Business Networking

Networking is one of the most important ways to develop, establish and grow your business - and how do I know this - from experience.

I registered my business in October 2004. I developed and planned it all without knowing anyone else in the industry. I researched all the steps, sourced suppliers, designed my website and it wasn't until I stumbled upon online business forums that I realised how much easier it would have been if I had developed contacts earlier in the business developing process. Here were a group of people who had similar interests and worries and who relied on each other for assistance and support. My business certainly didn't suffer because of the way I chose to get it off the ground before I entered the networking phase but it certainly would've helped me understand some of the problems I faced in the early stages and how to get around them.

Even though it has only been about 8 months since I stumbled upon these forums, I have managed to make numerous contacts and customers, find new suppliers and discover a wealth of information that I didn't even know existed. And how much did this cost me? Well, next to nothing.

When you start up a conversation in the street or at your child's school, you are also inadvertently networking. The contacts you meet whilst making the networking rounds in effect turn out to be your customers and business allies. For this reason alone it is one of the best and cheapest forms of advertising around.

There is nothing better than someone buying your product and telling everyone else what good service you provide, particularly within a group environment, as this may encourage others to use your products and services.

Let's face it - we all have bad days. The kids are screaming, a customer isn't happy, you have hit a slump in sales or a brick wall in your creativity. This is where our networking systems that we have put in place can often help us the most. Talk to someone, go for a coffee. You never know, someone may just give you the inspiration and motivation you need to carry on. I see this every day on forums - a business owner is having an off day and a few people post a positive comment that helps to boost the individual and give them the encouragement to keep going.

A supportive networking system is crucial in a business but one which is not supportive enough to inform you that you may be making incorrect decisions is both ineffective and a waste of time. There is no point having a network of contacts around you that tells you everything you are doing is great (even when it isn't) because this will not enable your business to develop and grow.

There are many small business networks and meetings to attend and we all have a lot to learn from each other. Everyone you meet is at a different level in their business - some at the planning stage, some at the starting phase of their business, some growing or developing their business but we are all aiming for the same thing - to be taken seriously and to have a profitable business.

Building relationships is crucial in the business world as you may just need some assistance to take your business to the next level and someone might have just the information you need to do that.

So whether you are in a remote area and rely on an online forum or attend business meetings in a major city, don't dismiss networking and the benefits it has on the success of your business.

Article Source: http://www.therepozitory.com.au

Written by Michelle Sweeney.

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