We asked Pat O’Hara of O’Hara Video Production to present his Synergetic Network and explain how it works.

Pat has grouped together with other product and service providers who cater to Weddings as part of their business. They allow only one type of business, for example, one photographer, one videographer, one dressmaker, one baker, one car hire, etc. The group is called Elite Wedding Services.

They have benefitted from forming this group in the following ways:

• ­Natural Referrals - Due to their natural connection (weddings), their business referral rates are higher and of better quality.
• ­Power in Numbers – They have more leverage to negotiate with their service and product suppliers, requesting reductions in price as a group of individual customers.
• ­Advertising Under a Group Name – Online and in print, advertising under their group name ensures additional exposure at a vastly reduced cost as each business pays a portion of that cost.
• ­Raising the Bar – Being part of a group can raise the profile of each of those businesses (so long as the quality of the members is carefully vetted!).
• ­Industry Support – Members can support each other more effectively due to having similar industry knowledge and experience.

Synergetic Networking can work for any business – in some cases it make take some imaginative thinking to come up with the common connection.

Niamh Ni Chearbhaill

Current chair of BEN.ie
and Partner in Spiralli.ie