01 Sep Networking Opportunities for Spectrum Business Park Tenants!

If you’re not already making time in your schedule for networking – isn’t it time you did? Networking with local businesses can be an incredibly successful way of generating awareness and credibility for your business, not to mention leads and customers!

Spectrum Business Park is ideally located for those looking to mingle with other North East businesses; based in Seaham just off the A19 means that regions like Newcastle, Durham and Teesside are easily accessible for tenants.

Here are our top recommendations for networking opportunities near Spectrum: 

Network North

Network North prides itself on promoting networking as being a ‘pleasure, not a chore’. The sessions are structured to help make it easy for members to find new business, and they claim that you can see a return if you follow the system, even if you’re new to networking.

The Network North system works by members attending at least 3 out of 4 meetings, being specific in your requests for referrals and having 1-2-1s with fellow members to get to know them better.

You can visit a group a few times before joining to get a feel of whether it’s right for you, and there’s room in this relaxed and friendly network for a huge range of industries and professions.

Spreading across the whole of the North, there are a number of groups you could join in the North East if you’re based in Spectrum.

These include:

• Darlington
• Gateshead
• Jesmond
• Newcastle
• North Tyneside
• Sunderland
• Durham
• …and many more!

To find out more, visit the Network North website at http://networknorth.org.uk.

BNI

BNI is the most successful business networking referral organisation in the world, with over 13,000 members in the UK and Ireland alone, and referrals being passed between members to the value of over £409 million every year.

A great advantage of BNI is that you’re able to lock out your competition by joining a new group, as only one representative from each trade or profession is allowed to join.

Using the ‘Givers Gain’ philosophy, BNI are big on promoting referrals and works on the basis that the group are like your own team of sales people, on the look out to find you business (and vice versa!).

There’s a range of options for you to join in the North East (if someone in your industry hasn’t already!), including:

• Doxford BNI in Sunderland – this is a new one!
• Houghton le Spring
• Cookson in South Shields
• Centurion in Chester-le-Street
• Beacon in Hartlepool
• ..and even more

There’s also a new group in the process of forming at Tonia’s Café, right next to Seaham Hall and also Spectrum! Getting involved could be a great step in spreading the word about your business when you move to Spectrum.

To find your nearest BNI meeting, visit this link – http://www.bni.co.uk/findameeting.php.

The Mussel Club

Established in 2006, The Mussel Club is a free-to-join member organisation that works to provide exciting, motivating and social networking events to help businesses create long lasting relationships.

With a wide variety of types of businesses and industries registered, The Mussel Club also uses their website as a platform for businesses to promote themselves through online profiles, member to member offers and direct messages to connections.

Taking a more relaxed approach to networking, The Mussel Club events use an informal structure to allow members to be themselves and get to know each other without the worry of performing 60 second pitches or adhering to strict referral processes.

There are a range of Mussel Club events to get involved in across the region, with current upcoming ones including a breakfast event in Sunderland, a Golfers & Non-Golfers Day in Durham and a free Friday breakfast event in Newton Aycliffe.

To see the full list of upcoming events, click here. 

These are just the icing on the cake in terms of networking opportunities in and around Spectrum; there are a whole host of other events in the area, which helps make the park and the region a thriving destination for ambitious businesses!

Not to mention the value of networking with the people in your building!

To find out more about office space at Spectrum Business Park and what it can offer your company, contact us on info@spectrumbusinesspark.co.uk or call 07946 439 970.