Networking is a necessary tool for small businesses. It  is important to ‘get out there’ and interact with your sector, whether it’s through social media, business networking events or connecting with referral sources, networking will improve the growth of your business.  Furthermore, networking allows you to establish a relationship with business people and potential clients. It is the art of relationship-building; once you learn this art it will become a life skill and will continue to benefit your business and personal life.

Although networking can seem like a bit of a chore, it is one chore that you will not regret doing. Below are the top 5 reasons why you should start networking:

You can share ideas

Networking is great for meeting like-minded business people who are in the same position as you. You can identify what other businesses in your sector are doing to market their business and bounce ideas off one another. It is a great opportunity to gain ‘food for thought’ and apply their strategic methods to your own business and possibility get rid of methods which are not doing your business any favors.  Talking to other business people in your sector is a great learning curve and you could learn something that could instantly transform your business.

Relationship-building

If you work for/own a small business you are less likely to meet new people. Networking is a great way to get out of the office and interact with others. It often allows you to think about your business from a different angle. Your best ideas will rarely happen when you are chained to the desk. It would also be quite refreshing to talk to people who run a similar business to your own.

Practice sales skills

Networking gives you the opportunity to practice your sales skills to non-core targets before you present to potential clients. The more you practice your selling skills, the more likely you will attract customers and effectively grow your business.

Form strategic alliances

Interacting with other business owners in your sector is an excellent strategy to form alliances that can benefit your business. The basic logic of the strategic alliance — a joint venture between two companies — is often irresistible: It’s difficult to break into new markets, and a partnership can bring instant access to new customers.

Win new business

The aim of the game really, is to win new business. Networking pulls together all the necessary skills you need to run a small business. You need to establish trust, make new business contacts, promote your own services, share experiences and ideas with other like-minded business people and form strategic alliances and synergies. All these combined will help grow your small business, guaranteed.

To view more tips on how to use networking to grow your small business, visit Small Business Salt today.  You can also read our Business Blog and see our Entrepreneurship Blog.

Interested in coming and experiencing a Business Network SW event – monthly at lunchtime in Bristol, Taunton and Exeter

For more details visit our website http://www.business-networksw.co.uk/diary.php

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