A spider web, with its intricate structure fanning out from a single connection point, is a beautiful thing. If you’re a business owner, the nexus of your web is likely the hub of your operation, and every offshoot represents a part of your network.
Building and maintaining strong relationships is the silk you’re spinning here. And you’re not doing it alone. All businesses are forging relationships with vendors, investors, employees and partners.
Why are connections important in business? They’re the threads holding everything together. The more relationships you have, the more intricate your network becomes.
The trick is to build something that lasts. That means not only creating relationships but strengthening them by honoring your commitment to others in everything you do. Here are the Better Business Bureau’s tips for building strong connections.
What do you bring to the table in a relationship?
Your skill sets, resources and insights are valuable. When you’re willing to offer those from the get-go, you create an invitation. And in return you create a sense of inclusion and, ultimately, an opening for others to bring value to you.
Build relationships
with clear expectations
What you want out of a professional relationship starts with where things currently stand. Take stock of your current contacts. Are they providing value to your business? Are they helping you achieve your goals? Are you doing the same for them?
Start keeping a list of people you’d like to connect with. Outline what you know about them, and what value you hope to gain. Then, when initiating those new relationships, keep your expectations as fluid as possible. This goes back to the first tip above: Think first about what you bring to the table.
Connect people
This tip is about having a matchmaker mentality. Sure, you’re looking at what’s good for you and what’s good for those you’re building relationships with. But if you know two parties would click, why not facilitate that relationship? The big payoff in connecting others is that you will be recognized as someone who’s in it for the greater good. When you work to see others succeed, they will very likely want to return the favor in the future.
Keep up the correspondence
For close contacts: Go the extra mile for your top connections. Send congratulatory messages when accomplishments are made. Make plans to meet in person. Make a point to send them personalized notes for birthdays, anniversaries and special occasions.
For other important contacts, create reminders in your calendar to reach out. Pick up the phone or schedule a Zoom call to keep in touch. Stay committed to that “how can I bring value to the relationship” mentality in all your correspondence.
For those in your general audience: Do you have a newsletter? Use it as a chance to provide general updates on your team and your operation. You might even consider two newsletters for your different audience sets, a B2C letter for customer relationships and a B2B letter for building industry relationships.
Follow through
and stay organized
Once you’ve collected all those business cards at a business networking event, stay on top of your follow-ups. Send those “great to meet you” notes and make a plan to call, email or meet your new connections again.
Your organizational skills are key during this phase. You might consider a task-management app that allows you to create notes and files for your contacts; some CRM systems have similar features as well.
The benefit of using these larger software platforms is that you can set reminders to get in touch, keep notes on personal details, and generally store information on multiple people in one place. It can all be accessed easily when you want to reconnect with individuals or larger groups at one time.
The most important thing is to keep at it.
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Roseann Freitas is marketplace manager Hawai‘i, Better Business Bureau Northwest + Pacific, at 900 Fort Street Mall, Ste. 1310, Honolulu, HI 96813 808-260-0643, bbb.org.
