Small Business For Dummies by Eric Tyson & Jim Schell

Author:Eric Tyson & Jim Schell [Tyson, Eric & Schell, Jim]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781119490449
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2018-08-07T00:00:00+00:00

Networking (It’s not what you know …)

Networking can be defined as connecting with people to make good things happen. Networking offers a host of benefits, the two most obvious being the opportunity to promote your products or services and the opportunity for you to learn from those with whom you network. These two benefits are the primary reasons that organizations such as the Chamber of Commerce, the Rotary, and Toastmasters exist.

But wait. Before you run out and join your local business organizations (see Chapter 15), think about using the networks you already have. Your friends, your relatives, your alma mater, your church, your children’s school, your neighborhood, and the social organizations you belong to are all viable networks. With a little priming (being proactive), many of your existing networks will be happy to give your product or service a try. All you have to do is initiate the priming.

This priming can come in many forms — a telephone call, a flyer in the mail, an email, social media postings/mentions, or even a casual mention during a conversation following a school event. All these communication methods are viable parts of the network priming process, and all of them are available at little cost.

Be thoughtful and careful when networking with the people you know. People are busy and bombarded daily with tons of advertising, solicitations, and spam email (aren’t you?). The last thing most people want is to be accosted by a salesperson in what they thought were the friendly, safe confines of a school or church. Start with a low-key approach: Assemble a one-page summary or a simple flyer of your company’s products or services and mail or email copies to people you know.

You can improve your network priming with these additional tips:

At the beginning of every year, make a goal for yourself to add one more network to your current stable of contacts. The most obvious way to do this, given today’s web-based trends, is to start using social media tools, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter.

Make sure that you have a professional-looking business card and don’t be shy about handing it out. Folks should be able to discern exactly what business you’re in through the combination of your company name and your tag line, both of which should appear on your business card.

Be sure to follow up every networking opportunity. A telephone call or a letter the next day reminds your networking prospects of your business and shows them that you manage it professionally.

Remember that networking works both ways. Help another small business within your network, and you can usually expect that the other business will eventually help you.

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