This is an article “How Networking Can Help Your Startup Grow” by Marc Primo.
In the road to entrepreneurship, you will certainly meet different types of people who can help you achieve your goals. The moment you place value in their skills and recognize their capacity to contribute to your objectives, you begin your beautiful journey towards networking. In today’s startup industry, networking is one necessity that can help move your business forward faster than you can imagine.
Whether you’re in the process of building your startup from scratch or already in expansion mode, knowing how to establish the right connections will give you the proper advantage to grow your business.
Why is networking so important in startups? Here are a couple of reasons you might want to consider.
You streamline communications. Networking with the right people makes every aspect of your business’ communications easier and faster. Connecting people with the same vision and business acumen as yours leads to more opportunities in no time, not to mention enhance your brand messaging. Knowing people who can give you the right referrals can also lead to improved conversion rates and loyalty.
You get ample support. The beauty of startups is that it fosters community among big thinkers who can link their ideas to create opportunities and benefits for their respective businesses. This ecosystem of support can offer you a range of benefits from securing loans or cutting down costs to help your business. Startups that work in co-working spaces know this well so you may want to sign up at your nearest one right now.
You become more proactive. There’s something about doing business with people that attracts similar minds and having a penchant to keep those who make you proactive is truly a gift. The best thing about this is how it molds you into a better entrepreneurial version of yourself, enriching your expertise on how to approach industry trends and challenges. This skill will definitely come in handy when you interact with clients and partners because by then, you’d know how to control your pitches and situations.
You experience customer growth. Networking allows you to gain more leads by meeting more industry people who can give you some insights on customer behavior or competition strategies. In other words, it makes your world smaller in terms of getting the inside knowledge to improve your business plans and get more conversions. Hiring the right influencers also push you as a top-of-mind brand on social media which can lead to loyalty, while attending industry events can let you in on the latest trends and technology that can help propel your business forward.
You create some leverage to expand. One of the top reasons why you should engage yourself in networking activities and groups is how it opens up avenues towards new businesses. Surely, you’ll get to meet other business owners who can complement your own ventures or offer their help so you can expand and grow your business. These connections can also recommend your brand whether by word-of-mouth (2.4 billion brand-related conversations happen daily in the US), or through social media (81% of consumers are influenced by their friends' posts) which can turn into more potential customers. High-quality referrals (92% of consumers trust referrals from people they know) can do a lot for your marketing goals and it all starts with the right connections.
These are just a few reasons why you should make an effort in your networking strategies for your business. Breaking bread with the right people who have experience and a significant number of followers not only helps your startup, but your whole business personality as well. Proof that a simple handshake can go a long way.