Developing Your Networking Skills Networking skills are especially vital in order to make contact with a range of potential clients. Not only is networking required to promote the work environment, it is also great for expanding your own knowledge and experience. As a a woman, responsible for acquiring more clients for the organisation, networking abilities can be particularly important.If you happen to have your own business venture, networking becomes an essential skill.You may have an excellent product or service, but the problem is that at a certain point in your business or career, your leads may run out. You need to constantly be increasing your connections and referrals. Some folks disregard caliber giving far more attention to adding numbers to their database.When networking is used for quantity purposes only, it is known as networking abuse or when it comes to e-mail messages may be regarded as spam. For networking to be beneficial, a business women should establish a well thought out game plan focused on getting to know interesting new people. Have you ever noticed how successful people always have someone to call on when they need information? Here are a few strategies which you can follow to develop your networking skills. Smile: A smile shows a person is warm and friendly. When meeting new people, smiling is appropriate and welcoming .Use appropriate body language: The impression new contacts form of you in the first few minutes is certain to be the lasting one so be relaxed and friendly. Look at people in their eye: When speaking to someone, look them in the eye while you speak.This is viewed as a compliment and is the most effective way to communicate with someone you have just met. Listen attentively to the other person : When having a conversation, it is polite to listen to what the other person has to say. This shows that you value their opinion. Ask, “How did you”………People love to elaborate on their life and success stories. Ask open questions starting with how, why, where, when and what in your conversations with everyone you meet. These questions provide valuable information about people, their work and knowledge that you may use later on. You should of course also provide this type of information about your business, service, position and future expectations when the opportunity presents itself. These types of questions create an introduction and help the other person to relax and relate to you while the person also gets a chance to talk about his interests.Ask about his or her plans for future Business?’ This can establish common ground and where you can possibly work together in future. Pass a compliment: Everyone likes to be appreciated. Make sure it is heartfelt and truthful. People can judge if a compliment is sincere or not, so be discerning about what you say. The conversation is over and you have not tried to sell your business or services. By this time you can exchange business cards and you can use the information to contact him or
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her again. By doing this, you are building a trust relationship. This type of conversation is relaxed and doesn’t contain a sales pitch. It is a non-threatening approach and helps to build a network of contacts. By starting conversations like this with everyone you meet, you will be able to build a network of contacts and referrals that are more valuable than thousands of dollars spent on advertising your services. You will want to stay in contact with your list of contacts even when you don’t need anything. Drop a note once in a while, e-mail them, sending a card, giving a voucher, or just inviting them to a game of golf or a cup of coffee.
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