As with any business, survival is decided by whether you have clients or not! It’s also decided depending on if you have the right exposure in the marketplace. If you’re not at the forefront of people’s minds, they’re going to go to your competitors.
In this, the modern age of the computer and the internet, you’ll find it hard to miss places where adverts are plastered. Not only now do we have the traditional billboards in public places, you now get hundreds of thousands of virtual billboards emblazoned on various websites, with affiliate marketing here, there and everywhere!
Advertising, which is an indirect marketing solution, is a part of our every day lives, like it or not. Whether you’re a large multinational brand, or a nail salon round the corner on a high street, advertising of that company can take many, many forms. But more often than not, you can be better off using the direct approach, marketing yourself directly to your potential clients.
And lo, networking was created!
Although, business networking isn’t exactly a new phenomenon; business owners have needed to network themselves round to gain business for centuries, even several millennia. From an ancient Moroccan souq to a contemporary city centre retail outlet, it is predominantly the job of the business owner to communicate their message to their potential customers.
After all, you are the best mouthpiece, it’s only right that you should be the main one blowing the trumpet as well!
In the UK today, there are countless networking organisations out there that host a variety of breakfast, lunch and dinnertime events, it all depends on which time of the day suits you to network yourself around. 4Networking meets at 8am-10am nationwide, in my opinion it’s one of the best ones, because it fits in well with many people, it’s unstuffy, and more importantly, keeps it fun and informal.
To me, the most important rule of networking is to just be yourself; no one likes people putting false fronts up, just to save face. Being yourself will enable you to fast track your business relationships with the people you meet, meaning you may be able to do business with them far quicker, because you will know each other in more detail. Trust is a crucial part of every business relationship. Without trust, there is no common ground.
The best scenario is to get out there as much as you can, build up your online and offline credibility and be seen to be helpful. Network yourself online, get yourself to physical meetings, be it breakfast lunch or dinner. The more people that know you, the more likely you are to get something passed on to you in the shape of a job. That’s why I became a part of 4Networking, because it is a mix of online and offline networking on a massive scale, with all the events and members linked up together in a very efficient way. For more info, go to www.4networking.biz