Adding a fellow blogger to your blog roll is a big step in your relationship with the person. When you add such a link, the link appears in all of your blog’s pages, and every casual user will see it. This is much more significant than linking to the blogger in a post.

It should be reserved to cases when you’ve already done serious networking with your fellow blogger. Some people will analyze your blog and will even think that you are close business partners.

Let him know

So, when you have deeply considered this step, and made the decision to add someone to your blog roll, you might discover that the other side didn’t notice. The reason is purely technical: a pingback isn’t sent. When you link from your post to another post by writing a link post or a by “linking by the way“, a pingback is sent. If your fellow blogger hasn’t blocked pingbacks (or trackbacks), a link back to your post will appear on his post.

When you link from your blog post to the whole blog, your associate might see the reference in his incoming links (although not many people follow this section) and will see some traffic. Incoming traffic will be seen in the other two cases as well.

But when you add him to your blog roll, it might not be seen in the incoming links section. In addition, the new link on the sidebar isn’t always seen by your readers, and won’t ignite instant traffic to your fellow blogger.

So, I would recommend following up the event of adding to the blog roll with a short email. A short email saying that you appreciate your recipient’s blog and added him to the blog roll will do. Adding to the blog roll and and following it up will add value to your relationship, and is an excellent act of networking.

Asking for a link back? This is a sensitive issue. If you feel close enough with your associate, you can ask him for that. If you’re not sure, you can still give it a try. Writing something short like: “I’d be grateful to have my blog on your blog roll as well”, can be a polite way to ask.

This completes our series of post about networking via links in blog. Apart from these four methods, do you know of other ones? We’d be glad to hear.

Linking to the whole blog means linking to the home page. The main drawback of this method is the lack of focus. Your readers aren’t directed to specific content but to a person.

Another issue with such a post is that there’s a chance that your gesture may be received as flattering – a stronger approach than you intended to do.

Writing a post praising the person you wish to connect will probably intimidate him, and will make the a follow up by email quite hard.

Even so, there are a few cases in which such a link will work well:

1. A new blog: If your fellow blogger just started a new blog, you can write a short post about this event, link to him, and wish him good luck. The context of the new blog will make your out-reach more comfortable, and may earn you points with that person.
2. Mentioning a meeting with the blogger: Similar to the case of “linking by the way”, you may mention the person you’ve met at a convention (or elsewhere) and link to his home page. This method also makes the “big” link more smooth.
3. List of bloggers: If your fellow blogs about a specific topic, and you’re writing about it, you can mention his name (with a link) at the bottom of the post, using text such as: “Bloggers who also write about these matters are: …”. Putting his name alone in the list might be a little too strong. Adding another name or two will help.

I’m sure there are other examples in which you can link to the whole blog in a way that will be moderate. The goal is to reach out and network, not intimidate. Networking is never instant.

Further reading: the introductory post about Networking through Blogs – 4 Ways of Linking. One more post to complete the series…

Don’t miss opportunities – When does that big opportunity come? You could never know. In order to avoid missing opportunities, there’s only one thing to do. Take part in activities related to your business and personal life as mentioned here before. Any occasion or person you meet, could easily become a great opportunity  for a big client or  a new contract, or finding the perfect candidate for a job your hiring for.

Then again, some meetings just bring up too many bad memories

Don’t force your  business – Your product is great, I’m sure of that. But try to understand the event you’re participating in. Timing is everything (along with a good product,creative  marketing and some luck…). Sometimes you might just have one opportunity to introduce yourself to someone relevant to you -  don’t blow it. If you speak about your business in the wrong place, you might be considered rude and maybe even boring. From my experience, always introduce yourself first as a person, an individual. Don’t talk about your business straight away. People like to connect with people, not companies. Start by a short introduction about yourself. People will remember you but they will seldom remember a company name. If people will remember you it doesn’t matter which business it is, They would be interested in YOU.

Don’t beat yourself when you’re wrong – We all make mistakes, and we learn from them. You tried to introduce your business to a potential investor and failed. Well, these things happen. When you’re unsuccessful, a few things should be done. First of all, go back and trace your moves. What went wrong? Was it the PowerPoint slides? Were you under-prepared? Understand what can be improved for the next time. Now that you are ready to try again, do it as many times as possible. You failed making connections in a convention? Go to a dozen more. You approached potential costumers and it didn’t work, try doing it better, and this time approach a hundred costumers more.

Never, but NEVER, work ‘on the fly’ – It’s nice being spontaneous when it comes to going out, not for your business. Although networking is not a science as accurate as rocket physics, you can plan your moves wisely. Decided on going to a convention to make new connections?  Wonderful! Is this convention in your field of work? Is there a better one soon? How costly is it? You must ask yourself these questions. Otherwise you will be spending more than you can afford of your time and money.

Don’t underestimate the power of online networking – We wrote here about LinkedIn, blogs and other means of social networking. These tools are already important enough for businesses, and will become even more dominant in our lives. Even if your business is completely offline, you need to start changing it. Be sure your competitors are working on it as we speak. Learn where your line of work is exposed on the web. Learn which blogger writes about your industry. Bloggers write almost about everything, from technology to foreign-exchange , Graffiti and even Hummus. Take a few hours a week and find the places interesting for you on the web and be active there, for reputation, costumers, colleagues and in short Networking.

How to connect to unfamiliar people: LinkedIn is a great and fast way to connect to people you would like to do business with, but haven’t met before. Here are a few ways on how to do it.

First of all, I recommend as a prior step to get connected to all your existing connections as described in my last post: LinkedIn – Increase Your Networking. After doing so, the LinkedIn system will automaticly suggest people you might know, and can be used to connect to people you might want to know. This appears on the upper right side of your screen titled “People you may know”.

LinkedIn - People you may know feature

By clicking the ‘See more’ link below the ‘People you may Know’ box a long list of possible connections will appear. You can approach these connections through a third party, who will be a connection of both of you. You can also approach directly and it would be acceptable if you have a mutual work place or school or any kind of organization.

A good example would be approaching someone you don’t know personally, but heard him speak at a convention, and you might think could help your business. You could start by sending a message on LinkedIn, telling a few words about yourself and your business, write what in the speech was relevant to you, and ask politely to meet in person, talk over the phone, or maybe send some additional information. This way you might just grow your network of connections faster and beyond your current familiar friends and colleagues.

In our next post we will review the recommendations feature on LinkedIn.

This type of linking method isn’t that complicated. You write a post that relates in one way or another to what someone else wrote. It’s better to focus on something that you would write about anyway. And while you’re writing your post, you link to your fellow blogger’s post when you relate to the topic he wrote about.

This method is the best way to link, and you can repeat it as many times as you wish. Here are the main advantages:

• Writing such a post is more “natural”: You write a post on something that you have interest in or something that you can contribute through. This makes the post interesting and worthy for your readers. It fits into your regular writing, and doesn’t stand out as a link post. So, these kind of posts can be repeated over and over, contrary to link posts that can be tiring.
• No risk of over-flattering: When the link to your fellow blogger is a natural part of a serious post, he’ll be pleased that you’ve noticed him, but he won’t be intimidated by a post directed only at him.
• Discussion: After seeing the incoming link and some traffic from your post, your blogger might join the discussion on your post. A deeper post triggers deeper interaction. And, what’s networking about, if not social interaction?

This method of linking is the best way for networking. It is an approach in the right dosage – serious enough to be noticed, but not direct to scare off the other side.

The disadvantage of such a post is that it takes more time to write. But if you want to give your readers quality content, you have to put some effort into it, don’t you?

This business has a great product, with a slight problem with customer support…

A lot of businessman are self-employed, which usually offer some kind of service. Unlike owning a store, usually customers wont bump into your business and buy something, Usually you would have an office somewhere or even be working from home.

If you are a lawyer, independent consultant, SEO expert or own a website, people need to know about your services, and they probably won’t hear about them at the city square. The things you could do except for advertising (which isn’t always a cost effective option) is rely on your social networking, online and offline. We will write about online social networking later on in this blog.

Now, I would like to  focus on  off-line connections. One of the simplest things to do is to export your address book from your phone, mail, PDA and any other devices you have to a spread-sheet, and make a list of the services all these connections need.

Now,  try to match two of your address book connections for a business collaboration or have one give a service to another.  For example, recommend a lawyer you know to friend. Exchange phone numbers between a friend with a website and a colleague giving online storage services. By making these connections you will be categorized by your connections as reliable and worthy person to do business with, and eventually gather new clients.

If you keep doing it long enough your connections will produce customers and your customers will produce new connections.

When I talk about a link post, I’m referring to a very short post, which is usually not longer than 100 words. This kind of short post focuses solely on the link. You can look at such a post as a road sign. It briefly tells you where to go.

Advantages of a link post

• It takes no time to write. Apart from being a short post, it’s content is based on the linked post. Adding a small note of your own will enrich the content, but it’s still short.
• A link post drives traffic to your fellow blogger’s site. Since it’s focused on the link, the click through rate will be high. Like the aforementioned road sign, it tells your readers: “Go there!”. Sending traffic is naturally appreciated by your fellow blogger.
• If you’re promoting a cause, a link post is an excellent and quick way to show your show where you stand. It isn’t necessary to elaborate on your exact opinion. You just take sides quickly. Being part of a group is another networking opportunity.

Disadvantages of a link post

• It’s not really original. Linking to specific opinion tells also something about yourself, but in someone else’s words. Try not to write too many link posts. Remember that this post isn’t an isolated approach to someone, but just another part of your blog. In many cases, the blog is your “large business card”. If you have many links that you want to share, Twitter is a better choice for most cases.
• Too direct: Making a link post could be perceived as flattering by your fellow blogger. If it’s the initial connection with him, this way might be too direct.

Conclusion: All in all, a link post is easy to do, drives traffic, and especially useful for joining a group. It shouldn’t be used very frequently, and in most cases it’s better to use it after an initial acquaintance with the blogger that you’re linking to.

Do you have any link post experiences that you wish to share?

Well, luck isn’t really the key for success here. A good idea is important, timing people will say is crucial, and of-course L-O-C-A-T-I-O-N (usually said three times). But is that all?

We think not.

As a partner in more than one business I think one of the most important things is to let people know you have a business. It’s not that obvious: most people would think that they need to talk (or write for that matter) about their business only with customers and suppliers. This attitude could be the downside of your business, Let’s review this:

Costumers – whether it’s customers, clients or users you need, they are practically every way you look. Don’t judge the people you meet. Anyone of your friends, family or community could become a costumer (even a paying one). As mentioned in previous posts, most of the people in your surroundings are part of your network, and in this case part of your business’s network. If your business is a store or a user related online website, it means anyone and everyone are your customers.

Make sure to be enthusiastic about your business and tell the story behind your store/company/website to your bar-tender (before the fourth round of drinks), to your friends, their friends, former work colleagues, family and even to the annoying neighbor from across the hall. If you show enough motivation about your business to enough people, be sure, the word will get around.

Suppliers – With a new business comes great responsibility and even greater costs. You will probably need a place to rent, buy office supplies, online or offline storage, pay consultants and maybe even experts. Experts are the same as consultants but cost more . Except for getting a competitive price from your suppliers, you need them to be reliable and supply quality products.

Try to always find  suppliers inside your network, if they meet your standards of course. Suppliers within your network will probably be more convenient about terms of payment and credit, be more loyal to you, and most importantly might speak highly of you to potential costumers or even becomes costumers themselves.

All this shouldn’t be instead of marketing and advertising, but it will make it much more effective, and its really cost-effective.

One last thing, looking for a job isn’t so different from starting up a new business from the networking point of view. We’ll discuss it in one of our the next posts.

The first thing to remember and to understand is you must be active and consistent about your growing network. This means that connections in most cases won’t built up by themselves. Let’s review the possibilities:

How active are you physically? Do you work out? jog? swim or cycle? If not, you should, and for more than the one reason. Put a side the obvious health advantages  of being fit and the pleasure of it, taking part of any sport is a great way of getting to know people. In other words – establishing connections.

Jogging, swimming and cycling  are becoming more and more group sports. People train in small groups and get better results with the group support. It means that probably somewhere near you there are various people who could become a part of your network, people who meet up more than once a week and have sport as a common ground for connections. Just for example, last week I found a web designer I needed swimming in the lane next to me.

Are you active politically? It doesn’t matter if it’s on a local scale, state or nation wide, many people choose to be involved in politics for many reasons.  Whether if its for making a change or self-fulfillment you’ll probably enjoy the the action that comes with politics, and meet all kinds of people with different backgrounds, professions ant interests. Some of these people could easily become friends and connections. Just be careful not to get hurt-

These were just two examples of ways and places to grow your network of connections and friends outside your natural surroundings. These ideas can easily be implemented on various circles such as PTA, volunteering organizations and different kinds of clubs. The basic idea is to be active socially in places and organizations you haven’t encountered before. This way, you’ll grow your chain of connections, friends and network.

Twitter is young: it aired only in 2006, when other social networks were already strong in the market. In the last year or so, it’s popularity leaped worldwide.

The short 140 format makes it easy to use and easy to follow. Naturally, you follow and get followed by people you know. Later you become exposed to more people that share a common interest.

After reaching a critical mass, communities began evolving around the “Twittersphere”. This critical mass means that not only geeks use it, but the general public. So, people that get to know each other via very short messages want to get together in real life. So, tweetups were born.

A Tweetup is a Networking Event

Tweetups are usually held once a month during the evening at a bar. This allows for a relaxed and not to formal atmosphere. But the attendants of this event didn’t solely to drink a beer before going home.

Attendants of tweetups are usually people who want to connect. They come also for meeting their virtual friends in real life, but they usually come with an agenda. The name tags with the @TwitterUser mean that a tweetup is a networking event, not a geek get-together.

Many times, the audience of tweetups has a tendency towards the internet sector, and internet marketing in particular, but it’s not a bunch of programmers…

So, tweetups are significant networking events, and especially important for those of you who want to connect to people in the internet sector.

How can I find out about upcoming Tweetups?

Naturally, the first place to look for them is on Twitter. There’s a good chance that they’ll be mentioned among the people you’re following. Didn’t see anything about an upcoming tweetup? Pop a question on Twitter. Someone will @reply.

If you still don’t find one there, Facebook would be a good place to search for a tweetup group in your vicinity.

Another valuable internet resource for tweetups is a rather new service called Twitvite. This site offers an option to arrange events where Twitter users can RVSP their attendance. They also offer to help you out with organizing tweetups…And if you’re organizing the tweetup, here’s a list of dos and don’ts.

Happy tweeting and networking!