Oakville Networking Group

Hello, my name is Kristeen Sopeju Edwards and I have an amazing job!

I am a Gifting Specialist and quite simply…I work up a little magic, throw in some sparkle and voila, the perfect gifts are designed for your clients.

My specialty is designing Custom Gifts that provide a “WoW” factor….for your best customers.

As a Full Service Gift Company we provide gift wrapping services, branded gifts, gift baskets, gift boxes, flower arrangements and wreaths. From one gift to hundreds;  we are definitely not your ordinary gift basket company.

Business Profile:

Wreath Queen’s Owner Kristeen Sopeju Edwards’ and her unique style and philosophy to gifting is a “Gifting Specialist” like no other!

With her background and Certification in Floral Design and her love for what she does, Kristeen has quickly become the “Gifter of Choice” for many businesses across the GTA.

Nominated in 2008 for the Oakville Award for Business Excellence (OABE) and recently added as the only Canadian Regular Contributor for Trends and Tips Magazine (Trade Publication for Gift Basket Professionals) Kristeen continues to bring a fresh, young and fun design appeal to the world of gifting.

Contact Wreath Queen for your Client, Employee and Corporate Gifting needs  or visit www.wreathqueen.com.

80% of sales are won on the fifth to twelfth contact – yet 48% of all business managers never follow up beyond the first contact.

You attended the networking meeting- Now What? Do you have a plan in place and implemented, for staying in touch with the new prospects you met at the networking event?    You will, after you attend Set The Stage For Follow Up Training Session.

This sales follow up training is best for: Business Managers, Small or Medium Sized Business Owners, Sales Professionals and Entrepreneurs.

The next “SET THE STAGE FOR FOLLOW UP”  Training Sessions  will be Monday night June 21st, and Monday night August 16th.
The training is 2.5 hours from 6 pm – 9 pm and takes place in Oakville, Ontario.

Register for “SET THE STAGE FOR FOLLOW UP”  Training or contact Cheryl at ExecutiveSalesSupport.com to arrange for this training to come to your office.

Learn the 10 Step Follow Up System through 2.5 hours of hands on, skills based training.  $89.00 in Oakville, Ontario.

At the “SET THE STAGE FOR FOLLOW UP”  Training you will discover the 10 step framework and the first 6 steps will be covered in depth. These first 6 follow up steps are critical because they establish your social connection to the people you meet. 

You will learn how to; 

1. Improve you ‘first contact’ conversation
2. Set the stage for future contacts
3. Increase the number of prospects you are in conversation with
4. Develop win win relationship building connections
5. Discover the ‘giving piece’ that pulls you forward from that first contact to the second and beyond

Register for “SET THE STAGE FOR FOLLOW UP”  Training  or contact Cheryl at ExecutiveSalesSupport.com to arrange for this training to come to your office.

Hear what attendees are saying about this skills based Follow Up Training; 

Cheryl is definitely the Follow Up Specialist! After taking her “Follow Up System” workshop and being introduced to the “10 Step Follow Up System,” I have a template to follow that will save time and increase my business.   Sue Lacher, Business Coach 

Cheryl is energentic and inspiring. In her “Set the Stage” training, Cheryl underscores the importance of following up with prospects and gives valuable input and ready-to-use strategies for overcoming that inherent reluctance to follow up past the first meeting. She also presents a very useful system for keeping track of your network.   Camilla Nielsen, Intellectual Property Consultant 

Although our group has a strong online presence (business blog, Linkedin group, Twitter) we meet regularly at the e-Spot™ to make friends, learn together and exchange referrals.

Our next meeting is on Friday, June 11, 2010 at 8:45 am

Our free business networking group invites you to join us and share referrals. Our business blog offers you an opportunity to promote your own web site.

Please be advised that from now on you must pay your $5 attendance fee at the door. To make things easier for you and e-Spot staff, please consider paying $10 or $20 in advance. Your credit can then be used to cover your substitute’s fee, or will be carried over to your next meeting. Receipts will be issued by the e-Spot quarterly.

Boris Mahovac R.G.D.

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Although our group has a strong online presence (business blog, Linkedin group, Twitter) we meet regularly at the e-Spot™ to make friends, learn together and exchange referrals.

Our next meeting is on Friday, May 28, 2010 at 8:45 am

Our free business networking group invites you to join us and share referrals. Our business blog offers you an opportunity to promote your business on line.

Please be advised that from now on you must pay your $5 attendance fee at the door. To make things easier for you and e-Spot staff, please consider paying $10 or $20 in advance. Your credit can then be used to cover your substitute’s fee, or will be carried over to your next meeting. Receipts will be issued by the e-Spot quarterly.

Boris Mahovac R.G.D.

Sign up for my next Contacts2Clients Business Seminar

Let's connect:

Although our group has a strong online presence (business blog, Linkedin group, Twitter) we meet regularly at the e-Spot™ to make friends, learn together and exchange referrals.

Our next meeting is on Friday, May 14, 2010 at 8:45 am

Our free business networking group invites you to join us and share referrals. Our business blog offers you an opportunity to promote your own web site.

Please be advised that from now on you must pay your $5 attendance fee at the door. To make things easier for you and e-Spot staff, please consider paying $10 or $20 in advance. Your credit can then be used to cover your substitute’s fee, or will be carried over to your next meeting. Receipts will be issued by the e-Spot quarterly.

In Reality You Have Two Business Cards:

When meeting others and well before you have an opportunity to offer that impressive pocket-sized work of graphic art we call a business card; they have already formed an opinion of you.  Yes, appearance and body language is assessed in our mind within seconds.  Your business card only acts to confirm or contradict this pre-established opinion.   If your image is inconsistent with who you say you are then dissonance is created in the minds of those you meet.  The result is that you have already lost credibility in their eyes diminishing the likehood of developing rapport and ultimately a worthwhile relationship.

Your Image Is A Powerful Marketing Tool:

To effectively build rapport one must communicate a clear and consistent message.  Confusion creates an obstacle to relationship building.  Be aware that your image is a powerful marketing tool. It directly helps or hinders success.  Make strategic decisions about how you dress to ensure that you communicate one consistent message. This enables others understand and trust that you are who you say you are; that you do have the potential to deliver on the business value proposition that you say you offer.  From there you can proceed to the next critical step; that of building rapport and trust.

Be Your Brand:

The most successful business people, in my experience, are literally an integral part of the brand they build.  Most importantly, they understand that their brand largely determines their personal “look”.  This may be easier said than done.  For us time-starved, harried executives, entrepreneurs and professionals, “looking the brand” may seem like another thing we have to do, among all the other things on our “to do” lists.  Yet representing your brand from the inside out can make all the difference.  It lends credibility and conveys passion and commitment around our venture.  At the end of the day, competence and credibility are key components of closing any sale or entering into any negotiation but it all starts with making a strong first impression.

You Are a Walking Business Card:

You represent a brand. Whether you’re detail oriented, creative, and artistic or a strong communicator, customers are only human and they will subconsciously judge your inside by what they see on the outside.  It’s worth it to spend a little extra time to look professional, clean, crisp and put-together.  Whether you choose cotton or cashmere, it’s all marketing material.  Getting valuable input from a Wardrobe Consultant, like that available at “Images That Suit” www.imagesthatsuit.com can make the process easy and fun.  Trained fashion specialists provide guidance on how to best build a winning wardrobe that is profession, age and style appropriate.  It will help ensure that each dollar spent on clothing is actually an investment in your success.

Your Next Biggest Client Might Be At Sobey’s:

Remember that it is important to “be your brand” both at work and play.  You never know when and where you might meet your next biggest client.  Not only should your business wardrobe reflect your brand but also your business casual and weekend wear.  Think of each dollar spent on clothing as a dollar spent on advertising.  As you keep clarifying and evolving your business brand, the nuances of how to best represent it on the outside will continue to become clearer and your image a powerful asset in building a successful business.

Give your image a performance review.  I invite you to a free wardrobe consultation.  To book a convenient time please contact me at 647-680-4536 or hjewer@cogeco.ca

There will be no “official” meeting on Friday, April 2 as the e-Spot™ will be closed for Good Friday.

However, if you can’t live without meeting your networking buddies, a bunch of us have plans to meet at Artisano’s, 353 Iroquois Shore Rd. for a coffee. Same time: 9:00 am or abouts.

Leave your comment here if you’re planning on coming.

November 13: Mike Rocha; Sherri Hedd
November 27: Olin Valiek; Charmaine Idzerda
December 11: Angela Galer-Grist; Liz Boydell
January 8: Grace Attard; Cheryl Scoffield 
January 22: Christine Whitlock; Diana Boudrahem
February 5: Keith & Sarah; Manuela Coelho
February 19: Diane Deinstadt; Boris Mahovic 
March 5: Camilla Nielsen; Open
March 19: Jennifer Roach; Open
April 2; Mukesh Tanna; Open

 

If you cannot make it for the meeting you signed up for, make sure to swop with another member on the list. No shows count as a presentation made.

If you have not yet presented, please contact the meeting chair at the next meeting.

 

As you know, the Oakville Networking group is run by an executive committee consisting of 5 members, one of which is the founder of the group, Manuela Coelho. The 4 other members are elected on the first meeting in January each year.

In January, Trevor Folgering, Jason Stevens, Liz Boydell and Camilla Nielsen were elected to run the group on a daily basis. Over the past months Trevor and last week Jason (too much work and no time) have left the group leaving only Liz and Camilla to do the job.

On the upcoming meeting Friday, October 2nd we will have to choose to either

1. Select a new Executive Committee, 4 members and 2 substitutes for a period of 15 months running till the first meeting in January 2011,
   or
2. Select 2 new members to replace Jason and Trevor, + 2 substitutes for a period of 3 months running till the first meeting in January 2010, and then have another election in January. These new members may be re-elected in January.

Therefore, please consider whether YOU would like to take charge and have influence on the way the group is run by becoming a member of the Executive Committee.

Kind regards,

The executive committee

Boris Mahovac R.G.D.

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October 2: Hiliary Jewer; Mukesh Tanna
October 16: Boris Mahovac; Jackie Connely
October 30: Verginiya Kechelieva; Camilla Nielsen
November 13: Mike Rocha; open

If you cannot make it for the meeting you signed up for, make sure to swop with another member on the list. No shows count as a presentation made.

If you have not yet presented, please contact the meeting chair at the next meeting.