Networking – A Sure Fire Way to Grow Your Business Alston

How many times have you overheard a conversation at a business meeting or chamber lunch that goes something along the lines of: “John, you mentioned the other day that you know someone who can fix’s PCs, well can you give me their number – mine’s crashed again.” Networking is in operation in a number of ways here.

• Networking happens everyday – it’s what makes the business world go around.
• Networking isn’t about hard sell.
• Networking works because of trust and confidence. Networking can only work if you are very clear about what you offer – your proposition – and this can be articulated easily to others – for example – ‘I fix PCs when they crash’.

Why Use Networking?
Simple – it works, it costs next to nothing and once you get used to doing it, it becomes second nature, something you do naturally, with limited effort.

Many small businesses use networking as their only form of marketing. In the professions, especially those that, until recently, were not allowed to market (eg lawyers) networking has built some very successful, big businesses.

Well, lets just take a step back for a moment and think about who’s in everyone’s network:

• Work colleagues - past and present
  • Bosses peers and subordinates
  • Board members
• Other business contacts
  • Customers
  • Suppliers
  • Partners
  • Competitors
• People you meet on training courses, at meetings or who belong to the same professional body or Chamber of Commerce.