Community Marketing.

Last week I had the pleasure of getting back out to local networking events, with food and drink provided! There’s no denying I haven’t returned to the level of real events I had been doing pre-pandemic. Not that I was doing a huge number before. But things have changed, and I’ve become more comfortable with video calls. The ease of not travelling and the convenience of clicking ‘join meeting’ with coffee already in hand, helps someone like me to arrive perfectly on time (well generally speaking).

But last week I was lucky enough to be invited to a couple of local business networking events that tickled my fancy and wow, it was great to be out there again. Thanks to Watford Borough Council for arranging Summer Business Networking Reception with the Watford Mayor at Marcel's and to the University of Hertfordshire for arranging the Herts Camera Action Knowledge Exchange Event with Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden .

You see the problem with remote socialising and networking across Microsoft Teams, Zoom or Google Meet, is it’s great when you’ve already had some kind of introduction. But getting to that point is really hard work. You see people are no longer in their offices with any regularity, they never answer their phones and more often than not don’t respond to emails.

But walk to the bar at an event, smile at the person next to you as you help yourself to a volován and before you know it you’ve struck up a meaningful conversation. You see we are a social species, but the conditions generally need to be right. A friendly face, something in common and a reason to meet are all part of the magic that makes a conversation flow, and suddenly you’ve begun to build a relationship of sorts that can develop into one of trust and mutual respect. The sort of thing that is very tricky to create in a purely online environment.

So meeting face to face, as part of Hertfordshire’s amazing and vibrant local business community under the auspices of Watford Borough Council, Hertfordshire County Council, Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership and the Hertfordshire Growth Hub was the perfect way to start some great new trusted relationships. At We Are Acuity we’re always saying how important local is when it comes to commerce, and this was an event where being #local brought us all together with a really strong and unifying connection which I hope will lead to mutual benefit.

Thanks to David Conway, Peter Taylor, Mark Douglas, Maria Manion, Cherie Norris, Liza Armstrong, Philippa Shaw, Chris Luff MBE, Donna Nolan, Dave Simpson, Sara Boethe, Hollie Du Preez if I wasn’t fortunate enough to meet you on the day please get in touch. I’d love to connect!

Everyone should consider engaging with their local community! There's a whole load of wonderful people and events out there just waiting to be discovered! If you'd like to read more about Local have a look at our blog page "Local Thinking': weareacuity.com/local-thinking-our-blog