Episode 54: You Don’t Have a Marketing Problem. You Have a Follow-Up Problem

If you’ve ever walked out of a coffee chat or networking event wondering, “Was that really worth my time?” — this episode is for you.

In this solo episode, Jennifer Kok, business strategist and founder of Next Wave Business Coaching, dives into Pillar #3: Your Network from her 9-Pillar Profitable Business Framework. Jennifer reveals why most entrepreneurs don’t have a marketing problem, they have a follow-up problem.

In this episode, you’ll learn why your network might be the most underused profit source in your business  and how to fix it using an authentic, 7-step follow-up system that’s genuine, simple, and never salesy.

By the end of this episode, you’ll have a clear roadmap to:
 ✅ Build your Warm 100 — the contacts who already know, like, and trust you
 ✅ Follow up without feeling awkward or “bothering” people
 ✅ Transform business cards into meaningful, profitable relationships
 ✅ Become a super-connector who’s known, trusted, and remembered

Because the truth is… your next client probably already knows you — they’re just waiting for you to follow up.

“The fortune isn’t in the room- it’s in the follow-up.” — Jennifer Kok

• 🎧 Listen to Pillar #1: Revenue (Episode 50) — Why revenue can be the vanity number
  
  
• 🎧 Listen to Pillar #2: Customers (Episode 52) — How saying yes to everyone is costing you profit
  
  

Meet Your Host:

Jennifer Kok has been a business owner for over 25 years and is now a Small Business Growth Advisor.  She turned her first business into a franchise and successfully sold it 20 years later.  She is passionate about building a business and a family at the same time.

I support women entrepreneurs in their second year and beyond as they build businesses and families, helping them achieve Clarity, Confidence, and Consistent Profits.  The reality is, you’ve built a Business You’re Proud Of— but it’s time for it to work for you.

I help service-based women entrepreneurs double profit without doubling hours.

The Earn More Stress Less 9-Pillar Blueprint helps women entrepreneurs with families create profitable, sustainable businesses that finally pay them back — in money, time, and peace of mind.

Join me for a Free Online Workshop:
3 Keys to Growing a Profitable Business 

https://nextwavebusinesscoaching.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nextwavewithjen
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nextwavewithjen/
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferowenskok
YouTube: http://bit.ly/2M9uX6S

Transcript

Jennifer Kok (00:05.934)
me ask you this, if you thought about all the networking events that you've been to this year, all the coffees you've had, how much has actually really come from that for your business? Welcome back. In this episode, we are going to dive into pillar number three, which is your network. For those of you that are interested in my nine pillar system, let me know. It's nine pillars to build a profitable, sustainable business.

I've talked about pillar one in episode 50, which is revenue and how revenue can be the vanity number. And in pillar number two, which is customers, I talked about that in episode 52, where we talk about your customers and how saying yes to everybody isn't always the answer. So today I want to talk about your network and why. Because I think a lot of times when we get to a place in our business where we're not getting enough clients quickly or we're not scaling, we've plateaued a little bit,

we always think that we have a marketing problem. We're always so quick to try to add another marketing, invest more in marketing. But the truth is, I believe a lot of times it's not a networking problem, or I'm sorry, a marketing problem. It's a networking follow-up problem. We spend so much time as entrepreneurs at coffees and meetings, and what are we really doing at the end of the day with all of those leads, all of those business cards?

So today, I want to talk about why your network is your most underused profit source and how to fix the system that you are using so that you can be authentic and it's simple. And that's salesy. I'm not saying that we use our network for sales. I'm just saying that we use our network to build stronger relationships. So let's talk about the truth about networking. First of all, the reason why

Networking is so important for small business owners, as in this digital world that we are living in right now. It is so incredibly hard to be remembered. Our customers are getting bombarded with over 10,000 messages a day. They have over 60,000 thoughts now. And the truth is, when you are referred by somebody in your network, that customer is more than 71 % likely to buy from you. So we are living in a trust crisis.

Jennifer Kok (02:24.3)
Your clients are overwhelmed. They're skeptical. don't really, I mean, I am getting to the point now where I get some emails and I look at them and I think, this real? Is this AI generated? Do I dare open it? Do I dare respond to this? So we are craving authenticity. We're craving real connections. And that's why your network, when activated, can be your biggest superpower. You don't have to rely on the algorithm of social media.

and you can really start to utilize your network to not only help them, but to help you. So let me ask you, do you have a box like this? Holy cow, all these business cards, right? I love it. That means these are people that I have met at some point in my career in the last few years. Well, one of my clients, we were talking about it, and she's like, yeah, she spends a lot of time networking three to four days a week at times.

And she's got all these business cards. And I asked her one time, said, what do you do with them all? And she said, well, I don't know. I just kind of put them in a basket. And I said, well, do you follow up with them? And she goes, no, I don't really want to bother people. Well, that right there is what's keeping us stuck and not utilizing our network. This mindset is costing thousands of dollars for small business owners everywhere. And she is not alone. We all have this idea that we're bothering people.

So what I created in one of my pillars under network is a seven step authentic follow up system. It's a way to follow up with people that you meet in an authentic way that isn't salesy and you start to become, you start to learn about each other more. You know, you're not bothering people when your intention is to serve them. People can feel the difference. If you're just selling, selling, selling, then yes, you're bothering them. So what I do is I always say,

Let's start with your warm 100. Think back to all the people you've met. Go to your email, go to your social, go to your LinkedIn contacts, go to this bucket of business cards, and write down 100 people that you've met. Because the truth is, the fortune isn't going out and meeting new people. Yes, I'm a big fan of meeting new people. I love that. But sometimes we get so caught up in meeting new people all the time, think that we need more people when we're not really nurturing the ones that we have.

Jennifer Kok (04:47.084)
So go through this 100 list and identify somebody that could be a strategic referral partner, someone that serves the same audience that you do, but in a different capacity. And then create a way of touching base with them, connecting with them, seeing who you can introduce them to. Don't go find strangers. Go find your warm 100 and see what we can do to help this warm 100 refer clients to you.

And that's part of the seven step process that I teach. And you want to make sure that you're checking in right after an event. And I say, create a system. Create an email that you can copy and paste and just personalize it in a little way that says, hey, it was so nice to meet you at the chamber event last week. Here's a little bit more about what I do, who I serve, where you can find more information. And hey, who do I know that I can help introduce you? It's so important that it's a two-way street. And then.

Keep these people on top of mind. That's why if you have a warm 100 list in front of you, refer to it weekly and think, you know what? I just saw that article that this person might enjoy. Or hey, I just met somebody that I think would be a good connection for this person. And that way, you are keeping them top of mind and so that you can help by giving back to them. And then continue to follow up. Have a system. Have a way of following up. And this is following up to create stronger relationships.

Because when you create a stronger relationship with all these people that you've met, what happens is you become memorable, and they become memorable. So when you're out and about, you can now become a super connector. When you start with serving first, introducing them to somebody first, the energy is always going to come back to you one way or another. If you go into it in a mindset of, oh, I just want to sell, sell, sell, that's not going to get you far in today's world. Because once again, we have a

trust problem, right? We have a trust issue in our society. But if you go into it with how can I serve, how can I help make their lives better, that is going to help you be memorable when that ideal person comes up that they know would be perfect for you. So be the person who knows people. Be the person who says, hey, I've got somebody for you. I've got a guy. I've got a gal. So it's really important. I want you to think about your networking activities. I always say with my clients, first of all, are you at the right places?

Jennifer Kok (07:12.738)
Are you networking at places where your ideal client is hanging out? If you're still trying to be everywhere and be seen and not really getting any traction, you're just treading water. And then look at all these connections you've made over time and how often are you reaching out to them? How often are they top of mind for you? What is your system for the follow-up? Because the fortune is in the follow-up. So you know, your next client might already know you. They're just waiting for you to follow up.

You are not bothering if you're doing it in a way that's serving them. So I hope this helps you think about networking in a little bit of a different way. Yes, I'm very relational. But at the end of the day, we're all out there networking for the same purpose, to meet more people that can help us get in front of our ideal client. But that takes us being courageous. And I'm here to tell you, the fortune is in the follow up.