“It’s Not What You Know, It’s Who You Know” – Anonymous

“The way of the world is meeting people through other people.” – Robert Kerrigan

“It’s all about people. It’s about networking and being nice to people and not burning any bridges.” – Mike Davidson

Importance of Networking

Networking has always been important, even before the internet. The more people you know, the more opportunities open up to you because humans are people orientated. We share with our friends before we share with strangers. If we have a great opportunity to share, whether it be a job opportunity, a business lead or once in a lifetime opportunity, we think of the people we know first. Our network is the people we know and have connected with.

A Blogger’s Network

When it comes to blogging, it’s important to get to know other bloggers and build a personal network. A network is like a spider web, not just a giant list. It’s important to network with different types of bloggers, not just those like you. A bigger network is best but you also want  some quality relationships in there. 10 blogger friends are better than 1000 mere acquaintances. Also surround yourself with those in related professions.

Example 1

Blogger A blogs about home organization. She may want to build her network by including:

• Organizing Bloggers
• Professional Organizers
• Home Bloggers
• Mom/Dad Bloggers (because they take care of a home)
• Companies that sell organizing products
• Newlywed Bloggers (because they will buy a home together and want to organize it)
• Consultants for Related Direct Sales Companies

Example 2

Blogger B blogs about parenting. She may want to build her network by including:

• Parenting Blogs
• Special Needs Blogs (they are parents too)
• Homeschooling Blogs
• Psychology Blogs (human behaviour)
• Companies that market to parents
• Parents in her neighbourhood
• Pregnancy Blogs (that leads to being a parent)

What Does It Mean to Network?

People are in your network when you’ve made an effort to get to know them and support them. Perhaps you comment on their blogs and share their posts. Perhaps you talk to them in real life or online. You might answer questions they have or fulfill a need. You may be friends online or off. You might meet at an event and hit it off. If you can see yourself asking a favour from them without seeming greedy or offering to help them, they are probably in your network.

Adding To Your Network

A network includes people you actually care about and who care about you. If you are thinking up a plan of introducing yourself to mass amount of bloggers with a generic message to build your network, please don’t. Most of us can tell when someone is reaching out genuinely or just wants something and we will NOT be recommending you if that’s the case.

My number #1 tip is Be Genuine.

Start off by reaching out to others whose blog you enjoy or who you would like to be more like by frequenting their blog or website, commenting on their blog or social media sites and sharing their work. Be friendly, offer help if you see a need.

Also reach out to those in or related to your niche who are newer than you or have less of a readership. Don’t just aim for those bigger than you.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to reach out to those in a completely unrelated niche to you. Seeing a different side of things can be refreshing and you never know when that connection will come in handy.

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