Skip to main content

Visit My Featured Affiliate

Follow Me on Bluesky

Networking is Critical for your business

Small business networking is critical to your business success. You must build relationships through networking.

You will need to make this your priority for the first few months of operations. Likewise, you cannot rush this process. Not only that, but you’re not going to go to your first network event and get six clients. But there’s a good chance that you will come away five or six quality contacts.

Networking For Contacts
Once you make the contact, your work is not over. You then have to spend time following up with meetings, proposals and sales calls. But this time is much better spent than chasing down one-shot clients. Work with people who are, or who can put you in touch with, steady clients. These are the contacts that will support your business long-term.

Don’t expect to walk out of every event with a handful of paying clients. Do expect to generate quality leads and referral sources. These referrals and leads are the crux of small business networking.

You need to have many leads and contacts in your funnel at any given time. Some of these will be hotter at different stages. They will be ready to move into paying client status at different stages and different dates. Networking keeps you in contact with these people throughout their buying phases.

The Bottom Line on Networking
Contact and referrals are what will lead you to long-term, steady clients. The kind of clients that will make your business a success. Getting out and attending networking events may appear to be unproductive socializing. Realize that the contacts you make will generate an enormous return on your invested time. Start your network today – you never know where it will take you.

Comments

Most Read This Week

The Impact of Buyer Personas

Imagine you’re building a house. You wouldn’t just start hammering away without a blueprint, right? The same goes for building your website. You need to know who you’re building it for. That’s where buyer personas come in. Who is Your Ideal Customer? A buyer persona is like a fictional profile of your ideal customer. It’s not just a random person you pulled out of thin air; it’s based on real data and research about your existing and potential customers. Think of it as a story about your typical customer. What’s their name? What do they do for a living? What are their greatest challenges? What are their hobbies? What are their goals? Why Should You Care? Knowing your buyer persona helps you make smarter decisions about your website: Targeted Content: You can create content that directly addresses their needs and interests. Effective Messaging: You can use language they understand and connect with. Better Design: You can design your website to be intuitive and easy for them to use. Opti...

Don't Be Afraid of Data Analytics

The world of data analytics is not as scary as it sounds. Think of it as a treasure hunt, where the treasure is valuable insights about your business. Don't Be Afraid of Data Analytics In today's business landscape, data is king. Web analytics, social media insights, CRM data, and even financial analytics all provide a clear picture of how your business is performing. They act like a detailed report card, showing you what's working, what's not, and where you can improve. Why Data Analytics Matters Why should you care about all this data? Well, it's simple. Data tells you things like: Website Conversions: Are people actually buying what you're selling? Lead Generation: How many potential customers are you attracting each month? Social Media Engagement: Do people like your content? Are they interacting with it? Financial Health: Are you spending more money than you're making? These are crucial questions to answer if you want your business to thrive. In fact, a...