Online Business Networking Best Practice

The online world has enabled platforms like LinkedIn to open doors for business professionals to network in a different way. In this environment, how does one utilize online networking effectively?

1. Offer valuable information to your business network

A good networker is attentive to his or her audience. Engage your audience by providing relevant information about products and services tailored to your network. People will always value what is beneficial to them and don’t forget quality over quantity.

2. Keep your online business profile up to date

There’s nothing more important than ensuring your online profile accurately represents your professional persona. Your LinkedIn profile should paint a professional picture of who you are and contain up-to-date information about your career. It’s good practice to ensure consistency across all business networking profiles you own.

3. Think before you post on LinkedIn

As the pace of our lives accelerates, we are often called on to multitask, but a slight dip in concentration can have adverse consequences. The online networking world is a very public world and once information is shared somewhere like LinkedIn it’s available for everyone to see – now and in the future. Treat your correspondence on the virtual business networking circuit with care. If you are posting a comment, making a status update, writing a tweet or sending a message to a contact, take a moment to reflect on what you are writing and who you are sending it to and why.

4. Accepting or rejecting contact requests

If you are reasonably active with online networking, it’s likely you will encounter a lot of contact requests. Some of these will only be interested in soliciting their products and services, while others may want to contact you with a genuine interest for collaboration. Make sure you are somewhat discerning as to who you accept into your online network. Don’t feel you need to be ‘friends’ or ‘contacts’ with everyone in order to make an effective business network.

5. Connecting to your online network

A key element of successful business networking is encouraging communication between your contacts. Facilitate networking opportunities between your contacts, make introductions and establish yourself as a ‘go to’ person when other business professionals are looking to make valuable contacts. This will not only enhance your online networking reputation, but potentially open new doors for opportunities of your own.

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