Firefly Hub is growing, and we are delighted to be bringing our relationship-led approach to business networking to Greater Manchester.
We are currently exploring the launch of three new Firefly Hubs in Sale, Stockport and MediaCity, creating new opportunities for business owners, professionals and tradespeople to build strong local relationships and generate genuine referrals.
We are now looking for people who would be interested in becoming founder members of these new hubs.
If you run a business in Greater Manchester and like the idea of helping to establish a new networking community from the beginning, we would love to hear from you.
Why Manchester?
Greater Manchester has an enormous and varied business community, but that scale can also make it surprisingly difficult to build meaningful connections.
There is no shortage of networking in Manchester. On almost any given week, business owners can find conferences, breakfast meetings, informal gatherings and large corporate events. The challenge is finding a group where you have the opportunity to get to know people properly and where those relationships continue beyond exchanging details at a single event.
Firefly Hub is built around a different idea. We believe good referral networking happens when people meet consistently, understand one another’s businesses and develop sufficient trust to make introductions.
As Firefly grows, Greater Manchester is a natural place for us to develop the network further.
Three New Firefly Hubs Proposed for Greater Manchester
We are currently inviting expressions of interest for three proposed hubs in Sale, Stockport and MediaCity.
Each location offers something slightly different, which is precisely why we believe there is potential for individual hubs rather than attempting to bring everybody into one central Manchester meeting.
Sale has a strong community of independent businesses, professional services and trades, with excellent connections across Trafford and South Manchester. A Firefly Hub here could bring together businesses serving Sale, Altrincham, Timperley, Urmston and surrounding areas.
Stockport has undergone significant investment and regeneration while retaining a large community of established local businesses. Its location also makes it accessible to businesses operating throughout South Manchester and Cheshire.
MediaCity provides another type of opportunity altogether. With its concentration of creative, digital, media and professional businesses, alongside the wider commercial communities of Salford and Manchester, it provides an exciting potential location for a Firefly Hub with a broad professional membership.
These are proposed new hubs, and we are currently looking for the people who would like to help us establish them.
What Is a Firefly Hub Founder Member?
Becoming a founder member means joining a new hub at the beginning and helping us create the community around it.
There is a particular advantage to being involved at this stage. Rather than joining an established room where relationships have already developed, founder members get to know one another as the hub itself grows.
You have the opportunity to introduce your business, understand the other founding businesses and begin developing referral relationships from the outset.
It is also a chance to help shape the character of your local hub. Firefly meetings are intended to be friendly and welcoming rather than intimidating or overly formal. We want people to look forward to attending because they enjoy the company as well as recognising the commercial value of the relationships they are building.
One Business Per Profession
An important part of the Firefly Hub model is one member per profession within each hub.
This means we are not aiming to fill a room with several businesses all competing for exactly the same referrals.
If you join as the accountant, electrician, mortgage adviser, solicitor, web developer, estate agent or another profession, you have the opportunity to become the person within that hub associated with your particular area of expertise.
It does not mean that referrals are guaranteed simply because you occupy a professional seat. Trust still has to be earned, and members need to understand the quality of your work before they can confidently recommend you.
What it does provide is clarity. When another member encounters somebody looking for the service you provide, there is a clear person within their Firefly network to think about.
For prospective founder members, this also means that professional places will be limited. If you are interested in joining one of the new Greater Manchester hubs, registering your interest early allows us to start discussing availability for your profession.
We’re Looking for a Real Mix of Manchester Businesses
A strong referral network needs variety.
We would love to hear from professional services including accountants, solicitors, mortgage advisers, financial advisers, HR consultants and insurance specialists. We are equally interested in hearing from tradespeople, property businesses, health and wellbeing professionals, creative companies, technology specialists and other independent businesses.
Complementary businesses can create particularly strong referral relationships.
An estate agent may naturally develop connections with a mortgage adviser, conveyancing solicitor, surveyor and local trades. An accountant may regularly encounter opportunities for an HR consultant, commercial solicitor or financial adviser. A web developer might work with the same growing companies as photographers, marketing specialists and IT providers.
The objective is to create a hub in which members can genuinely help one another rather than simply taking turns to deliver a sales pitch.
Which Manchester Hub Would Suit You?
Where you choose to network matters. A brilliant networking group is of little use if travelling to it becomes such an inconvenience that you rarely attend.
That is one of the reasons we are proposing hubs in different parts of Greater Manchester.
If your business is based around Trafford or you regularly work across South Manchester, Sale may be the natural choice. Businesses based in or serving Stockport and surrounding areas may prefer the Stockport Hub, while companies with connections to Salford, central Manchester and the creative and digital community may find MediaCity particularly attractive.
Of course, business rarely respects council boundaries. The right hub is ultimately the one that is convenient for you and contains businesses with whom you can build useful relationships.
Founder Members Can Help Build the Network They Want
Launching a new networking group provides an opportunity that does not exist in quite the same way once a hub is established.
Founder members can actively help grow the network around them.
If you know an excellent electrician, accountant, photographer or solicitor who would complement the group, you can introduce them. If there is a particular profession that would be useful to your own customers, you can help us identify the right person to invite.
Gradually, the room develops into a network of people who know, trust and recommend one another.
That is where the commercial value begins to build.
Business Networking Should Lead Somewhere
We want Firefly meetings to be enjoyable, but ultimately everybody attending is giving up valuable business time.
Networking therefore needs to have a purpose.
That may result in direct referrals, but the benefits can be broader. Members can find suppliers, collaborators and professional advisers through the group. They can make connections in other industries, learn from other business owners and become part of a wider network extending beyond their immediate area.
One good connection can also travel considerably further than the original meeting. A person you meet in Sale may know somebody in Leeds. A Stockport member may have customers in London. A MediaCity business may work with companies throughout the UK.
As the wider Firefly network grows, those connections become increasingly valuable.
Interested in Becoming a Founder Member?
We are now inviting expressions of interest from businesses interested in becoming founder members of the proposed Firefly Hubs in Sale, Stockport and MediaCity.
You do not need to wait until the first meeting is announced to get involved. In fact, this is exactly the stage at which we want to start speaking to prospective members.
Tell us a little about your business, your profession and which of the three locations interests you. We can then discuss the proposed hub and whether the professional position you would like to occupy is available.
If you know another great local business that you think should be involved, tell them about Firefly too. Some of the strongest hubs are built through good businesses introducing other good businesses.
Firefly Hub is coming to Manchester. If you would like to be there from the beginning in Sale, Stockport or MediaCity, get in touch and register your interest in becoming a founder member.
