Social networking online and offline

Since Facebook appeared in Italy in 2008, the term “social network” has become an ordinary word for over 30 million active users in Italy.


It started to be associated (almost exclusively) to an online activity that allows us to create and develop relationships through the network.


We can define social networking as the actual process of creating an online and offline community, made by individuals that have the will to meet other people, share experiences, and expand their network.



If we apply this concept to the professional environment, where the need to meet people is more urgent, social networking is a powerful tool to expand the contact list and make your activity grow.

How Facebook changed the 6 degrees of separation theory

Aside from turning our lives upside down, and creating a new primordial instinct (sharing every moment, thought and emotion of our lives), Facebook has also helped to change the 6 degrees of separation theory, which is the idea that everyone in the world is 6 or fewer steps away from each other.



For the nearly two billion people globally on Facebook, it is estimated that the degrees of separation between a user and another are actually 3.57.


If the world is small, for Mark Zuckerberg's social media, it is even smaller.

Why online social networking is useful for your business

Reducing the degrees of separation and carrying on online relationships is useful not only in your private life but also in your professional one.


Before the appearance of Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Messanger, professionals have always tried to expand their network of contacts through events, conferences, business meetings, and training sessions.

Social networks, especially those that bring together companies and professionals, created an environment where you can easily connect with colleagues, partners, clients or professionals influential in the industry of reference, without the physical limit of being physically present in the same place.


It goes without saying that social networking activity is not only useful to keep in touch with friends and relatives, but also to gain more visibility and grow as a professional.

Dos of an effective business networking activity

The benefits of business networking are many:

1. New contacts, new clients, more income: the most obvious benefit of business networking is meeting potential customers or referrals who can then become customers. In addition, offline networking can make it easier to identify partnership opportunities, joint ventures or new areas of expansion for your business.

2. Constant visibility: constant communication with your network is incredibly important to keep the relationships alive and healthy. Besides taking part in lunches and brunches, the social network helps to keep the communication with your contacts open.

3. Sharing knowledge and experiences: thanks to the exchange with others, you can gather different points of view on certain markets, products, themes. For example, if you are thinking of opening e-commerce, you can first think about it by gathering advice and suggestions.

4. Self-esteem growth: many businessmen are optimistic and positive people. Interacting with them often can be an excellent confidence boost, particularly in the early stages of an activity. If you are not a person inclined to relationships and confrontation - even online - with new people can be a great way to increase your self-esteem.

If you are not a relationship kind of person, this kind of influence can be very good for you.

Don'ts of an effective business networking activity

If we consider the benefits, business networking is one of the activities that we should invest in, online and offline. But you need to be careful!


Exactly because it is a visibility tool, it is very important not to make mistakes.



What to avoid for effective business networking:

 

1. Considering business networking like an occasional activity and doing it without preparation. It is essential to have a clear strategy in mind and leave nothing to chance. If you want results, you need to be constant, prepared, and methodical.

2. Not being selective. It is important to have a clear strategy in terms of targets and to go straight to the goal and not waste time.

3. Not having clear goals. Networking requires time, and this is why it is better for you to know clearly what to expect from this activity, to define the KPIs and then measure the results and understand what you need to improve.

4. Selling immediately. Business networking was born with the aim of creating relationships that could, in a second moment, generate new business opportunities. In order to achieve this goal, it is essential to build trust. Without trust, no business contact can become a winning relationship for both parties.

5. Words, words, words. Building a business relationship is all about understanding the needs of the person we have in front of us. If we want to understand, we cannot always talk, but sometimes stop. And listen carefully.

From social networking to business lunch

If the business relationship was born online, it is also possible to bring it to life - using all the right precautions due to Covid-19. 

In addition to exchanging messages and comments on social networks, you can invite your contacts to an event that you will be organizing for your company, or to a thematic business lunch where you will be able to continue the conversation that you started online.