It’s that time of year when many of us are focused on planning for success in the year ahead. We set goals and, I hope, we think about how we’re going to achieve them. But do you think about how others can help?
Helping each other is a key aspect of Fabulous Networking. But how can we help you to achieve your goals?
Expand your team.
As solopreneurs our businesses can be limited by our lack of time. We only have 24 hours in a day and seven days in a week and we don’t want to be working all of them. Are there people in your network to whom you could outsource or delegate some work?
It may be that you have competitors who are not as busy as you, or perhaps they have a different skillset or focus to you. Could they plug a gap for you? We have examples of members agreeing a rate for a job with a client and then subcontracting at a slightly lower rate to a fellow networker. This is a win-win as it allows both businesses to grow.
Perhaps you could do a skill swap with a fellow member. Are you a social media expert who needs some bookkeeping help for example? Could you trade your web development skills for some legal advice?
Referrals
Referrals are a fundamental aspect of networking. But to maximise your referrals your fellow networkers need to be clear what an ideal client looks like for you.
Do your fellow networkers really understand what you do and who you do it for? How do we recognise that someone might need your services? Who is your perfect client and who do you not want t work with?
How should we pass on the referral? Do we direct our contact to your website or a social media platform? Do you have a brochure we can pass on or do you have a showroom or samples? Remember that our contact may want to check you out before they’re ready for a conversation.
Accountability
Do you need some help to keep the promises that you’ve made to yourself? Perhaps you could pair up with a fellow networker with a similar need and check in with each other on a weekly or monthly basis. Or maybe one of our Get it done days would help you accomplish the tasks you keep putting off.
Feedback
As business owners we frequently come up with new ideas for products and services. Or it could be new ways of delivering or marketing our services. The idea might seem brilliant to us but without someone to challenge it we might be heading in the wrong direction. That challenge can spark an even better idea.
The beauty of feedback from a supportive network is that it is usually constructive and helpful. Often it is rooted in people’s own experience or knowledge. Your fellow networkers want you to succeed so their feedback can save you time and money and speed up your route to success.
Support and encouragement
Many of our members say that it is the support and encouragement that they receive from their fellow members that they value most. Don’t be afraid to ask for that support or encouragement because people may feel that offering it is somehow patronising or unwelcome.
Don’t forget to share your successes so that your community can celebrate with you. Fellow business owners will really understand the effort that went into your success and their joy in your achievement will be genuine and uplifting
In January 2025, in our introductions, we are asking you to share a main goal and what we can do to help you achieve it. This article might give you some ideas but feel free to come up with others. Be as specific as you can to help us to help you to achieve your goals.
