In our previous discussion, we talked about the fact that a new business owner cannot rely upon "the corporation" to provide him with contacts, invitations to events and groups, company resources, credibility, etc.
When you strike out on your own, you're basically naked!
Here are some ideas to help you, as a solo business owner just getting started, develop your own business network and support system.
1. Develop a plan to build your solo business network. If you think going into solo business means you can shut out everyone around you, you'll have great difficulty in executing your business.
Solo business does not mean you can divorce yourself from outside contacts, resources, advice, partnerships, or assistance.
If anything, solo businesses should work to maximize and leverage their networking execution as much as possible.
The plan can be as simple as developing a list of desired contacts, noting the reasons and objectives for including each in your network, and developing a timetable and contacting schedule to keep you busy and on-task.
2. Develop the 24-hour salesman mentality. You, and you alone, are responsible for the success of your Lone Wolf business. You should become a persuasive salesman for your company 24 hours a day.
Important contacts and resources are often found outside of the normal working hours. Carry your business cards with you everywhere you go and be prepared to start up business conversations on the spur of the moment.
You might meet the one person that becomes your very best customer when you least expect to be talking business. You might find a supplier or vendor that would be interested in working with you at the grocery store. Who knows?
3. "If it is to be, it's up to me." Yes, a well-worn phrase, but it applies perfectly in this discussion. No one on the planet is going to be looking out for your business interests like you should be.
If you can't locate the right industry associations to join, or the best trade groups for membership, you may want to look at creating your own. I can almost guarantee that they won't come looking for you.
Your Lone Wolf strategy requires that you, the owner, make first contact and extend your hand to important contacts that you want to add to your business network.
In the next installment, we'll look at some additional suggestions of ways to give credibility and network support to your new solo business. Stay tuned . . .
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