Small Business Networking Secrets


Networking is a hugely important part of your small business whether online or off. No matter what you do or how you do it, networking helps you find partners, suppliers and customers for your business. Done right, networking can be the key to your success. Done wrong, it can be cause of your failure. Here are some resources aimed at helping you improve your networking today.

Networking 101

Networking at conferences like a champ. Forget about Facebook and Twitter. There’s nothing like networking face to face and conferences can be an especially awesome place to meet people in your field in the flesh. But networking well at conferences requires some planning. Here’s how to get started. connectedlife

Harnessing the incredible networking power of LinkedIn. With all the press about the big social networks, Facebook and Twitter, it’s easy to overlook one of the big runners up, and a site much more similar to traditional networking settings. Knowing more about how to use this tool can take your small business networking to the next level. Fox Small Business Center

Fine Tuning

Niche networks meet regional, cultural needs. Just as some networking channels now specialize in niche interests, others bring together those of common geographical or cultural interest. Networking on many levels can help your business meet the many people you need to know to be a success. Explore niches that can introduce you to others with whom you share common connections. TechCrunch

Networking to learn from others. Getting together with other small business owners, especially those sharing a common niche, isn’t just about finding new business partners, opportunities or even customers. Sometimes, it’s just about learning something brand new. Are there things other business owners could teach you? Could you share things with them as well? What can networking offer you? Patch

Tech Overview

An intro to Google + business profiles. Is the day coming when most businesses will tend their Google + profiles with greater care than they do their Facebook pages? Well, maybe, and that time might be closer than almost anyone suspects. Want a peak in the crystal ball? Read on. PC World Business Center

Networking still preferred over paid search. Don’t count Facebook out so quickly, however. A recent survey suggests most small businesses would much rather spread the news about their products and services via the social networking site than through other means like paid search. It’s another example of a constantly changing online small business landscape. All Facebook

Best Practices

What will Google networking mean for your small business? As popular as Facebook and Twitter remain, how important will Google networking become to your small business? Remember, if your business is online (and at this point we’d find it hard to believe it wouldn’t be) you already need to deal with Google for SEO. Can your networking needs be far behind? WSJ

Do you know how to give? A stupid question? Not when it comes to effective small business networking. You see, your networking should NOT be an ongoing advertisement about your business. Find a way to give and be ready to receive, says one business guru. Is giving the real key to entrepreneurship? Laurie Hurley Online

Looking Forward

Social networking overload? Cendrine Marrouat poses the question, “Do we really need another social networking site?” And then answers her own question, but maybe in a way that will surprise you. Endless change may be the one constant of networking, particularly in the online universe. So keep expanding your connections. Creative Ramblings

Networking and e-commerce take another step closer. Though the recent announcement of a partnership between Foursquare and American Express may not, at first glance, seem all that important to small business, it is another step toward tying social networking and e-commerce closer together. If you have a business that already accepts American Express, the impact will be immediate. For everyone else, it is yet another taste of things to come. Forbes

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