My dad was a master of traditional networking. He belonged to Kiwanis and Rotary clubs, sat on boards of charities, volunteered at church, etc. He never really learned how to network on the computer, though, and if he were alive today he would find that process very intimidating, I imagine. [He died in 1996.]
Looking someone in the eye and shaking their hand is really the best way to make a truly personal connection, obviously.
However, in the internet age, one needs to be creative about networking.
An important way to get more business is to get more people to read your website and/or your blog.
When I started blogging in 2005 I was mainly discussing adoption, and how my daughter and I were coping. Adopting a 13 year old who speaks no English is stressful, and I needed to write. I also wanted to get out information about how terrific it is to adopt an older child. So I started searching the internet for websites about adoption. I started reading articles and commenting, and when asked, I would put the url for my blog [The Crab Chronicles] in my signature.
I started getting hits on my blog from other adoptive parents who were interested in reading my blog, even if they didn't adopt an older child. I paid attention to where my traffic was coming from because Typepad allows you to see the addresses where readers are coming from. Lots of clicks came from Adoption.com and similar sites.Some came from other mommy bloggers.
Before I knew it, I was getting loyal readers who had adopted or who were looking to adopt.
If you are writing a blog or just trying to promote your website, you can spend 15-30 minutes each day on the internet, finding websites or web articles that have something to do with what you do. Read and think.
Let's say you are promoting your cupcake bakery, Superior Cupcakes.
1. Find a story like How to Make Cupcakes. This is a general information story, not the blog of a rival cupcake bakery.
2. Think of something clever to say about the story. For example, "If you've got a cold and need 50 cupcakes for your child's birthday, call me! I can have them ready for you the next day!"
3. Be sure to leave your url if possible, or at least mention the name of your business.
People who love cupcakes but don't like to cook, or who don't have time to cook, are likely to click on your url or Google the words "Superior Cupcakes," and you then have made a contact.
Of course, if you are only interested in local clients, make sure it's a local site.
See how easy that is?!
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