The marketing napkin: Develop your network

Good afternoon. It is Friday again and time for a a nice glass of Prosecco and a new episode of our marketing napkin series.

Why I am writing about wine you might think. If you want to know why it is called the marketing napkin and why we order a glass of wine to get a napkin head over to this post: I invite you on a marketing date. 

So order your drink and take your napkin. Today we are going to go deeper into last weeks topic: your network. Last week we discussed how to get to talk to people on a networking event and one thing that we emphasized was to give first before you take. Lily wrote a comment underneath the blog: „now to put it to practice, the hardest part! :)“ And this is just what today’s post is about: putting it into practice. 10 things you can do for others to create a genuine network that brings you new friends and customers.

I truly believe that a true network can only exist with people that you actually like. If you treat your network connections like friends instead of just handing them your business card and waiting to get referred you will build a solid base of people that you actually LIKE to work with and that believe in you and your business.

This post is for those of you who don’t know how to get this started and who think: I have nothing to give. Well let me tell you something: We all have a special talent and have something to give to somebody to help.

– Send the vendors images that you took of their products during the wedding day.

– Organize a styled shoot with new vendors in the industry or people you really want to work with and provide the images of the shoot for everybody who participated to use for their portfolio.

– Offer the people you want to work with to take their new profile picture (everybody needs one) or even to photograph their whole team.

– Do the people you want to work with have a family? That is awesome. Offer them to take a recent family portrait of them.

– Even outside of a styled shoot you can offer to photograph the products of other vendors you want to work with. What about florists or jewelers that you could offer your service to?

So you might think that is nice but I am not a photographer. 

– Are you great with texts in your mother tongue or even in a foreign tongue? So many people need help with their contracts, price lists, communication and websites. Offer them to check or write their texts (a huge thank you to Marie-Jose and Maxi at this point is necessary from my side)

– Are you great with design? Then you could offer to help other people you want to work with to help them with their new logo or corporate identity. If you help a photographer you could exchange your service with a nice new profile picture of yourself and it is a win-win situation immediately.

– Are you a helper at heart? Offer your help in any situation. We saw great relationships starting simply from helping others carry heavy stuff (Conrad carried I built that relationship in the meantime)

– Do you have a shop? Than you have a great exposure and you can offer your window for other vendors to decorate with their products. (A big thank you to Birgit at this point is necessary)

– Refer somebody before he refers you. This might be the biggest thing you can give to somebody: bringing him clients no matter if he refers you back. If you refer the people you truly like and who’s products you admire you will help somebody else to find a great product and you help that vendor to get new clients.

Give before you take and build a network with people that you like as a person and you will create a great network to work with and your word of mouth marketing will work easily.

 PS: and one simple tip just straight form my heart: famous and successful people always seem great to work with to get instant success too but if you don’t like them as a person and if you get the feeling they already have a great big network and just don’t want to work with you than choose people who appreciate your efforts and who are building their network too.