Your connections and networks contribute significantly to your online and offline success. Every successful business leverage its partnerships, connections, investors, stakeholders, satisfied customers to sell more, expand to other cities, increase brand awareness, and win contracts. Invest time and some amount of resources to expand your connections and partnerships. Online and offline events have proven to be great strategies for lots of businesses. These are what you can do to reach create more opportunities for partnership and sales.
1. They find and connect at niche events (online or offline)
New startups spend time and resources to get their names and brands out there where their potential clients or customers can find them and hopefully sign up for their products or services. Most of them identify and attend industry events to increase their chances of meeting people who will most likely try their products. You can be successful with this strategy, but you need to find a few of such great events to increase your chances of pitching to a lot more prospective customers and even partners.
2. The internet create false intimacy, so they take business networking offline
It can sometimes be very difficult to turn passive connections into business and personal relationships. But you can take that into your own hands and create that opportunity today. Your LinkedIn, Facebook or Foursquare connections can probably unlock many opportunities for you and your business. How about taking time to throw an offline invitation to some of your social connections in your city or town to discuss and expand possible business opportunities waiting to be unlocked. You can also take advantage of tools like Meetup. Meetup lets you meet like-minded strangers online, then connect in person.
3. They search and find people they want to meet at before the event.
One of your best bets is to find out who will be attending the event before you even make an attempt to register to be there. You don’t necessarily have to be at every event to attract new clients or partners. But if you intend to increase brand awareness, then you need more than just an accurate list of attendees. You will have to identify as many industry events as possible and check out those your startup can leverage to increase brand awareness. You can also organise your own meetup, find the right venue with tools like www.venuefinder.com and invite prospects from businesses yo want to connect with.
4. They are not afraid ask for an introduction.
If you sense an opening, take it. Social apps have made it extremely easy to know who is connected to whom. It’s your job to know who you want to connect with and who can be a possible partner. Make use of introductions. Fortunately for you, you can request for introductions from most of your personal connections on almost all the social networks. Reach out to potential investors and partners via a known connection. You are more likely to get a response quicker and easier this way than cold personal introductions.
5. Finally, the desire to follow-up is a great asset, so they follow-up!
Most business professionals make it a habit to take almost everybody’s business card at a great event but few actually make that step to follow-up to maintain the fragile relationship they started at that event. You may have too many business cards you have touched in ages. Revisit them today and take that extra step to make contact with those you can be of help to their business and others who can also be of help to your business.
1 comment
Great tips and gentle reminders to us startup multi-taskers.
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