I have not discussed social networking relationships in-depth for a long time, so I thought today would be a great time to delve in with the holiday season finally upon us with Black Friday!
When we talk about social networking relationships to clarify first is the ability to connect with others not just for business, but also to enhance a personal relationship. So often when people want to build their business through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn they forget that the best clients are the ones you build a relationship with first.
How to build your social networking relationship
That means that you need to actually communicate with people in your network. One of the best ways to do this is through either email, phone, or shocker face to face meetings.
One of the best things that I did this year, and I need to do again sometime in the future when I have time was to have a virtual assistant go through my Facebook friends and send out 500 personalized Facebook messages to my current connections asking them to talk via phone or in some cases meet face to face.
These meetings have proven invaluable as I have met a number of clients and partners through this process. That is actually the beauty of social networking. The more you connect with people online, provides a greater number of chances to actually speak with them and go offline with your conversation.
Another thing is to simply listen to what your prospects and clients are talking about online. It is amazing what the power of listening can do in a relationship. It can help you to guide someone correctly. It can also lead to an amazing array of benefits, such as people actually liking you and wanting to use your services again and again. Now, I am not saying that I am perfect at listening, but some of my best successes have come when I actually heard and understood what a client wanted.
The final thing I want to talk about is giving. In social networking, relationships are built based on a give and take environment. Do your best to not only take but to also give. That was a large part of the reason why I decided to create my blog. It was a way for me to share my knowledge with my network. The blog has grown since then, but the core mission has remained the same.
Final Thoughts
However, you build your social networking relationships the main thing is to actually build the relationships. Look to make meaningful connections that enhance your brand and your business, but also enrich your life as well. After all, what is the point in owning your own company if you can not choose who you associate with at your business?
If you want to build the right social networking relationships, then schedule a free 30-minute consultation with me today to get the best strategy to accomplish this goal for your company.
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Hey Andy,
I always thought that social media was for the kids since my first experience with Facebook was just a bunch of posts about want clubs people were going to. Then my experience became more involved with business and I started to see the power of this medium. But you are so right about the connections that will be formed when you actually talk to people offline. This is the way you really make a solid connection.
Great Article. It’s true that if you want to be successful online, you can’t just sell sell sell. You need to be a real person to people. You need to build relationships Then you will gain rapport and trust and people will be more likely to buy from you, even though you’re selling less. It’s true that the more you give, the more you gain.
~Lisha
Lisha,
So do you want to buy that? Just kidding!
That is what it feels like sometimes with social networking. Giving is a huge part of social networking.
Andy
Great post Andy! I have found the best results when I have invested in creating relationships and giving to other people online. I love what you say about listening because so few people actually take the time to listen. Thanks for sharing this!
Angela,
Listening is a huge part of relationship building!
Andy
Google plus is still under development. It still do not have enough features to compete with facebook. Games was introduced recently to make it popular. New features are introduced constantly. It will be released to open public soon.
Daniella,
I am well aware of that. Was this supposed to go in another post?
Andy
I like the features of Google+… Maybe in the future this can totally compete with Facebook!
Heidi,
That would be nice. It is still a few years off I think. Adoption will take a little while to have the size to compete with Facebook.
Andy
Who knows in a year or two, Google+ will be the big rival of facebook. =)
Agreed! Did you just read my blog post this morning before I published it? 🙂
Great Article. It’s true that if you want to be successful online, you can’t just sell sell sell. You need to be a real person to people. You need to build relationships Then you will gain rapport and trust and people will be more likely to buy from you, even though you’re selling less. It’s true that the more you give, the more you gain.
Glad I am not alone in those sentiments!