What You Missed September 2012 General Meeting
by Rob Earhart

Speed Networking

Presented by: SREIA

September 4, 2012

“No man is an island.” Or woman, for that matter. In order to promote that fact, SREIA encourages interaction and networking at all our events. Every opportunity for networking is promoted to our members and guests.

A highly-regarded opportunity took place at this month’s General Meeting on Tuesday, September 4th . To make sure our members interacted and networked, we set up a reprise of our “Speed Networking,” for each person to meet and introduce themselves to as many people as possible in the shortest time.

Two groups formed in two lines extending from one end of the room to the other, and each group sat facing the other. For one minute, each person in the first line described what they did, what they were looking for, and any information assisting them in their real estate ventures. They pitched an “elevator speech,” which got the message across in a very short time. There was so much interaction that you had to shout to the person just inches away, and there were 50 conversations going on at the same time.

When the minute was over, each switched and allowed the opposite person to pitch their business and their requirements. When the two-minute warning was announced, each row shifted one person to the right, and the conversations began again.

“I’m looking for any source of REO’s.”
“I have two vacancies in St. Pete that I need tenants for.”
“I am a wholesaler looking for clients in the Tampa Bay area. Do you know of anyone interested in homes in the Carrollwood area?”
“I just started in real estate and need someone to work with and help me with contracts.”

Everyone had a chance to meet with at least 40 people to explain their needs and get names and phone numbers. Many people had a stack of business cards and a complete business plan put together by the end of the evening. We had a hard time cutting off the discussions when it came time to leave. People were still talking as we cleared the room and reconvened in the restaurant.

Once everyone had exchanged info, there were comments like: “I got to meet a lot of people with whom I would never have had the chance to talk,” and “This was great, we should do this more often.” (SREIA did it a year ago and it was well received.)

In the two hours, we sped through more information than could be done in several 15-minute breaks and there were deals made and partnerships formed for the near future. This “speedy” meeting was productive and educational in many ways and members were excited by how intensive the pitches were.

No one came away empty handed and each person now knows a little more about how to quickly pitch their business to others. Our goal was to get people talking and we reached it handily.

We look forward to another. We’ll see you at the next one…….

 

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