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Business networking for busy people

Guest post by: Richard White

Article Overview: You are busy running your business and find it difficult to find time to network. Yet you know that keeping in touch with your contacto get ms is important to keep a steady flow of business coming in. What can you do? In this article I outline 5 strategies I use to ensure networking does not take up too much time and yet gives me the ongoing benefits.

Business networking for busy people

You are busy running your business and find it difficult to find time to network. Yet you know that keeping in touch with your contacto get ms is important to keep a steady flow of business coming in. What can you do?

In this article I outline 5 strategies I use to ensure networking does not take up too much time and yet gives me the ongoing benefits.

Join a networking group

This may seem counter-intuitive but stay with me! If you are very short on time then a networking group becomes very valuable. The reason is that you can nurture relationships with many people at the same time. If you have a group of 30 people then it would take a lot of individual meetings to stay in touch.

It is better to invest time business networking when you do not need any help so that you are able to get the help when you do need it - like when you are looking for your next big project.

Organise your own networking meetings

If you do not have the time to attend business networking events then why not organise your own meetings a local restaurant at a time and regularity to suit you. Not as a money making scheme but as a time saving device. Get a virtual assistant (VA) to do most of the work. If you are busy earning good money then paying a VA to do the running around is a great investment.

If you are on a project, stuck in a hotel many miles from home you could look at your contacts on Linkedin and see who lives close by and invite them to a dinner, breakfast, lunch etc. Networking and meal times go together very well as we need to eat and we need to connect. Why not combine the two?



Use online networking sites

Online sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Ecademy are extremely effective time saving devices for building your network and staying in touch with your existing network. There are more online social networks being created all the time.

Most of the new networking sites seem to be focused on specific areas of common interest. I find that most people I know either use Facebook and/or LinkedIn in addition to the specialist online social networks. The specialist networks like Ecademy are good for making new connections but I normally end up keeping in touch with them on LinkedIn or Facebook once I get to know them.

Look after your advocates

Your advocates are the people who regularly recommend and refer you to others. In networking terms they are like the goose that lays the golden eggs. You need to look after them. If time is really short and you only have a little time, make sure you allocate time to theseyour advocates

Some people spend too much time meeting new people and they neglect the very people who are most likely to be able to help. Number 2 priority is nurturing the relationships with potential advocates. We all have a lot more of those than we realise.

Make it easier for people to help you

Getting a clear message of what you do, who you do it for, and why people will want to talk to you will ensure that you get the best results from the least amount of time. Many people think they have a clear message but are not getting the business they want from their networking - one of the top symptoms of an unclear message in my experience.

So if you are short on time but feel you should be doing more networking then why not try these strategies and see how they help you get keep your networking going even if your time is severely limited.

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Article Tags: business networking, time management



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