Networking! (But...with WHO?)
The term that means everything and nothing. Networking. It's important for sure. We all know THAT. But what does it mean exactly? Hmmm. Nobody really knows. Here's why. Networking, in reality, probably means something different to every person and no two "networks" are the same.
One BROAD definition of networking is "the action or process of interacting with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts."
So... Some people network to climb socially, some network to get clients, some network to sell something. However, there are what you might call "subdivisions." For example, for networking to sell something, you want to make sure you’re hitting the right demographic for the product you want to move. If, like me, you network at times to promote your novel, you want to network with the people who (drumroll) might enjoy that type of book. Not just book lovers in general. If you get too general, you waste a lot of time.)
Figure out the demographic, and half the battle is won.
The rest is just being a sociable person and being able to talk to people, be likable–even on those days you don’t feel like it–and subtly bring up your book (or the reason you are networking) WITHOUT OVERDOING IT. That way, if the person is interested, you may get a new reader, client etc., and if not, you may at least have a new business associate or even a friend–can always use another of THOSE. But either way it’s a win-win as long as you know who to target.
So be careful if you are just following a "they say you should" formula that might not be what you need. I wrote historical fiction, murder-mystery/romance. The fan base I want to build isn't going to be the same as that of a 25 year old who released a fantasy novel set in 2066. My demographic is primarily women–even though my book isn't a fluffy romance–but overall, I target women between 28-70, because stats show that's the primary demo for my novel.
Well, the moral of the story is...network in a way that will get you in touch, in any way, with the people most likely to be interested in what you want to share. It sounds simple, but when you sit down and work it out, you may find that you’ve been wasting a lot of time on “connecting” with people who don’t really share any interest in what you are promoting. Really scrutinize it, fine tune your market and you will get a lot more yield for a lot less blood, sweat and tears.
One BROAD definition of networking is "the action or process of interacting with others to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts."
So... Some people network to climb socially, some network to get clients, some network to sell something. However, there are what you might call "subdivisions." For example, for networking to sell something, you want to make sure you’re hitting the right demographic for the product you want to move. If, like me, you network at times to promote your novel, you want to network with the people who (drumroll) might enjoy that type of book. Not just book lovers in general. If you get too general, you waste a lot of time.)
Figure out the demographic, and half the battle is won.
The rest is just being a sociable person and being able to talk to people, be likable–even on those days you don’t feel like it–and subtly bring up your book (or the reason you are networking) WITHOUT OVERDOING IT. That way, if the person is interested, you may get a new reader, client etc., and if not, you may at least have a new business associate or even a friend–can always use another of THOSE. But either way it’s a win-win as long as you know who to target.
So be careful if you are just following a "they say you should" formula that might not be what you need. I wrote historical fiction, murder-mystery/romance. The fan base I want to build isn't going to be the same as that of a 25 year old who released a fantasy novel set in 2066. My demographic is primarily women–even though my book isn't a fluffy romance–but overall, I target women between 28-70, because stats show that's the primary demo for my novel.
Well, the moral of the story is...network in a way that will get you in touch, in any way, with the people most likely to be interested in what you want to share. It sounds simple, but when you sit down and work it out, you may find that you’ve been wasting a lot of time on “connecting” with people who don’t really share any interest in what you are promoting. Really scrutinize it, fine tune your market and you will get a lot more yield for a lot less blood, sweat and tears.
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