing communications, and I talked for a bit and I shared a couple ideas about marketing in REACH magazine with him.

Have you heard of “Prepaid Electric?”

Just a bit of humor. I’ve heard of Prepaid Legal services. I saw tables which had no display which had a sheet of paper on them which said, “Prepaid Electric”. As I was walking through there were several of these empty tables and I thought to myself, “who is the hell is Prepaid Electric and if they reserved all these tables, why didn’t they show up? Since I know Chris Elrod and she moderates these events, I asked her,”who is Prepaid Electric? I laughed at myself when she explained that those are just extra display tables ready for displays (and they have electric) if people show up who didn’t get registered correctly online. Too funny. Prepaid Legal and Prepaid Gift cards and Prepaid Electric?? I hope you had a good laugh on me.

Dayton Chamber Events can be found on their online Events Calendar

Dayton Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours are FREE with your RSVP prior to the event by phone (I think they are free all the way around, but this makes it so that when you arrive there is a name tag ready and waiting for you). In addition those who have display table give door prizes that are given out during the event. When you arrive, you put your business card in a basket so they can draw names for the door prizes. Usually the event sponsor has a brief time to talk about their programs and/or facilities early in the meeting. The food is always good. The variety of vendors with displays varies from event to event and also depending on the location. You can LIKE the Dayton Chamber on Facebook

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It is a one per category group of top quality professionals. If you would like to visit send an email to Michael Martens at mmartens365@gmail.com and make sure your category of business is currently open. There is also no fee associated with this group which numbers about 20-25 total members and 8 to 12 average meeting size.

Each meeting I have come away with a couple of good leads and some good information as well. Ric Moody has been able to tell us of recent companies coming into the Dayton market. Marc Noga who coordinates our closed Linked In group page always brings some very interesting information about technology in the Dayton area.

Here is a short video clip going around the table yesterday as Bill Neson of Franchise Development Group was sharing about recent franchise developments in the Dayton market.

This is a good and thoughtful group of business professionals and to date I have made several sales as a result of my participation there.

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But, for their guest day, they moved to the main dining area of Champs Restaurant in Centerville. Good thing too, because there were a record number of visitors. I think it was in the 80′s. The handout sheet for the group lists 37 active members for this BNI Chapter wish a pretty diverse list of categories of business.

People were pouring in when I arrived at 7:25am. Within a couple of minutes almost all the tables and booths in the main dining area were full. There were several visitors that were from other chapters of BNI who were there to see what a visitors day could look like and to offer their support, but that was a small number of perhaps 5 or 6 who mentioned they were from other chapters. Most of the 80+ visitors were here by invitation from the members within the group.

For this last still shot, I tried my best to capture the entirety of the room, but the video clip at the end of this post gives the level of activity and the number of people in the room.

You’ll have to excuse my motion blur images as I was just shooting with my point & shoot camera and not my professional gear. I use this camera for my blog posts because it has video as well. The next image is the video of people arriving and finding seating. You can hear the amount of introductions occurring throughout the room in the video clip.

Because of the size of the group, things were rather rushed with everyone in the room being invited to give a ten second elevator speech about where they work and what kind of referral they are looking for. After the meeting it was difficult to even get to people you might have wanted to meet. Kim Salomon is the president of  this group and did a fabulous job of keeping things moving along. After the meeting I introduced myself to Kevin Harker who I have called consistently over the years trying to get him to advertise in REACH magazine.

Overall the meeting was impressive, but because it was rushed it would be nice to visit a regular meeting in their normal venue to see the interactions and referral sharing within the regular 37 members.

Here is the video clip of the room filling with guests and members of the Dayton B2B Chapter of BNI.

Dayton B2B Chapter of BNI (Business Networking International)

MVI_2403

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