Linda Rey is not what you would call a morning person ”“ a preference that would have no bearing on any but her most intimate circle but for the fact that she used it to develop a networking strategy that would prove beneficial to small businesses in Westchester County.
As a member and past president of what is now the Sleepy Hollow/Tarrytown Chamber of Commerce, Rey would attend the chamber”™s breakfast meetings, along with about 24 other small business leaders.
“That”™s great. But then I thought, We could be reaching other people if we met after work,” says Rey, partner with sister Laura Rey Iannarelli in the Rey Insurance Agency in Sleepy Hollow, which was begun by their father, Frank J. Rey.
Linda Rey decided to run with her idea, organizing a wine-tasting event that drew another 25 people.
So she expanded her future invitations list to include the Westchester Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Greater New York Chamber of Commerce as well as chambers in Irvington, Dobbs Ferry, Sleepy Hollow, Ossining, Hudson Valley Gateway, Chappaqua and Mount Vernon. Since 2005, the multi-chamber networking events have been held twice a year, drawing about 150 small-business leaders at a time. The last was in July at the Hudson Harbor condominiums sales”™ office. The next is slated for January, with the date, time and locale still to be announced.
“People like to try new venues,” she says.
Basically, these are meet-and-greets, which may have cynics wondering if any business gets done.
“It”™s absolutely fruitful,” Rey says. “I get feedback quite often from people who met a new business lead or made an alliance.”
While referrals are probably still the main way to get new business, Rey believes that networking is critical, particularly in these lean economic times. And while she”™s a fan of social networking, she says Facebook can”™t replace face time:
“When you meet someone, you get three dimensions of his or her personality. ”¦ If you withdraw from networking ”¦ you”™re off the radar.”
Rey would like to see the local chambers do more social networking, though how they pursue this must remain up to each individual organization, she says. She has also started a speaker series for the Sleepy Hollow/Tarrytown chamber.
For her networking efforts, Rey was honored as the 2010 Person of the Year by her local chamber ”“ at a breakfast.
Linda Rey, nightingale, took it in stride.
“The irony was palpable,” she says.
