If you’re a regular Buzzer or are part of the Buzz community, you’ll have heard us refer to the Buzz ‘Family’. Not necessarily a word you associate with business, so hear me out! Technically, family refers to a group of people related by birth, marriage or adoption. Legalities & formalities aside, the Buzz ‘Family’ refers to our networking community: a group of people brought together by like-mindedness.

As a member of the Buzz Family, you’re supported & celebrated, confided in & trusted. The Buzz Family is Buzz’s answer to being part of something bigger than yourself. For those of you who know me, you’ll know what a positive experience being part of the Buzz community is for me. But for those of you who know me less well, let me tell you that I am a Buzz super-fan & I often talk about how great my Buzz experience is.

Networking That Creates A Buzz

We know how daunting it can feel to attend a networking event, so we do everything we can to make our visitors feel comfortable. This starts with the Buzz Host, who greets each person at the door. Your Buzz Host is a friendly & welcoming face, & the person who knows everyone’s name & business. Setting the tone for the Buzz way to network, your Host is instrumental in connecting with each & every person in the Buzz room, & for initiating connections between like-minded business owners. 

Buzz Benefits 

As a no membership networking model, there is no financial tie to Buzz. Visitors are there because they choose to be, rather than because they are financially obliged. This is the foundation on which Buzz builds a great networking opportunity. As all visitors are there through choice, the conversations, which are at the heart of Buzz networking, are free flowing & genuine, meaning people are more engaged. We believe that a true networking experience has at its core real conversations, that are critical for the development to build honest, trusted & long-lasting connections. For those business owners looking for a genuine desire to really network, to discover links & new opportunities without the faff & pressure of referral style networking, then Buzz is the best place to make this happen. We create the environment for you to meet your next best customer, your new business partner, or your next big project.  

Each month, Business Buzz provides over 50 face-to face networking events, of which 15 can be found in the Midlands across, the historic county of Warwickshire which includes the Metropolitan Boroughs of Birmingham, Coventry & Solihull, along with the the counties of Northamptonshire, Leicestershire, Rutland & the city of Worcester. There is also a selection of virtual, regional events. Understanding the need & benefit of both in-person & virtual events, Buzz networking offers a hybrid model to suit everyone’s needs & schedules. With no need to commit to membership, all of our events are pay-as-you-go, so you can choose which events you visit & when. Of course, networking works best when it is regular & consistent, but we don’t hold you to any large or on-going financial commitment other than paying for the events you visit. 

Buzz Innovation: Challenging the Status Quo

I’ve talked about the things that unite us, the glue that holds the Buzz family together: our like-mindedness, our supportive, accessible approach, our keenness to collaborate & knowledge share. So now I want to talk to you about the diversity we have at Buzz, & how we celebrate what it brings. All small business owners are welcome at Buzz, regardless of your sector, industry, how long you have been established, or whether you’re new to networking or a networking expert. The joy of welcoming business owners from all walks of life, & business, is that our visitors get to meet & connect with people from a whole range of backgrounds. The plethora of knowledge & skills across Buzz has an admirable breadth, from solo entrepreneurs stepping out on the path to success, to relationship managers & business development professionals from a raft of larger SMEs, & from the key businesses that support us as we work to grow our businesses. Our inclusive approach encourages this diversity, & encapsulates everything Buzz is about. We’re really proud of our ethos, & of our visitors who promote & practice our culture of inclusion. 

One of the things I really love about Buzz is our ability to innovate & bring to the table fresh ideas on how to make networking really accessible for our community. Let’s start with our format which is no fuss, no membership, no elevator pitches, no speakers, no one seat policy. No other networking brand has mastered the welcoming, conversation orientated format like Business Buzz. We are not trying to be more than what we are, which is the best place for business networking. Nor are we a deviant of someone else’s brand with a tweak here or there. No one does what we do anywhere near as well as the people at Buzz. 

When it comes to virtual networking, Business Buzz didn’t follow the crowd by heading for Zoom. We forged our own path & found a solution that replicates our straightforward mix & mingle style of networking. Let me introduce you to Remo, our virtual platform, where the Buzz café can be found. As Buzz visitors, you have control of who you talk to. There are none of the Zoom algorithms that push you into breakout rooms, where you meet the same people over & over. With Buzz & Remo you choose the other business people with whom you want to talk. We have retained a virtual offering as our events have returned to face-to-face networking, so there is a Buzz for everyone. Even if you do not have a face-to-face Buzz on your doorstep you can be part of our community by joining a monthly virtual East Midlands or West Midlands Buzz. 

Then there is the Business Buzz App! It is the place to find where Buzz events are happening, to book your favourite Buzz & to pay for the event, but it is also a space to elevator your profile through our newsfeed, community directory & keeping you personal & company profile up to date. We also offer a contactless business card solution connected to your Business Buzz App profiles.  We know that some business owners like to belong at or to a monthly Buzz event, so we have made this option available by creating our Buzz Plus subscription. The subscription included all of the above plus your ticket to your home event & access to the innovative Business Buzz Virtual Lounge where you hold meetings of various sizes, so there is no needs for a paid for Zoom or Teams account.

With such a dynamic collective skillset within the Buzz Family, you will gain a broader, encompassing view of your business, allowing you to see things from new & different perspectives. In the Buzz family, we respect & appreciate the wealth of experience we hold between us, & we love being able to see the value this brings to business conversations, connections & collaborations. 

Boost Your Business By Hosting A Buzz

If you’re looking to increase brand awareness, supercharge your business connections & collaborate with other businesses, then hosting a Business Buzz event is your perfect solution! Whether a key strand on your marketing plan, or the main pillar for your marketing, hosting a Buzz gives you a platform to showcase your business, brand, & yourself to an audience of potential customers. Let’s have a look at the finer details: 

Your Costs

• There is a one-off set-up fee of £600 plus VAT to establish a monthly Buzz in your town or city. This also applies to taking over the reins at an existing Buzz events that are already operating, where the local Host is moving up in the Buzz Family,



• There is an on-going monthly license fee of £50 plus VAT per month,

• Your venue hire fees are negotiated on your behalf by your Regional Lead. They are the same across your region & the total amount due after each Buzz is calculated on the number of people who visit your Buzz

• Buzz HQ also takes £1.00 plus VAT per paying visitor to offset the development cost for the Buzz App. 

Your Profits 

It cost just £10.00 plus VAT to visit your local Buzz. Once you’ve paid the venue hire, the Buzz App costs & monthly subscription fees, the remaining event door takings are profit for you. The breakeven point is nine paying visitors each month, over & above this you begin to earn as you network. The more visitors you can encourage through your door, the more profit you make & you can begin to recoup your initial outlay for your license fee

However, the real power for generating profit from your Buzz is to religiously follow-up with your visitors, to schedule & complete 1-2-1 meetings. This forms part of the Buzz 3-2-1 Principle, which is the real power for our Hosts & their delivery teams. Gaining a better understanding of the people who visit Buzz has a twofold benefit. Firstly, they are invested in you, your business & by default, Buzz, so they are more likely to return to your Buzz event next month. Secondly, the 1-2-1 process allows you to establish if a particular person is your customer or a key referrer, or whether they have people in their extended network that might be from either category. Buzz Hosts who are meticulous in follow-up, are the business owners who see both their business & their Buzz event soar.

Your Commitment

We require a 12-month commitment to being a Buzz Host. Within this time, Buzz Hosts generally recover their initial outlay

To Bring It Full Circle

Business Buzz is a well formulated & established marketing strategy for any small business owner. Like all marketing, it takes time to build momentum, but once you gain traction with Buzz, the world’s your oyster. The opportunities are limitless & you can grow into Buzz in so many ways. Underpinning all of this is the Buzz Family, with its community, not only of visitors, but of Buzz Hosts, local delivery teams, Regional Leads & Buzz HQ. As I said at the start of this blog, being part of something bigger than yourself has so many positive implications. I hope hearing more about the Buzz Family, our approach to networking, & the benefits to our visitors has inspired you to book a Buzz – whether it’s your first of your fortieth! If you’ve got any questions about attending a Buzz, or how being a Host could help your business, I’d love to hear from you. Simply email me at james.brodie@buddhaconnect.co.uk. 

[1] Stegar, M.F. (2009). Meaning in Life. In S.J. Lopez & C.R. Snyder (Eds.)Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology. NY: Oxford University Press.