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We all have stories of Zoom meetings that have gone wrong during the pandemic.  All of a sudden, your video locks up.  Crazy background noise overpowers the conversation.  Your foreground is so dark it looks that the rest of us need night vision goggles.  Ah, the wonders of Zoom!

“Avoiding the Oops and Oy of Zoom” is a free webinar addressing the many challenges of Zoom. The virtual event is sponsored by My Pinnacle Network, Rockland Trust and South Shore Networking Professionals. The workshop is set for Thursday, May 27, 9 – 10 a.m. 

Among the topics to be discussed are –

• What causes audio and video problems in zoom and how to quickly resolve them on the Fly.
• Digital enhancements to lighting conditions and your appearance.
• How to update your name temporarily for that Zoom call and permanently via the Zoom  website.
• For hosts – managing security on Zoom calls.
• Keep your Zoom client up-to-date.
• How to work with Zoom backgrounds. Live demo to be included.
• Some people look distorted on Zoom.   What causes this?
• What accessories do I need to invest in for Zoom – including lights, camera, tripod, etc.?

Presenters include Paul LaFlamme of Centrend, based in Worcester and Sturbridge, Massachusetts and providing on-site Information Technology (IT) managed services and consulting to business customers throughout New England and Lisa Fischer is the owner of Lisa Fischer of Fischer Photography in Milton, MA and specializing in corporate and family photography.  Steve Dubin of PR Works based in Plymouth, MA will moderate the presentation.

My Pinnacle Network hosts monthly meetings for business-to-business professionals at five locations throughout Massachusetts including Braintree, Mansfield, Needham, Pembroke, and Westborough; South Shore Networking Professionals which connects business people monthly at locations throughout the South Shore; and Rockland Trust, offering a wide range of banking, investment, and insurance services to businesses and individuals through retail branches, commercial lending offices, investment management offices, and residential lending centers located in Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, as well as through online, mobile and phone banking.

Click here to RSVP for the event or call My Pinnacle Network at 781-582-1061.

Those words of advice came from My Pinnacle Network-Westborough Member Paul Cronin. This was in response to several members at our last meeting bemoaning the fact we could not meet in person. His contention was that by fighting it we were actually making it worse. Then he offered this other sage piece of advice:   “I now think of myself as a farmer.”   He went on to explain the analogy. He works at home (the field), his kids are educated at home (much like they did centuries ago), and every so often he ventures into town for necessary supplies.   Now, our ancestors didn’t have the creature comforts of home and Al Gore had yet to invent the Internet, but you can see the point.   In terms of work, a farmer does not plant a crop and then harvest it in a month or two. It takes several months. Wanting that crop to be ready for sale today does not make it so. It takes time, just as it will take time and compliance for this pandemic to pass.   So, what can today’s farmer do in addition to tending to this year’s crops? How about cultivating other skills and interests. My Pinnacle Network and other organizations are offering a number of complimentary webinars to provide information and help you learn other ways to grow your current crop or perhaps supplement your harvest.   For example:   Our Sales Coach is offering one entitled “How to Get More Virtual Meetings with Decision Makers”. You can download the flyer here and register by clicking here.   My Pinnacle Network, along with Rockland Trust and South Shore Networking Professionals Group, is offering another put on PR Works entitled Leverage Podcast Guest Appearances to Boost your Business. To register, click here. Yes, we would all like to be back in our offices and meeting face-to-face with clients, prospects and those in our networking circle. Taking advantage of current opportunities is one way to make productive use of the current time and get to a bountiful harvest.   Happy farming!

The current situation has negatively impacted many small businesses. As a sign of support, an unofficial campaign has taken place where small business owners encourage others to leave a positive Google review for their fellow small business owners. My Pinnacle Network supports this effort and includes links to each member’s Google My Business page in the summary e-mail sent after every meeting.

But did you know you can leave a Google review for just about any of the heroes we hear about on a nightly, really hourly, basis?

True.

You can leave a review for a hospital, medical practice, police or fire department (see image above).

In addition to giving up to five stars, you can leave a comment and express your gratitude.

It may not seem like much. But if you’re not in a position to help beyond staying in your home, it is something you can do. And judging by some of the Google My Business pages this writer has seen, they could use some positive feedback as many of these first responders only get negative reviews during ordinary times. Think about that one, folks.

So, how do you find a Google My Business page for first responders and medical professionals? Same as with a small business. Google it. You will see the Google My Business page on the right hand side of the screen (again, see the graphic above).

Actually, it shouldn’t be that much different than a regular one-on-one. You just need to bring those documents electronically.

What could some of those documents be? Down below we list some of those documents with links to examples. Those examples are what PR Works President Steve Dubin brings to his one-on-ones. Those include:

• Ideal Client Profile
• What to Listen For sheet
• Company Product or Services (e.g. PR Works Podcast offering).

For more on what to bring to a virtual one-on-one, list to this week’s podcast on our YouTube channel.

This is something that’s not only important for you to know.
It’s also extremely beneficial to people in your networking group and contact
sphere. That’s why we recommend developing a one-page sheet outlining your ideal
client.

This one pager can contain as little or as much detail as you desire. An Ideal Client profile for our sister company, PR Works can be downloaded by clicking here. Feel free to copy and paste to create your own Ideal Client profile.

So, it’s been a while since you received a referral. Now what? Leads and referrals happen for a reason. Usually due to the work you do in presenting your business to your network to make it easier for them to refer you.

Over the next several newsletters, we will explore several steps you can take to end the dry spell. Step one is to target the people in your sphere of influence. Those are the folks who are most likely to pass you a lead or referral and make a simple introduction.

The first step is to define who those folks are.

Do you know who is in your sphere of influence? Do the people in your sphere know that?

We often take things for granted. The CPA may assume the bookkeeper will pass them leads and referrals and vice versa. Most probably do. Yet the conversations still need to be had on a fairly timely basis. At a minimum, once a quarter. During a dry spell. It should be more frequent.

Conversations with your sphere of influence don’t have to be anything more than answering a few simple questions:

What are you working; what new business have you recently received?
What referral source did that piece of business come from?

You would be amazed how providing answers to very basic questions can trigger possible introductions.

For example, let’s say the bookkeeper just started doing work for a pet store. The CPA may have done work for a pet store in the past. Perhaps he/she could arrange an introduction for the bookkeeper?

Let’s take it a step further and state the referral came from a financial planner who set up the 401(k) for the pet store. If the financial planner is making that type of a referral, is it a leap to think he/she could refer the CPA? Probably not.

So, what would it look like to make that introduction happen? Ideally, people in your network and sphere of influence are looking to ways to introduce you and pass business. But that’s a very conscious effort. With people as busy as they are it might not be a top-of-mind thought. That’s why the CPA should ask the question:

“Would your financial planner be open to an introduction?”

Simple question. The bookkeeper might not have been thinking of it. Or maybe he/she was but wanted to be more established with the client before making the request.

By having a regular dialogue with your sphere of influence, you can ask these types of questions. This minimizes the likelihood of misunderstandings (e.g. “Jim the Bookkeeper hasn’t passed me any business.”). It will also increase the possibility of discovering additional introduction possibilities.