Business Networking Strategy

Having discussed how important it is to have a clear vision of the financial return on your investment in networking, we need to turn our attention to the other ways networks can benefit both you and your business. While new business is a key driver for many people joining groups, networkers report a range of rewards derived from their activities. Whether you are looking at personal development and support as an individual or staff development and new ideas for a business, it is important to have a clear range of objectives.

If you have been following this series of articles, you will have noticed a couple of key ideas cropping up again and again. Hopefully by now, you will have recognised the importance of having a strategy for your networking rather than leaving things to chance. As we have discussed, while many people look down on ‘networking’ as a series of old boys clubs or small businesses desperately exchanging business cards, in reality individuals and businesses of all sizes need to network to succeed.

It is one thing to build an influential and enthusiastic network through a focused strategy; it is another to get that network’s support when you need it. The most common problem is not, as you might think, people’s disinclination to help. Often people don’t get the utmost from their connections simply because they don’t make their message clear enough. As discussed previously, once you know what return you are looking for it becomes much easier to communicate a clear message to others. Now you have to focus on that message and understand how it is perceived.