Businesswomen find success in NETWORKING

Seven years ago, when Texas business consultant Sandra Yancey said she discovered the informal good ole boy network didn’t work for her, she created an organized female counterpart called eWomen-Network.

“I wanted a focused business networking group where I could turn interactions into transactions, do business and make money. When I went to women’s networking groups, I saw the women weren’t fully engaged, and they seemed to be very social,” she said in a phone interview from eWomenNetwork’s headquarters in Dallas.

Female business owners, professionals and entrepreneurs like the idea of women connecting and promoting their businesses through a model based not on a resultsoriented approach but a giving and relationship-building method, Yancey said. There are now 17,000 eWomenNetwork members in 120 chapters across the nation, including nearly 100 members in Colorado Springs.

Yancey will talk about “Working Together Works” at a luncheon Thursday at the Cheyenne Mountain Resort, 3225 Broadmoor Valley Road. The event is open to the public.

EWomenNetwork has become known for Yancey’s two trademarked concepts — “accelerated networking,” a fastpaced, formatted style of exchanging business needs and resources; and “femtor,” a female mentor.

Accelerated networking is an effective way for women to make numerous contacts in a short time, said Mary Pearsall, executive managing director of the local chapter, which hosts monthly lunches with accelerated networking.

“It introduces people to what you do in a succinct, focused manner and piques their interest to follow up and build a relationship,” she said. “It’s focused on giving first and receiving second, which means you may not get business right then and there, but the relationships you develop help connect you.”

The concept moves away from the male business networking model, which centers on what the participant will get out of networking, Yancey said.

“That creates a frenzy most women are uncomfortable with,” she said. “We believe great networking is giving without keeping score.”

When women make the transition from talking about the weather and their kids to voicing their biggest business challenges and ideal clients, they’re able to capitalize on what women do best — helping and supporting each other, Yancey said.

“We want to market and promote you — who you are, what you do, what you need. But we don’t pass out business cards like Halloween candy — you give a card when you can give a lead,” she said. “Any business owner will tell you there’s nothing more powerful than referrals.”

EWomenNetwork promotes members’ businesses on a weekly ABC news and talk show, on its Web site and through magazine ads and billboards. It also offers a team of advisers.

One of 11 adult women in the nation owns a business, Yancey said, and women are starting businesses at twice the pace of men. Moreover, female business owners and professionals have “purse power” of $3.7 trillion, she said.

“We’re really clear on what women need to be successful — cash flow, marketing, contacts — but you don’t have to figure it out all by yourself. Look at who can help you build your dream, not drain you from your dream, and make connections, learn the art of conversation, provide the support and ideas. There are tons of business opportunities out there. You have to put yourself in a place to find out what they are.”

LUNCH

EWomenNetwork luncheon featuring keynote address, “Working Together Works,” by founder and national CEO Sandra Yancey; accelerated networking; exhibit booths by members; silent auction to benefit an association charity fund

When: 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursday

Where: Cheyenne Mountain Resort, 3225 Broadmoor Valley Road

Cost: $55 nonmembers, $45 members

Reservations: Call 596-1771