Read some of our 79 testimonials!
Best meeting I have been to in 18 months since setting up my business. Thank you.
…it’s the most useful 2 hours I’ve spent since starting my business.
I’m very happy to both endorse you and the Group – It’s well run, with humour which I think is very important and attracts an interesting and wide selection of members who really seem to enjoy each other’s company and care about the group and its’ members.
Paul is clearly a highly knowledgeable and engaging individual. Connect Networking™ is an invigorating new take on the networking theme.
I would recommend any small business owner to come along to Connect Networking™. Paul chairs the fortnightly meetings in a formal structured way but with a lot of fun. Because he has so much business experience, he brings this expertise to the group in an interactive way. You really get something out of going.
Connect Networking™ is a vibrant networking group that successfully combines professional relationship building with business education. Paul’s engaging facilitation style enables people to bond quickly and learn from each other. The inputs provide up to date thinking to challenge the members of Connect Networking™ to think and act differently so to improve business results.
I have attended three of Paul’s mornings and apart from his modest and not “in your face” style of delivery, itself a refreshing change, his common sense suggestions to solving day to day problems that beset small businesses are very very welcome.
Connect Networking™ is a very friendly but professional networking group with added bonus of business advice/discussions.
Well run, good value for money, great members, excellent venue all adds up to the best networking meeting for entrepreneurs and anyone who wants to build their business while still having fun!
A lively fortnightly networking group. Have met some great contacts and been fortunate to get some good referrals. I really enjoy and appreciate the format and the support and friendliness of everyone who attends. Happy to recommend the group to anyone interested in structured and results-driven networking.
A great fortnightly networking breakfast. Well structured including 1 to 1 slots with other members. I’ve got some good contacts and leads from Connect Networking™ so I can recommend the group.
I attended my first Connect Networking™ meeting and was hugely impressed by the group, very welcoming and a great format.
An excellent meeting with a great mix of people around the table. If you are looking for something new and different then this would be the group to join.
Paul’s Connect Networking™ meetings offer a number of benefits to members. Personally, I like the county-wide approach that brings Northamptonshire businesses together. With attendance flexibility, education and support, I would recommend this as the best group in the county– and fantastic value for money!
What a lively and stimulating start to the day! I really enjoyed your session this morning and drove back feeling inspired and activated despite the gloom of the motorway. Thank you so much for asking me. I would love to come again if you’ll have me – you folks are so friendly and welcoming.
As owner of Asentiv Northants I train people in best practice in referral marketing skills and techniques. Then people have to go out and put them into practice. So I give them the game plan and Connect Networking™ is a great group to enable people putting these skills into practice. The format has the right amount of structure and informality to make both the seasoned networker and newcomer feel at ease.
I really enjoyed my first Connect Networking™ meeting. It was professional and well timed with a social element – just the right balance. Paul is a friendly and welcoming host and encourages positivity, motivation and shared knowledge and skills amongst visitors and members alike.
Connect Networking™ has been extremely helpful to my business. The meetings are well run – they have a well-defined structure, but have a good mix of formality and informality. I enjoy meeting other members, have made some good connections, got great business advice from Paul and the wider group and, last but not least, gained work whose value is several times the cost of membership.
Over the last year or so Connect Networking™ has become part of my working life. It is a friendly and supportive environment where there is a strong feeling of community that is also really welcoming to newcomers. Paul runs the session with humour and genuine enthusiasm. Great people and I learn something useful every visit. Highly recommended network group.
I’ve been an Connect member for 6 months and I find it hugely beneficial. There are plenty of meetings to attend, where you not only get to network, but you are also surrounded by a supportive community of like minded people who want to help each other succeed. You also get free training workshops thrown in! The meetings are informative and I always come away having learnt something new. And the best part is, you have a lot of laughs along the way! A big thank you to Paul Green and the rest of the Connect Community.
It was like a good meal in the company of good friends. Formal surroundings, good food and service, but the most relaxing and chatty experience. I usually run a mile from works meals and that sort of stuff because you end up struggling to make small talk- but although the conversation naturally turned to business, there were also wide ranging topics and the chance to engage at a deeper level than what does your business do?
Even though I’ve been on the circuit for over 4 years, I’ve learned fresh information & also was reminded of things I’d conveniently forgotten. This course should be a must for those embarking on business networking as part of their marketing strategy.
This workshop should be compulsory for all networkers. It is so insightful in how to do networking correctly to get the most out of it. I would highly recommend anyone who wants to gain from networking and generate more business to attend this event.
Although I’ve been networking for 10 years, this seminar has given me strategies to use on a couple of areas I struggle with. Thoroughly recommended!
Relaxed and enjoyable. Full of good information and pitched at the right level.
I attended Connect Dine at the Cheyne Walk Club for the first time and what a great evening. A relaxed atmosphere with great company and the food was wonderful and all for an extremely reasonable price. I will definitely be making this a regular event.
The Connect Dine experience at the Cheyne Walk Club is a most enjoyable evening. The Club is a great place to meet, a relaxed atmosphere, the company was brilliant, some new acquaintances, some I’ve known for a while but plenty of time to appreciate their company. The food there is excellent and the price, very reasonable. Book me in for the next one, I will definitely be there!
As someone who has networked for 7+ years I gained some important information from this workshop; for example guidelines for an effective 45 seconds and setting a goal for each meeting.
Very useful introductory session and refresher on how to maximise the effectiveness of my networking efforts.
Succinct – relevant and well presented.
A very useful introduction to networking and all the do’s and don’ts. I learnt a lot today and feel more confident going on the networking rounds.
Being part of Connect Networking™ has been a powerful boost to my business, I have met so many inspiring people. I get a real buzz from every meeting that I attend, there is always something new to learn.
Fantastic workshop. As someone new to sales I really got an insight into how to sell in the 21st century. Julie was absolutely brilliant, certainly knows her stuff. This workshop is an easy 10 out of 10, if you want to know about selling she has got to be the go to, cannot praise her enough.
It was a brilliant learning experience. Julie was excellent and very insightful. I have had good sales training from IBM and MRI, but I still learned a lot of new things.
An extremely helpful training session that helps you reflect on the role and purpose of networking and how to best make effective use of your 45 second elevator pitch. Excellent advice offered along with the opportunity to develop your self-confidence, skills and techniques.
I’m fairly new to networking world and found Connect Networking™ a nice place to start my networking journey. Members are friendly, easy to communicate with and looking to support one another all the time
The Dine experience at the Cheyne Walk Club, a most enjoyable evening one can have in relaxed atmosphere and great food.
Julie delivers this course in a personable and informative manner. Having not had a sales background, I now feel positive about selling my business, and the services I can offer, in a much more confident way.
I found this to be a very worthwhile workshop. It has helped me to understand the value of me, and made me realise that by making assumptions I was putting myself at a disadvantage. It also taught me not to be afraid of asking why, when following up with a prospect.
Julie cut to the chase. I came out from the session with positives to do. It wasn’t just theory, it was practical ways to move forward with sales and how to achieve what you wanted from potential business.
Julie’s training style is terrific – relaxed, informative, humorous, inclusive, collaborative. She also made repeated complimentary references to the expertise of the individual participants, making each of us feel special.
Nothing rocket science here but sensibly balanced and focused to give valuable insight in ensuring that you maintain control of your referrals and make them successful.
This course is well worth the investment of time. Not only for ‘newbie networkers’ but an opportunity for ‘old sweats’ to re-focus and re-energise. Excellent!
Very valuable course, you may think you already know about customer service but this course makes you look at things in a different light.
I found this workshop incredibly useful and informative. It got me really thinking about all the steps a potential client goes through when using your service, and how I need to ensure I get the basics right first. The workshop has been very timely for me as I have already begun to think more about my management and client communications.
The training course was succinct, interesting and highly useful. Paul clearly knew his subject, and explained his thinking in a clear and understandable way. There were many real-life examples, and we all got to contribute and ask questions. I learned a lot of new ideas and will put many of the things I learned into practice. This was an enjoyable and very helpful course.
An intimate workshop that allowed all in attendance to discuss and work through how to ‘really’ apply some of the fantastic sales tools and techniques Julie shared with us. Julie has a relaxed and natural style that not only put the whole group at ease but also delivered a good mix of theory as well as practical elements.
Julie really knows her selling skills. I could have listened to her all day!
I am not a natural salesperson but I can solve problems. Julie’s course gave me confidence that I’m doing ok and with a few tweaks I can do even better.
Connect Networking™ is the networking group that stands out for me – it’s the perfect mix of business networking at different time slots, the chance to meet a really wide range of new and established businesses, excellent member training opportunities, no lock outs, no forced referrals, and a hefty dose of humour.
3 hours of gold! This is a must attend event for people, who like myself struggle with there 45/60 seconds pitch. I personally feel more confident in delivering my 45 seconds in a succinct manner without waffling on!
Highly recommended. Really useful training: great insights, well delivered about all sorts of factors which I am sure will help make my networking activities more valuable and effective.
I thoroughly enjoyed Paul’s seminar. It made me consider my customers’ experience in dealing with me. I have also gained some tips in conflict resolution. I would recommend everyone attend this course, even if it is for a quick refresher.
Paul is clearly an expert in his field. His presentation style is relaxed but informative, with great use of real life examples and excellent videos to emphasise the course content throughout. This course is relevant across the whole business spectrum and I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone.
Whether new or experienced at gaining business through referrals this is a must.
Clear and simple techniques that can only help.
This course meant networking was broken down into easy to digest chunks. As a newbie to networking I found it very useful and now don’t feel daunted by those morning meetings and standing up in front of everyone to say my 45 seconds.
A friendly networking group with a great structure to facilitate people getting to know and trust each other.
Well run and attended local networking events. Offers the right level of formality while allowing everyone to enjoy the meeting without the ‘traditions’ demanded from some other networking groups. Highly recommended for local businesses.
Speaking as a keen and prolific networker in the London-to-Birmingham/Oxford-to-Cambridge corridors … for me, Connect Networking™ has to be the perfect balance amongst the following … business relevance, personal conviviality, realistic business and personal relationship building, and sheer enjoyment. What more do you need to justify getting up early for an appetising breakfast – and the chance to make valuable contacts that afford mutual business benefits for the short, medium and long term?
All hats off to the amazing Paul Green who has managed to steer these groups so they benefit from both local and formulaic networking genres … good on’ya. I’ve gained so much from Connect Networking™. It works!
We have been Connect members for several years and have enjoyed the meetings very much. They are professional, business based but friendly. We enjoy the wide variety of venues and meetings with the added benefits of in house training.
I feel lucky to be a member of such a lovely group where the fellow members and the management team is highly motivated and supportive. I’ve got a tremendous support from the fellow members in my first year of networking and can recommend this group to the people who would like to take networking as a serious tool for building relationship and grow their business. We’ve the perfect mix of businesses in Connect Networking™ and I enjoy every meeting. Well done Paul Green and keep up the good work!
Beyond Theory has really benefited from belonging to the Connect business networking community. We joined 5 years ago and our membership has been part of our own success story. As well as acquiring new business, the format of the meetings has enabled us to develop important and trusted relationships with key suppliers.
The meetings themselves are refreshingly open an fun. They provide valuable business education too in an environment that is friendly and welcoming. The Connect network never stands still, acting on feedback from it’s annual survey. What other networking groups do this?
A welcoming group in which to meet interesting people. A good range of meetings and activities to choose from.
Professional environment and extremely friendly. We have plenty of recommendations and customers from Connect Networking™ hence the reason to go further with this group. Various locations to choose from and on top of this there’s always a warm welcome from Paul.
A very welcoming and supportive group, with no lock outs and flexible membership. With some excellent quality workshops, run by fellow members, included in the annual subscription, this is certainly one of the best value networking groups available.
Since returning to the UK after 3 years abroad and being new to the Leicestershire area, I decided to join a networking group of like-minded people for mutual support. After looking at a variety of options I chose Connect Networking™ for a number of reasons:
The structure and content of the events
The interesting people
I can attend events in different areas
We have fun!
This is definitely one of the best networking groups around. It’s partly the very amusing and good-natured leadership by Paul and partly the really good mix of people who attend. There’s a genuine desire to help each other with business needs of all sorts and it’s stimulating company.
Paul’s Connect groups strike the perfect balance of formality and informality for me: they have a well-thought-out and organised format, but they have a laid-back friendly ambience that is very welcoming. They are much more than just a networking group, Paul is actively trying (and succeeding) to create a genuine business community of like-minded individuals who can help each other.
We’ve been attending Connect Networking™ for more than 5 years and we still keep coming back! There is no doubt our business has benefitted from referrals received from other members. The format is fun, educational and allows everyone to get to know each other.
I have been a member of Connect Networking™ for about a year and have attended meetings at 4 different venues during this time as you are not tied to one location, though Wellingborough is my regular meeting. I really enjoy the meetings, the format works well and the atmosphere is friendly, most importantly it is not too scary if you are new to networking. I have made some valuable business contacts over the last year that I would not have found had it not been for Connect.
Paul is such a great presenter, he really makes you feel at ease and he clearly knows his stuff. The session was both interactive and informative and I came away with a few nuggets of advice which I will most definitely put in to practice.
I have really enjoyed the meetings in Bedford. Becoming a member after the second meeting was very easy and the right thing to do for the company. The locations and the timings are good (as well as a breakfast that is made for you!)
The Connect meetings I find to be structured, timed well and great for getting to know the wider business community – not just the ‘under 5 employees’ or ‘just creatives’. A great balance of experience and company sizes attend.
I have always felt welcome- from the first meeting ! I have even been brave enough to do a talk about Maps and Gaps! I am looking forward to going up to Northampton and across to Milton Keynes!!
Highly recommend if you are starting out in the area!!
Absolutely recommend this training. It’s skills you can use in any platform no matter how long the presentation. Ali’s knowledge is fantastic. And love the way she engages all the room and supports everyone with their queries.
The messages of ‘owning your space’, ‘it will be alright’, and ‘trust you can talk on any topic’ flowed through this short course. Ali puts you at ease and creates a safe atmosphere to practice the skills you learn. I found this course very helpful and definitely recommend it to people needing a confidence boost when talking out loud to a group.
The Building A Sales Pipeline workshop is an absolute must for new businesses, but can work as a refresher for more established ones. I got so many great tips and insights from both Julie Futcher and the other participants.
Julie’s Building A Sales Pipeline course was just what I needed. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Julie reassured me that I wasn’t too far out with what I was already doing. She showed me a way of bringing everything together so I had a complete picture of what was happening and I what I need to do to keep things going. Julie’s easy styleencouraged discussion, giving us the benefit of other viewpoints and experiences. If you are unsure about how a sales pipeline works or how to improve your existing pipeline, then I recommend this course.
Networking was something new to me four months ago, I wasn’t sure what to expect…
Each event has different topics for discussion weekly. We all sit together and share our thoughts, I always find it interesting and educational at the same time.
Since attending Connect Networking events I’ve met some fantastic people and gained a real understanding about their business’s. I look forward to networking and seeing the members, it’s a great balance of professionals and a friendly atmosphere.