3 Quick Tips for Networking and Building Relationships

In the midst of doing some business planning and strategizing, I came up with 3 Quick Tips to help you along your path to becoming successful in whatever business you are in. If you own a business and want to increase your contacts and grow your customer base, then these 3 tips should be able to help you in some way. Here we go...
Tip #1 ~ Know Who You Want To Connect With
There are many people who consider themselves to be entrepreneurs and small business owners, which means, there should be no shortage of people who you can connect with that has a business which provides some sort of service or product. However, you must consider and give much thought to what connections you want to make with each specific business owner. If you have a universal product that people from all walks of life can utilize or enjoy, then your networking opportunities are open to a very broad spectrum and you are able to connect with people from various business areas.
Example, I sell coffee and we all know that A WHOLE LOT of people drink coffee, no matter what business they are in. I also sell juniors and misses clothing, everybody wears clothes, but everyone doesn't wear juniors and misses clothes. With the coffee, I have a much wider networking base, than I would for selling clothing and here is why... A 50 year old man may buy my coffee, but he may not have any interest in buying a maxi dress in a size small. A 23 year old woman my come to me and buy clothes, and then she may see that I sell coffee too and buy both. Coffee: 2, Clothing: 1.
Tip #2 ~ Have a thorough understanding of the services you can provide
When you meet people and start networking, they will ask you what you do and some may even be as bold to ask, what can you do for me? Know what your answer will be and be willing and able to provide the answers they need. If there is something they ask that you do not know, DO NOT LIE!!! You may want to develop a relationship with this person for future business opportunities that may come your way, and if you start out your relationship with a lie, then you are setting that relationship up for failure in the long run. Take time to be knowledgeable about your area, audience or customers, terms and lingo, and your specific and unique contributions to that particular field or area. You want to appear at least somewhat knowledgable about your business. Don't wait until you meet a potential customer or future business associate to start thinking about what you do.
Tip #3 ~ Is your business life personal or have you made your personal life your business?
Social media has made almost everyone famous (who wants to be) and there is an abundance of people capitalizing off of this trend. YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter makes it easy for people you may never meet to know a great deal about you, what you do, what you like, what kind of clothes you wear, what kind of hair products you use, what sports team you cheer for and even your kids names and their life. With social media, there seems to be no clear line as to where the social ends and the business begins!
If your business venture (income generating business strategy) relies on the general public knowing so much about you, then go full steam ahead, but be cautious! There are still many people with cruel intentions and your willingness to reveal 95% (or more!) of your life, and who you are, makes you a much easier target. If you want to keep your personal life and social life somewhat separate, then keep it that way. You and your business can be as separate as you want and you can still be successful. You decide what, how and when you want to share with your customers about any facet of your personal life. But remember to keep the focus of your business in mind. Intense Social Media Sharing may not work for every business, but for some it is a must!