Business success is not just about gaining profit, but it’s also about expanding your network. Relationships are essential in running a business. Business owners are exposed to various people, including investors, peers, employees, and most especially customers.
It takes an excellent intrapersonal skill to get along with and manage these diverse groups of people. You are not just building your business, but you are making your network. There are a lot of talented business owners who struggle to develop successful business relationships. If you are one of those, here are some tips to help you:
Diversify your Network.
As a business owner, challenge yourself to go beyond your comfortable network of connections. Push yourself to talk with people, like talking with other business owners you haven’t spoken with. Talk with different suppliers or even with your customers.
You can even try talking with your competitors. You can even go beyond that and talk with relevant people from unrelated organizations such as the media and government. With this, you are practicing that intrapersonal skill while expanding your network of connections.
Give as Much as you Expect.
Successful business relationships require reciprocity. It is a give-and-take relationship, not a half-hearted one-way effort. Offer and deliver help because people will be willing to respond when you need help as you do. You can also help others connect because as you do, your network will expand as you help others build their network.
Be Intentional in Building Key Relationships.
Intentionality is one of the keys to building successful business relationships. Identify your key customers, most productive employees, and aspiring leaders that can make a difference in your organization. Invite them over a cup of coffee and talk with them. By doing so, you are building trust. Building these key relationships will one day benefit your business.
Choose Who Will Influence you.
It is essential to know the values and culture that you want to uphold in your business. As you do, build relationships with those people who also keep those values and culture. Build trust, loyalty, bond, and network with those people that characterize your community.
Be Open for Changes.
Always prune, renew, and reshape your network of relationships. Continually cultivate those relationships that benefit you and the company. Do it as often as you can to build the relationship even more robust.
However, do not hesitate to move to your inactive network those relationships that have diminished their usefulness over time. It is unnecessary to cut them off; you have to evaluate that further; however, you need to focus more on those networks that can help you and the business grow.
Key Takeaway
Building successful business relationships is not an overnight process because it entails time and effort in choosing the right business relationships for your business. Once you have built successful business relationships, it will propel your business career to a higher level.
