Networking, Community, and Sales

At Breakaway, our advisors build their own books of business through networking. When a bookkeeper wins and owns their business themselves, we find it engenders, among many things, pride in their work and a special dedication to the client in question. That being said, new advisors often feel daunted by the idea of actively soliciting business from their network. There are many reasons for this: they may feel uncomfortable or inauthentic; they’re afraid of offending someone by “selling” too hard; or they might just not like it! However, once we dig in with our advisors, we discover their reticence to network comes from a misunderstanding about the very nature of it! So, what is networking?

According to small business guru and author Marie Forleo, networking is simply:

“the ongoing, organic process of building relationships with people you actually like.”

This definition illustrates several key points. First, networking is not limited to the professional sphere. You are always networking and every interaction you have throughout the day cultivates or diminishes your network. Second, networking should not feel sleazy or inauthentic - at its best, it’s communities and individuals working together to help one another. Third, because networking takes place organically over time, those potential clients in your network won’t suddenly hear from you out of the blue with a sales proposition, but will already be familiar with what you do. Therefore, when you make that big announcement on LinkedIn that you’ve become a Breakaway Advisor, potential clients will be ready and excited to learn about your work. They already trust you and are invested in you.

If you’re still nervous about networking, the following tactics can help you get out there:

• Network with purpose by:

  • Focusing on learning and teaching, instead of selling

  • Identifying your own motivations for connecting with someone

  • Looking for common interests

• Set networking goals:

  • Set quantitative goals for events: “I’ll talk to 5 new people!”

  • Set qualitative goals for meetings: “I want to learn xxxx from this expert.”

  • Try a certain number of new things over a set period of time

  • Try an online networking group and set quantitative goals to connect: “I’ll send 6 direct messages this month and contribute to two discussions.”

  • Create a detailed follow-up plan

Above all, remember to CONNECT, not network, and watch your business and community flourish.

Shea Keats