Deepen Relationships with Contacts You Already Know

Find ways to nurture relationships. Here are a few hints. These are vital to your networking success:

 

1. Listen and learn. Everyone likes to talk about themselves. When you listen, you will learn who they are, what is important to them, how you can help them and how they can help you. Action step-learn one new piece of information about 3 connections this week no matter how well you think you know them. Then record this into your Information bank.
2. Make connections. Help people connect with others you know who can help them. Action step-Make an introduction with 2 contacts this week. In fact, get more involved by making a strategic introduction. After a dinner meeting with a new neighbor, I knew her specialized consulting and training skills would be a perfect match with an organization I have worked with. I immediately created an introduction by sharing their linked in profiles and then wrote a personal email connecting them. Take action.
3. Follow up. When you promise to do something, keep your word and do so in a timely fashion. Action step-There is something on your desk right now that needs to be followed up on- could be a note to the new connection you made last week or an overdue call or note to a current budding relationship. Make sure to put into action this week.
4. Stay in touch. After an initial period of follow-ups, even if no business has resulted from those initial contacts, find ways to stay in touch. This way you’ll continue to build a network of long lasting, mutually beneficial relationships. Action Step- I call this my Power of half hour. Every week, I reach out to 3 connections that I’ve been nurturing to say hello, share an idea or send a piece of news. If you know their preferred method of communication, all the better. Otherwise, truly stretch yourself and try a new method with each one—call, text and send an email.

Activity produces results.