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The
headline above
is a famous quote from RichDad.com's
Robert Kiyosaki, who has always emphasized
the importance of networking. Kiyosaki
also said, “The richest people in the world look for and build
networks, everyone else looks for work.”
Those are wise words to keep in mind if you are
going to next week's Webfest
Global Conference that runs February
5-7 at the Fairmont Miramar Hotel in Santa
Monica, California.
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The show will have more things going on (and be
just as much fun) as a three-ring circus, but one
thing trumps everything else on the agenda
- that is the opportunity to network with
others in the industry. Sure, you will get some
good ideas that can help you improve your
business from the business sessions and
seminars, but people and the
relationships you build will have the greatest
impact on getting you where you want to go.
That's why you keep seeing |
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so many of the industry's key figures at
major events like this and it is what the vast
majority of show goers cite as the #1 reason
why they go to a conference. |
The
organizers of Webfest Global know that too
and that's why they have filled the week's
schedule with activities designed to help you make
new contacts and friends and enjoy more time
with the ones you have already made over the
years. In fact the very first thing on the
agenda is a 9am Speed Networking Session
on opening day, Tuesday, February 5. Be
sure to bring lots of business cards and a pen
with something to write on! A
new networking twist Webfest is
introducing is called Break
the Ice While Breaking Bread that
will be available at every breakfast and
lunch. At those meals 20 tables will
be set aside for those who want to talk with
others who have a common area of interest.
For example there will be tables for Domain
Parking, others for Alternative
Monetization, others for TLDs, etc. -
10 different areas of interest in all.
Webfest has even built a new mobile app
that allows you to search for people with skills
you seek, or who share your interests. You can
then use the app to send them an invitation to
join you at a specific table.
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You
never know who you may end up having lunch
with at Webfest Global. At last
year's show Stefan Schinzinger (left)
chats with John Ferber (DomainHoldings.com),
who
sold his previous company, Advertising.com,
to AOL for
almost $500 million. |
Webfest
Global is also bringing back a popular networking
feature from previous shows - Dine
with an Expert. This is a lunch-time
event in which a half-dozen well-known
experts will each sit at a table of their
own, along with eight guests that
want to dine with them. To sit with your
preferred expert, go to the Dine With an
Expert page (linked to above), scroll
through the experts, then click on Make
Lunch Appointment when you find the
one you want to sit with. Better hurry
though - it is first come, first
served and in the past the tables of many
experts have filled up quickly. |
In
addition to those special networking events,
evening social activities and all of the break
time in the lobbies also present the kind of
networking opportunities that are unique to
major industry conferences like this. Be
sure to take advantage of them!
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In
a related note, one of the people you
might want to look up at Webfest Global is
industry veteran Merlin Kauffman, a
personable young man who has been one of
the most successful domain investors over
the past decade. Merlin will be there to
talk about two new websites he is
launching. One, live now, is NameBuy.com,
a new domain sales platform about
which Kauffman said, "selling your
domain name has never been so simple. It
provides liquidity to all domain investors
for single domain sales or entire
portfolios. We are now accepting all
submissions of .COM domain names
which are 5+ years or older."
Merlin's
second offering, which is scheduled to go
live within the next couple of days
is PortfolioMarket.com, a site that
Kauffman described as "The first and only
marketplace dedicated to buying and
selling cashflow domain portfolios."
With Merlin behind them, I'm sure that
both of these services will be worth
taking a close look at. |
Merlin
Kauffman |
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One
other Webfest week note. Last Friday I
told you about the Water
Night fundraiser for The
Water School that will be held
at the Sonoma
Wine Garden in Santa Monica Tuesday
night (February 5), right after
Webfest Global's official opening night
dinner that will be held at two
restaurants in the same building as the
wine garden. The wristbands required for
admission are available for a $50
donation in advance of |
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the
event, but - in a bit of new information
since my original post - as soon as they
hit 200 guests (which they are
close to now), that will rise to $100.
If
you show up at the door without a
wristband Tuesday night, the donation on
site will also be $100, so get
your wristband now. This event
will be a lot of fun, a great networking
opportunity and it supports a tremendous
cause. I hope to see you there! |
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