I was working the other day and got an e-mail through my Linked In account from one of my contacts who wanted to talk about my new position and what I do. I remembered meeting him at an event a couple of months ago, but I couldn’t really remember much more? What is it that he does again? I called him and we talked (for no more than 20 minutes) about what it is that I do, and he told me more about what he does. Come to find out, and we can definitely work together. And more importantly, we can help each other’s clients out! And isn’t that really what building these relationships is all about? Building your relationships builds your business.
We all have people on our list that we know, and we work with them consistently, and we refer people to them knowing they will get the job done. But what about all the other requests? Your client asks a question you don’t know the answer to, it’s outside your practice area, but you may know someone who you can refer them to. You look through your Linked In, Facebook and Twitter connections and you’re not sure which one to pick.
If you really want to build your business relationships, go through your list and pick one person each week that you’re going to call and reconnect with. You can schedule a “Virtual Coffee Date” and talk to each other about what you do, and how you can help each other. Take your relationship one step further and really come up with a referral network you, your clients and your business can depend on. Interact with your social media relationships and have a daily presence. According to Linked In they now have 120 Million + professional users. Facebook claims 750 Million users. As for YouTube, they are now the second largest search engine next to Google!
If you aren’t present and interacting with your connections, they won't remember you. And even worse, they will probably find someone else. I know there will be a time when someone I come across in a conversation will need the services for my reconnection last week, and when they do, he’ll stick out more than the others, and more than likely get the referral.
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