Facebook Contest Winner Uncovers Huge Networking Blunder

PITTSBURGH - Aug. 1, 2013 - PRLog -- USA, Pittsburgh, PA- You are dressed up in your new suit or dress; hair is perfect; newly printed stack of business cards are ready to go; and you are feeling confident, as ever. You enter the networking event with the full intention of gaining new, valuable business contacts. One by one, the people you approach are speedily ending the conversation and moving on. You look sharp; you have a great personality, what could be driving them away? Then you realize… you have bad breath! BD-PRo Marketing’s Facebook contest winner, Belinda Hise, describes the one of the biggest displeasures when networking: bad breath. Her caption that accompanied the photo of an obviously annoyed networker stated, “Would it be rude to throw a breath mint in while he’s talking?” Appalling breath is a huge deterrent during a conversation and when not addressed it can completely jeopardize networking efforts. With many people agreeing with her entry, Hise’s caption won with six times more votes than the runner up.

In second place, Trish, comically described how individuals should use a verbal filter when they are networking, another common networking issue. Nerves, sometimes also mixed with alcohol, can cause individuals to blurt out inappropriate things, which can be both annoying and offensive. Third place contestant Kristin’s caption stated, “He won't look me in the eyes when talking to me... Is something wrong with my face?" This, too, portrays an important networking annoyance: bad eye contact. Maintaining eye contact is a basic component of social interaction and is crucial when trying to connect with someone on a deeper, business level. To read additional captions and learn more about what not to do while networking go to http://offerpop.com/fb/canvas/tab/113869151994324/3062252....

BD-PRo Marketing Solutions successfully developed this Facebook contest to engage with their followers about common networking problems, while providing a fun and interactive way for everyone to learn about networking pet peeves. When asked what Hise liked about the contest, she explained, “I liked sharing the contest with friends to what they and others thought of my caption. I loved reading all the captions and I really enjoyed the social networking of it all.” Hise later explained that she had a lot of fun with the contest and would love to participate in another contest in the future.

Hise, who recently began doing professional photography, won a $50 Visa gift card and a one-year subscription to the Network PRo Toolkit. Because networking is critical to business growth, BD-Pro Marketing developed the Network PRo Toolkit to help business and sales professionals become more efficient and effective at networking. This revolutionary toolkit takes the concept of networking and turns it into a business process that helps eliminate networking mistakes so networkers can focus their time and money on the networking techniques that are most relevant for their unique business needs. The toolkit will greatly aid Hise to start building her business contacts and generate more clientele.  The Network Pro Toolkit is available online at www.networkprotoolkit.com.

“I am excited to see the level of involvement that occurred as a result of this contest,” remarked Sheryl Johnson, Founder of BD-PRo Marketing Solutions. “The captions that were shared were insightful and really got to the core of some key mistakes that people can unintentionally make while networking. Interestingly, the winning caption about bad breath is not something that is normally addressed in articles about networking; however, it does hit a topic that is extremely important for all networkers because it can quickly derail a potentially great conversation but can be easily fixed.”

BD-PRo Marketing Solutions was founded in 2010 with the premise that marketing can be fun, affordable and effective. BD-PRo provides creative marketing and networking solutions to businesses and is committed to exceeding customer expectations. To stay current with marketing trends, join the official Facebook page at bit.ly/BDPRoFacebook or follow on Twitter at twitter.com/BD_PRoMarketing. To grow your business network, connect with BD-PRo on www.linkedin.com/company/bd-pro-marketing or participate in the BD-PRo blog community on bdpromarketingdotcom.wordpress.com/. Finally, sign up for Stopwatch Secrets (http://www.bdpromarketing.com/~site/Scripts_EmailManager/...), a marketing actionletter for the busy business professional that contains one marketing action at a time that can be read and implemented in under 10 minutes.