The Jeff Pulver Blog: Business Networking 101: How to Start Growing your Business Network

« Public Speaking 101: Jeff’s Tips for Being a Better Public Speaker | Main | Next stop: Athens, Greece »

September 30, 2008

Business Networking 101: How to Start Growing your Business Network

A friend of mine recently suggested I write a blog post answering the question "How do I best leverage social media to create a network of business contacts that will help me succeed in chosen profession?"

After thinking about the answer to this question, the following is my seven step approach developed for people who are interested in starting to build their business social network. I suggest following this approach whether you are a recent college graduate new to an industry; someone who is changing industries and is in need of deep contacts in your new industry or someone who is already established in your chosen field and you want to expand your business social circles.

1. Create Your Social Identity

When creating and building your network, you need to choose a name to represent you. Unless you have a very common name, I would suggest using your name. And whenever possible, use a consistent name across all of the social networks that you join. At a minimum, get yourself setup on: LinkedIn, Facebook, twitter and MeetUp. If you are into photography and/or creating videos consider also establishing yourself on Flickr and/or YouTube. And be sure to visit FriendFeed and define yourself.

2. Now Create a Blog

Whether or not you consider yourself a writer, if you don’t already have a blog, please consider creating one for yourself. You will need your blog to give yourself a reason why you are reaching to the 30 social connectors as described in the next step.

There are a number of popular blogging platforms. For a quick start, give Blogger a try..

3. Now Identify 30 “Super” connectors in your area of Interest

The key to this exercise is identifying the people in your industry whom you would like to get introduced to. This step may take considerable energy and time but when you complete it, you will be well on your well in creating your business social network.

Make a commitment to yourself to spend at least the next 30 days growing/creating your business social network. In most cases, discovering the names of people you would like to meet and/or connect with should be easy. The harder part will be narrowing down the list to only 30 people.

4. Reach Out and Touch Someone

Once you identify 30 super connectors that you want to meet, reach out and try to connect with these people. Look for the blogs of these people by visiting http://blogsearch.google.com. If the person you are looking to connect with has a blog, chances are you will find it. And if they have a blog, join their community. Join some of their conversations. You may find yourself immediately connected with the person if they happen to monitor their blog comments. Even if they are not active with their community of blog readers, you will eventually be noticed. So think about the questions you would like to ask if you had 15 minutes of their time. Once you have established a relationship with the person, email them your questions.

You can also try reaching out to the person by email or by phone. (Try looking for them on LinkedIn or use Google to track them down.) When you contact the person, ask if they would be open to being interviewed by you for your blog. If they say no, take a pass and go on to the next person on your list. If they say yes, email or call them depending upon their preferences.

Once you have established a connection with each person, connect with them on LinkedIn and/or Facebook and any of other other social networks.

5. Document the Progress

Post to your blog and write about YOUR experiences as you grow your network. When possible, try to video interview the people you choose who are your personal building blocks. Remember to ask the questions that will mean the most to YOU.

And remember to post to your blog so people who you are trying to interview can read some of your other interviews. Make it a point to contact each person as you post their interviews and be sure to include a link to their company and to their blog.

6. Ask for a Connection

After you have established a relationship with one of your designated super nodes / connectors, don’t be shy to ask to be introduced to ONE of their friends. If you don’t ask, the answer is no. And remember that an introduction is an endorsement. So only ask for an introduction AFTER you have established a relationship with the person.

7. Reflect and Project

Reflect back on your experiences and publish your own guide on how YOU built up your business social network in 30 days.

So if you decide to take me up on my suggestions, please feel free to contact me. I’d like to read about your journey and learn from YOUR experiences.

---

Tags: business networking, connectors, Social Media, Jeff Pulver

What about you? Please feel free to share your comments and experiences building YOUR social network.

Share this post:

Posted by jeff on September 30, 2008 11:35 PM | Permalink

Additional resources: Watch PrimeTime TV Shows | Watch the Jeff Pulver Show | Jeff's Qik Videos

Comments

Posted by: sare at July 1, 2009 12:51 AM

Replica Louis vuitton handbags
fake Louis vuitton
Louis vuitton knockoffs
designer bags
louis vuitton bags
louis vuitton purse
coach bags
wholesale replica handbags

Posted by: sare at July 1, 2009 12:50 AM

http://www.fantastic-replica.net

Posted by: sare at June 30, 2009 09:47 PM

http://www.fantastic-replica.net

Posted by: sare at June 30, 2009 09:36 PM

[url=http://www.fantastic-replica.net/]Replica Louis vuitton handbags[/url]

Posted by: aaa at June 28, 2009 11:12 PM

Posted by: scwew at June 5, 2009 04:28 AM

http://www.aypearl.com
http://www.bjbead.com
http://www.tangjewelry.com
http://www.56jewelry.com

Posted by: wholesale jewelry at May 19, 2009 03:11 AM

Posted by: 情趣用品 at May 16, 2009 08:32 AM

i like yit very much

Posted by: cheap chanel handbags at April 19, 2009 07:42 AM

TravelPath: Retail is an online travel booking engine that allows travelers to purchase air tickets quickly and easily over the web. The first internet booking engine to seamlessly integrate published and negotiated fares in one easy to use product, TravelPath: Retail is simply the best way to ensure that your web site visitors have access to the lowest fares possible.

Posted by: vania at April 2, 2009 01:51 AM

Great job done by providing such valuble and precious blog.

==========================
jessica

http://business.bizoppjunction.com

Posted by: jessica at February 28, 2009 06:33 AM

Great job done by providing such valuble and precious blog.

==========================
jessica

Home Based Business

Posted by: jessica at February 28, 2009 06:31 AM

Great job done by providing such valuble and precious blog.

==========================
jessica

Home Based Business

Posted by: jessica at February 28, 2009 06:29 AM

Every time we run a sale or offer a freebie, place an announcement on our business blog. Better yet, create a special page on our blog just for these announcements, but make sure to keep it updated with new sales and/or freebie offers.
____________________________________________________
Arabela Anya
http://business.bizoppjunction.com

Posted by: arabela anya at February 26, 2009 05:03 AM

Moreover I am thinking if this kind of approach can be ported to application and services

Posted by: online games at February 15, 2009 01:32 AM

A片,A片,成人網站,成人漫畫,色情,情色網,情色,AV,AV女優,成人影城,成人,色情A片,日本AV,免費成人影片,成人影片,SEX,免費A片,A片下載,免費A片下載,做愛,情色A片,色情影片,H漫,A漫,18成人

a片,色情影片,情色電影,a片,色情,情色網,情色,av,av女優,成人影城,成人,色情a片,日本av,免費成人影片,成人影片,情色a片,sex,免費a片,a片下載,免費a片下載

情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣,情趣,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣,情趣,情趣用品,情趣用品,情趣,情趣

A片,A片,A片下載,做愛,成人電影,.18成人,日本A片,情色小說,情色電影,成人影城,自拍,情色論壇,成人論壇,情色貼圖,情色,免費A片,成人,成人網站,成人圖片,AV女優,成人光碟,色情,色情影片,免費A片下載,SEX,AV,色情網站,本土自拍,性愛,成人影片,情色文學,成人文章,成人圖片區,成人貼圖

情色文學,色情小說,色情,寄情築園小遊戲,AIO交友愛情館,情色電影,一葉情貼圖片區,色情遊戲

言情小說,情色論壇,色情網站,微風成人,成人電影,嘟嘟成人網,成人,成人貼圖,成人交友,成人圖片,18成人,成人小說,成人圖片區,微風成人區,成人網站,免費影片,色情影片,自拍,hilive,做愛,微風成人,微風論壇,AIO

Posted by: will at February 12, 2009 04:51 AM

Thank you so much for this. It's great not having to "reinvent the wheel."

-Cristy S.
www.wisdombeyondyears.com
An Online Community for Christian Leaders

Posted by: CristySoh at October 12, 2008 07:16 AM

Great post Jeff! I always look forward to your pearls of wisdom.

Posted by: Mimi at October 2, 2008 05:11 PM

Jeff,
I agree, and it is imperative to build your network and start exchanging referrals with other companies when you area a business owner. I started my own consulting business 11 months ago, and I used the website Referral Key to help me build my network and keep track of my referrals. I highly suggest checking it out. The basic membership is free and it is a great way to connect with your trusted network and exchange referrals.

-Mike

Posted by: Mike Rouche at October 1, 2008 04:13 PM

Jeff,

Thoughtful post on an important topic.

Networking is a key element to staying current in your industry and areas of interest. Your emphasis here on web 2.0 tools such as blogs and social networks is telling, though there is still no substitute for the occasional face to face meeting.

When I started my consulting business in the early 90's, one of the first things I did was to interview other consultants. The things I learned in those interviews made a dramatic difference in how I set up my company Human Communications and helped build its success.

I've had corporate jobs for the past 9 years, but networking continues to be valuable.

James

Posted by: James Rafferty at October 1, 2008 01:20 PM

Jeff, this is a great post... definitely something you should do if you want your business network in a fast and efficient way.

A good follow up on this would be to talk about how to mitigate the risks of building such a network.

Moreover I am thinking if this kind of approach can be ported to application and services

Posted by: Alessandro at October 1, 2008 08:07 AM

Apologies "we" should be "was." Fingers not working properly...must have more coffee.

Posted by: mark_hayward at October 1, 2008 07:26 AM

Jeff - you must have read my mind! My wife, who does a lot of work with Animal Welfare of Culebra, we just asking me this morning how she can go about promoting her non-profit organization better online.

Now I don't have to explain a thing to her...I am just directing her here.

Posted by: mark_hayward at October 1, 2008 07:23 AM

Nice Post. I was just telling my roommate, who is looking for a change in careers, about these things, in a less articulate way. I'll be sure to pass this on.

Posted by: Paul Heayn at October 1, 2008 01:17 AM

September 30, 2008

Business Networking 101: How to Start Growing your Business Network

Comments

Post a comment