Modern Networking Explained in 6 Easy-to-Apply Steps
Creating a strategy that will move your career and business forward
Business — Connecting
- Business: the conversion of relevant contacts into profitable relationships
- Connecting: the human connection before a business connection
For who?
Professionals and businesses who want to become more visible and turn relevant contacts into profitable relationships. You are an entrepreneur, an employee or a job seeker looking for ways to increase your own or your business’s impact. You prefer to connect with other people on the basis of authenticity, trust and sincere interest. You want to acquire knowledge of modern, authentic networking.
Why now?
Business Connecting is important now because of:
1. Technological unemployment and end of lifetime jobs.
2. Online visibility through global connection & sharing possibilities.
3. Questionable sustainability of online mass advertisement.
What you’ll get
Business connecting is about authenticity, human connection, real interest and trust. So it is not about hardcore selling, simply exchanging business cards or sharing Facebook ads.
Step 1: You – Discover your personal, energizing networking style
Step 2: Your Story – Create your authentic brand story
Step 3: Audience – Reach and engage with your target audience
Step 4: Contacts – Form a quality network of relevant contacts
Step 5: Online Visibility – Increase your visibility with suitable online marketing material
Step 6: Offline Visibility – Connect authentically with potentially relevant contacts
The importance of understanding networking
Networking usually doesn’t bring up a lot of positive thoughts.
The first thing that most likely crosses your mind when thinking about networking is exchanging business cards at big, boring, commercial events. Since the internet has become a big part of our lives, the second thought often is the huge amount of online social media channels and how to manage that. It is easy to understand that ‘networking’ does not sound all that appealing.
I am a strong believer in the value of connecting (the right) people though and I have been networking (un)consciously since I don’t know when. For years people have been telling me to start a training about professional networking. Now, finally, after participating in numerous networking events, building several big communities with the help of online and offline networking activities and doing a research about people’s networking experiences, I have decided to share my thoughts with the world. I call my view on networking Business Connecting. Business Connecting is modern, authentic networking from a basis of trust and sincere interest.
Mass and word-of-mouth marketing
Are SEO (Search Engine Optimization), SEA (Search Engine Advertising and SEM (Search Engine Marketing) taking over?
Online, we are confronted with a lot of advertisement. Organisations are looking for SEO, SEA and SEM specialists for marketing purposes. More and more it seems though that people are becoming blind to the ads and are even using tools to block them. What is becoming important again is word-of-mouth marketing, which is spread more quickly nowadays because it also happens online.
Of course, a high Google ranking, Facebook advertisement and 10.000 Twitter followers can help you grow, but I would suggest to not fixate on it. I believe Business Connecting will give you a more sustainable and engaged audience, without spending money on mass advertisement, but instead spending time on increasing your network of relevant contacts by connecting with them more personally.
The network that will move you forward
We want to meet the right people, at the right moment, at the right place.
Business Connecting will help you overcome boundaries in regards to networking, communicating and implementing the right use of today’s social media platforms. The 6 steps of Business Connecting will lead to the foundation of your (business’s) credibility and the establishment of your, online and offline, network of relevant contacts. It will help you turn your (new) contacts into profitable relationships.
The 6 Steps:
Step 1: You — Discover your personal, energizing networking style
Step 2: Your Story — Create your authentic brand story
Step 3: Audience — Reach and engage with your target audience
Step 4: Contacts — Form a quality network of relevant contacts
Step 5: Online Visibility — Increase your visibility with suitable online marketing material
Step 6: Offline Visibility — Connect authentically with potentially relevant contacts
This infographic will give you an overview of the essentials of the 6 steps:
My experience
The last decade, I have been involved in many online and offline projects for which networking was the key towards growth. I have been doing projects with corporations, startups, scaleups, non-profit and governmental institutions. After years of learning and experiencing I finally feel that it is time to give what I have learned back to the world. I want to provide you with insights and tools that help you and your business become more visible to the right people. People who can’t wait to know more about what you have to offer. All this without you having to spend a lot of money, but by simply practising the 6 Business Connecting steps.