THE SECRETS OF ONLINE NETWORKING

How to do business whilst still in your pyjamas, with the baby on your knee.

It’s a regularly repeated marketing mantra that ‘people do business with people’: - in other words people want to know, like and trust you before they will do business with you. Consistent networking to raise your profile will mean that the more connections you develop, the more business you’ll naturally attract.

But what if you don’t want to go out networking? What if you’re shy of going into a room full of strangers? What if you’re running a business from home and want to be able to network at times that suit you? Maybe you’re working in a remote location and can’t make it to the meetings? Online networking means that you get the benefits of conventional networking without having to leave your desk.

As someone who’d rather be reading the kids a bedtime story than handing round business cards with a bunch of suits, I’ve found that focusing on consistent online networking has brought me fantastic opportunities to meet and do business with people all over the world. This is what I’ve found makes all the difference:

DO YOUR RESEARCH – Talk to your clients and fellow professionals, especially people who are as successful as you want to be. Where do they hang out online? Which websites, discussion forums etc do they enjoy? The easiest way to reach your clients is to hang out where they do.

WHEN YOU MEET PEOPLE ONLINE – Don’t try and sell to them straight away – this is the equivalent of rushing into a party and forcing your business card on everyone, without stopping to find out if they’re interested in what you’ve got to offer. ‘Lurk’ for a while to get the feel of how various online environments operate – read other people’s messages to get a feel for the culture: is it serious and businesslike all the way, or is there a space for humour? Look for connections between what you do and what other members of the community do: this may give you an opening to make a connection.

BUILD YOUR PROFILE CONSISTENTLY – It’s more effective to have a limited number of sites and forums that you contribute to regularly than to try and be all over the internet at once. Make a regular commitment to participate and stick to it. Answer queries, contribute articles and blogs. Be generous with offering your expertise: this will say more about you than an ad ever would. Look for what you can contribute to others rather than what you can sell.

One thing to remember with online networking is that it probably won’t replace good old face to face networking entirely. Many people still don’t like to do business with others until they’ve looked them in the eye and had a face to face conversation. If you make an interesting connection with someone online, develop the relationship by giving them a call or meeting for coffee.

QUEEN OF YOUR OWN DOMAIN – Some of most valuable networking you can do will be within a group of your target clients where you are in a position of authority – this raises your profile amongst your potential clients and makes you a centre of influence in their world. It is now easier than ever to start an online networking group with the help of Yahoo, Google or Smartgroups. Members of networking sites such as Ecademy can also choose to form their own clubs and become club leaders.

Of course for this sort of group to flourish, members have to be getting more out of it than simply finding out about your business. I run a networking group for Women in Media, because that’s the client group I specialise in helping. However, if the group only consisted of ads for my services, members would soon drift away. The fact that members get a whole host of support and opportunities keeps them coming back for more. And that’s the fun thing about running your own group – it soon takes on a life of its own and develops in ways you could never have predicted.

PLAN YOUR OBJECTIVES – Above all, before you start be clear about what your objectives are for online networking: Whom do you want to meet? What do you want to happen? How much time are you prepared to commit to it?

Above all have fun and be open to meeting new people. Be interested in what they’re doing and they will soon be interested in you.

Some Busines and Personal Networking Sites

www.soflow.com – International online networking with a high proportion of media/creative professions. It's a fairly small community at present but that can make it easier to get to know people than on larger sites.

www.ecademy.com – Business networking site with the facilities to post articles and blogs

www.linkedin.com – Works by linking people up with one another, following the ‘Six degrees of Separation theory’: that you’re only six people away from everyone else on the planet.

www.ryze.com

www.tribe.net

http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/mediawomenuk/ - Online networking group for women in media. Mainly UK based but with members around the globe. Many members are freelance journalists, though a wide range of other media professions also represented.

© Joanne Mallon 2005

BACKGROUND:
Joanne Mallon is a life and business coach who specialises in working with Women in Media. She is also the founder and moderator of the Media Women UK Online Network. You can find out more about Joanne’s work by visiting www.MediaLifeCoach.com or by calling 01273 562 415 or emailing Joanne@medialifecoach.com