As a follow-up to a recent post, “Personal Development: Becoming Comfortable with Discomfort to Increase Sales,” I found another interesting networking-related article that discusses a new approach to building business-critical connections.
The piece, “How to Use Networking 3.0 to Make New Connections,” courtesy of Convince & Convert, outlines the ways in which today’s networkers should evolve their methods beyond what the author calls “Networking 1.0” and “Networking 2.0” schools of thought.
From the article:
“Rather than networking to directly benefit yourself (1.0), or a total stranger (2.0), the idea here is to network solely for the benefit of your best existing clients and colleagues.
In theory, it’s all about what you can do for them, and how you can add more value to your relationships with them. In practice, it involves finding prospective clients for the people in your existing network and connecting them with remarkable people. In essence, you’re becoming a part of their business development team, and a valuable resource for just about anything.”
Networking is a necessary activity for any growth-oriented business, and the opportunities available to today’s business professionals, including social marketing sites and content marketing technologies, open new doors to those willing to embrace a fresh networking mindset.
