Who you know matters
 

http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advis...1-million.html

Reminds me of that Aristotle Onassis quote that if he had to start from scratch, he would buy a suit and go hang out at a place where rich people hang out.

Re: Who you know matters
 

Hi Ankesh,

Yes, I agree... who you know definitely does matter!

I thought a very good read was the book, "Never eat alone" by Keith Ferrazzi. However, he doesn't seem to "discriminate" in keeping up with his contacts... He keeps in touch with everyone! (It's helped him immensely with his success...)

I've found (over time) I think it does help to discriminate, simply because you have limited time (or maybe because I'm just not very good at it)! Some people are more important than others to stay in touch with, from a business perspective...

There are so many benefits from good contacts, including new opportunities, wise advice, potential investment (such as in the Richard Branson story), and so on...

Hmm... That reminds me, there are some people I probably should email or send a message to (as it's been a while)... :)

Best wishes,

Dien

Re: Who you know matters
 

Thanks Dien.

Interesting point about discriminating and prioritizing. Someone else who didn't discriminate at all was Joe Girard. He used to send 13 postcards to all his clients and prospects every year. One per month and one extra for Christmas. Thats a lot of money when you send a postcard to over 20,000 people! But because of that, he also sold an average of 6 cars per day!

I feel there has to be a 2 pronged approach.

1. Newsletter or postcard that goes to everyone.
2. 50-150 people in your personal list that you contact every month personally.

Hmm. Makes me want to get off my ass and restart a monthly newsletter for my friends and clients.

Re: Who you know matters
 

Hi Ankesh,

I always liked the approach where people send a "Christmas letter" (though it can be at any time of the year, really) to all their friends and family... So, at a minimum, you're getting in touch at least once a year.

I have a cousin who does this every year, and has been doing it for years - it used to be sent by mail, though now it's sent via email, as a PDF attachment. It's a nice letter (with photos) that she sends every year to friends and family, which gives a run-down of what she's been doing the past 12 months. It's always very nice to get! (I know many others do something similar...)

I should do something like that... Hmm...

Of course, it's also easy to send people you know an email (or Facebook message) every now and then, and just ask how they're doing...!

Best wishes,

Dien

Re: Who you know matters
 

Thanks Dien.

Interesting factor about discerning and showing priority for. Someone else who didn't differentiate at all was Joe Girard. He used to deliver 13 post cards to all his customers and leads every season. One monthly and one additional for Xmas. Thats a lot of cash when you deliver a postcard to over 20,000 people! But because of that, he also marketed a typical of 6 vehicles per day!