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Business Networking- Why is it Important for Startups and Entrepreneurs

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Networking is a personal skill that is essential for business people, particularly startups and entrepreneurs. You can build lasting relationships when you are an effective communicator and well-known in the business community. These attributes will help you to meet entrepreneurs from other parts of the world and sectors. Therefore, business networking is important for new and existing companies.

At this juncture, you may be wondering how you can go about business networking.  Every year, businesses across the world come together in different forums. Some of the participants of these events is a group of highly-skilled entrepreneurs with a common idea. They aim to generate, share, and develop ideas as well as meet potential investors and industry experts. The entrepreneurs want to add the right people around them and form meaningful relationships.

Continue reading the article for more tips on how you can establish a business network and its benefits to the company.

Tips on where to find effective Business Network

People network every day, although they don’t realize it. Business networking is different for its goal is to meet likeminded people. On the other hand, entrepreneurs and startups can diversify their network by adding companies with different lines of businesses and keeping staying in touch with them. The following are ways of creating useful networks.

Social Media

You can build a strong network easily on social media because most people are on these networking platforms marketing their products and services or searching for them. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, and Instagram are some of the common platforms for entrepreneurs. Intch is a new business social network that could be a great alternative to LinkedIn as it provides AI-matching with the right people. WhatsApp is a personal chatting platform that helps you to join business groups. These platforms are not limited by location; thus, you can interact with fellow entrepreneurs or customers from different regions of the world.

Business Events

They include entrepreneurship seminars, conferences, and awards events. You can meet people through local network clubs sites like MySpace, LinkedIn, and WisdomBuilders. Some of the most reputable global conferences that you can attend are the world business forum, the Wall Street Journal business conferences, international startup festivals, content marketing world, and the great game of business, among others. These conferences are designed to bring entrepreneurs together to help them learn new skills, keep up with the current trends, curate a great network, and become a thought leader.

Key Points about Networking

Business events and meetings put together entrepreneurs and experts with different backgrounds and levels of experience. The participants are here to get inspiration, connections, advice, mentors, and opportunities. The following are points to remember when attending these forums.

  • Endeavor to make new connections whenever you attend any business event; however, don’t neglect your local connections due to the new friendships that you have established. Treat both local and global business connections equally.
  • Be yourself and real when meeting new people in forums. This will help you to build more genuine relations and attract more people.
  • Present the company the way you want people to see it because this will help you to establish honest fundamentals for the business relationship. Get yourself new customers, mentors, and business partners or potential investors when you attend the business events.
  • Discuss general situations that are common to all entrepreneurs across the globe. These topics will make people comfortable when you show them that you understand their circumstances.
  • Provide value to other entrepreneurs to make them desire to contact you. This can be achieved by being active.
  • Staying in touch is the foundation for a strong network and relationship. Therefore, communicate with the new contacts after the event.

Benefits of Business Networking

1.    Friendship

Business networking helps you to make great friends because you think alike. These friends are most likely to become the building block for your business.

2.    Opportunities

Networking helps you to come across new opportunities such as business sale, an asset, partnership, joint ventures, client leads, and presentation opportunities that help you to address others and add value to them. Therefore, ensure that the opportunity you pick will strengthen your business goals.

3.    Referrals

The reason why entrepreneurs and startups participate in networking activities or join groups is that they want to get prequalified referrals. Later, business owners convert these contacts into permanent clients. Therefore, networking provides you with higher quality leads compared to those obtained through marketing initiatives.

4.    Connections

Entrepreneurs thrive in the business world due to who they know but not what they know. Likewise, it would help if you had fewer reliable connections and null enemies for your business to succeed. Thus connections can help you anytime you need their assistance

5.    Increased Visibility

Getting noticed or visible is one of the benefits you derive from business networking. Therefore, you need to attend both business and social events so that you can get well-known by people. Offer useful information and tips to help people know you as a reliable, supportive, and knowledgeable person.

6.    Improved Confidence

Networking helps you to talk to different people and make presentations during events, which enhances your confidence. This is important because your business growth is dependent on your connections and confidence.

7.    Positive Influence

Networking helps you to interact with entrepreneurs that influences who you are and what you do. Therefore, surround yourself with people that can uplift you rather than make you feel negative.  

8.    Mentorship

Meeting like-minded people is the main objective of business networking. These are fellow entrepreneurs or investors that can offer you advice on different matters, thus improve your business. For that reason, networking is the most appropriate way of getting mentorship and guidance.

9.    Reputation

As stated above, business networking will help you get noticed or visible. Further, networking will help you build your reputation both online and offline. Your brand will get seen, and once you convert a few referrals that you obtain through networking and serve them well, then your profile will gain exposure, and your sales will grow.

10. Knowledge

Your business networks should comprise of experts in your industry and other sectors as well. This composition will help you to share knowledge across the industries to help everyone move forward.

Conclusion

Attending business events organized across the world or engaging in social media platforms will help you connect with like-minded people that will help to move your business forward.

The confidence, motivation, exposures, connections, and prequalified referrals you get through networking are unique opportunities that can’t be found anywhere else.

 

I'm a passionate full-time blogger. I love writing about startups, how they can access key resources, avoid legal mistakes, respond to questions from angel investors as well as the reality check for startups. Continue reading my articles for more insight.

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3 Comments

3 Comments

  1. Adam Golightly

    12/02/2020 at 10:24 PM

    I can see how a business could really benefit from getting the right networking to expand their company. They could be more effective when working with a professional. It was interesting to learn about how they can present themselves as reliable, supportive, and knowledgeable which can improve their confidence.

  2. Faith

    02/24/2022 at 7:24 AM

    Beautifully written. Thank you so much

  3. Watson

    08/17/2022 at 12:21 PM

    Very nice blog this will be helpful for me, thank you guys for posting this kind of information you can get more information about accounting and bookkeeping at Account-Ease.

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