How to keep in regular contact with your network
How do you keep in touch with your network on a regular basis? How do you figure out whom to stay in touch with, and how often to connect with each person?
And how do you keep track of all this without getting overwhelmed?
Before I answer these questions, let me make a very important distinction: “Networking” is not the same as “keeping in touch” with people.
Don’t confuse the two!
You keep in touch with people for a variety of reasons. And networking may be one such reason.
For instance, you may keep in touch with a co-worker from a past job just because you like his or her company.
And one day, he or she may be able to help with a networking objective you have — such as, advise you about how to get the attention of the decision-maker within his or her current organization. (This, by the way, is a good example of integrating networking into your normal day.)
On the other hand, if your only reason to keep in touch with someone is for “networking” purposes, it can get tedious.
After all, what do you talk about, when you get together to “network” week after week? (This is why “networking” often fails.)
To avoid this problem and confusion, first clarify why you want to meet and make sure that both sides see the benefit of getting together. This is one simple way you can identify the “right” people to stay in touch with. (This is what we covered in Lesson 3 — remember Lesson 3?)
Then together you can decide how best to keep in touch (e.g. by phone, email, in-person, or a combination), how often to connect with each other, what to talk about when you do connect, and so on.
Once you’ve made these decisions, you can use software tools to automate many aspects of keeping in touch. This allows you to stay in regular contact — with the right people at the right frequency — without getting overwhelmed.
For instance, Cortege is one such tool. Take the guided tour of this product to see what I mean about using tools to streamline and automate keeping in touch.
By the way, if you decide to buy this product, you can get an additional 5% discount as an Effortless Networking member. To activate your discount, enter EFFORTLESS as the promotion code when you make your purchase.
March 25th, 2007 at 6:39 am
What a relief to a problem I have been having. I have sooooo many business cards from people that I may or may not need their services at this early stage of my business. But it is getting crazy trying to keep up and touch base to say hello. I can spend my whole day making calls and not getting any work done. Thanks for letting me know I’m not the only one on this merry-go-round.