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BUSINESS CONSULT 16 MAY/JUNE 2017 | Med Esthetics Practice owners can create their own networking event by hosting an open house. Examples include: a "girls night out" that combines an educational seminar with light re fresh ments and promotional pricing on products and services; or a teenage skincare event focused on acne treatments (be sure to market to both parents and teens). Other excellent sources of referrals include hair and nail salons, day spas, fi tness centers and high-end clothing bou- tiques. You can meet a variety of local business owners by joining your local Chamber of Commerce and taking part in its events, or reach out individually to owners of local businesses that share your target demographic. Ideally, you want to focus your networking activities within a fi ve-mile radius of your practice. PREPARE YOUR PITCH Before you set off to your networking event create an elevator pitch—a 30-second description of you and your practice. It must be memorable and clearly explain to your audience what you and your practice provide, while enticing them to learn more. That is a big undertaking for a 30-second speech. Here is an example of the elevator pitch I use for my consulting company: Hi. My name is Cheryl from Beautiful Forever Consult- ing. At Beautiful Forever, our team of consultants helps physicians and companies in the medical industry in - crease their ROI and profi tability by educating them on how to successfully make sales, conduct events and create new profi t centers. For medspa owners, we offer the "Aesthetic Spa Success System" to jumpstart their success, and for medical practices, my book Beautifully Profi table/Forever Profi table provides step-by-step information on improving their profi tability. Remember, networking is about building personal rela tionships; people do business with—and refer busi- ness to—people they like. So look for ways in which the relationship can be mutually benefi cial. Deliver your pitch, listen and then focus on what the benefi ts are for the per- son from whom you are seeking referrals or patronage. Make sure you leave every new contact with informa- tion about you and your practice. This may be a business card, a brochure or an invitation to an upcoming event. Ask if he or she has a card as well. After the event, nurture the relationship by following up with each contact by phone, email or text within 24 hours. Let them know how much you enjoyed meeting them and that you look forward to speaking with them again in the future. If you extended an invitation, reiterate your desire to see them at the event. REVIEW YOUR EFFORTS With so many networking opportunities available, you will want to know which efforts yielded the greatest results for your practice. There is a simple equation that can help you quantify the results of your networking activities. Let's look at the cost component fi rst. Networking costs encompass the cost of registration or sponsorship for a networking event as well as any travel or entertainment costs. If it is an event that you hosted, there may be ad- ditional costs such as refreshments, invitations, marketing, staffi ng, and product samples or prizes. Do your best to accurately estimate the actual cost of each event. Defi ning gains is a little trickier. Things to consider when looking at what was gained by networking include: the number of new client leads and their value; the number of new patients who booked services and their value; and the sales of new products/services directly related to the event. Other gains are more diffi cult to quantify in the short term, such as increased name recognition, enhanced reputation and the long-term value of the relationships you've established through networking. Do your best to estimate which activities exposed you to the largest number of people who can directly benefi t your practice growth. Try to be conservative, rather than overly optimis- tic, with your estimates. The goal is to narrow down your efforts and focus on those that bring the greatest benefi t. Networking takes time and effort, but it tends to be low cost and can pay off in a big way as you develop new contacts and build name recognition throughout your community. The key is to stay aware of all the opportu- nities available to you and track your results so you can better recognize the most benefi cial activities for you and your business. Cheryl Whitman is the CEO of aesthetic business consulting fi rm Beautiful Forever and author of Beauti- fully Profi table/Forever Profi table. Contact her at cheryl@ beautifulforever.com. Ideally, you want to focus your networking activities within a fi ve-mile radius of your practice. (Gain from Investment) – (Cost of Investment) ( Cost of Investment ) ROI =