Building and growing your network is important and will provide lots of mutual benefits if it’s done properly.You might have 1000 connections on LinkedIn or be a member of a prominent business network in your area but if you’re not able to build meaningful relationships with these people then it’s pretty useless.Equally, you might be worrying that you have a seemingly tiny network of contacts and have no idea how to go about growing this.There’s no one thing that will help you and it’s certainly not a quick process but I hope to share some of my experience of what’s worked best for me.
Your network isn’t just about connecting with people in business, it starts with your friends and family. These are the people who are most likely to support you and who will sing your praises to others so, ask them if they will put you in touch with 3 people they know. If 10 people do this, you now have 30 new connections to start building upon and once these have been established you can do it with them. Your network will soon start expanding!
You can’t add value to your network if you don’t know what their needs are or how you can support them. As mentioned previously, it might look great having hundreds of connections on social media but they’re of no value if you haven’t got a genuine relationship with them. The key to getting to know people is to ask questions and actively listen to their response. It might sound simple but it’s amazing how many people either get nervous so end up speaking about themselves to fill the silence or simply don’t listen to what people are telling them.
Eventually your network will hold the key to your business growth, whether they become customers or have useful contacts or even exciting opportunities, so it is important to invest time in building real relationships with people. I liken this scenario to kissing on a first date. Most of us wouldn’t do it, so why would you try and sell something or ask for a favour from someone you’ve just met?! This gung-ho approach almost never works and if it does, it almost certainly means the other person felt pressured so they’re not going to see you in a favourable light. You’re in this for the long haul so take your time and build real trust with your network.
As discussed in the first post, your connections will have connections themselves which could be valuable. As your network grows and you’ve built up those strong relationships with people don’t be afraid to ask them to recommend you to people in their network. It’s the same principle as asking friends and family just on a larger scale. In fact, it can be an infinite scale if you are able to continue the chain of recommendations over and over again. You just need to be careful that you are asking the right people, not those you have never made an effort with.
Social media is a fantastic tool for getting your name and your business out there and offers an online community of support. Growing your connections online alone won’t help you with your business growth but will certainly give you credibility if used in addition to my previous recommendations. Grow your audience by sharing valuable content regularly, connecting with people you have been recommended to or met at business events and interact with their posts as a sign of support.Networking is crucial to many aspects of your career so it’s important that you take time and effort in considering ways to grow it. Like any other relationship, the more you nurture it and the more you invest in it, the more valuable it will be, and this is true of your connections. You never know when you may need to draw on your network so being genuine will ensure that people in your network will be willing to support you.
Prior to starting his current business with UW, Derek dedicated 29 years to Primary Education, serving as a classroom practitioner, an Advisory Teacher for Information Technology, and ultimately as the Head of a Primary School until 2014.
Register for my upcoming webinar and take your first step to obtaining financial security
