How to Create Real Relationships From Social Networking

As a new entrepreneur, networking is your biggest ally in helping your business grow. Connections can be made formally at a conference or through casual conversation while standing in line at the grocery store. And with innovations in social media platforms, comes even more opportunities for productive networking...

So, how do you get started successfully forming genuine relationships online? Here are some tips that will help build a strong social network:

Reach out to others out of interest, not necessity: Social media offers opportunities to quickly connect with others over current events, industry happenings, or new ideas. Reach out to those with common interests, and share information or links your connections could benefit from or that you think would start a productive conversation. Remember when creating a new relationship, it is often more beneficial to give than receive. Keep in contact, check-in twice a year and see what you can do for them.

Find connections on your playing field: Social media allows you to connect with others you may have never had the opportunity to otherwise. However, reaching out to someone who is busy with a larger following often leads to your wasted time and an undeveloped contact. Find someone with similar interests and goals that will give you the deserved time and attention. These connections will also provide you leverage with other like-minded professionals and business owners.

Try out different social media platforms: There are a variety of different platforms that you can employ for your business. Figure out who you want to connect with and what kind of information you want to share. LinkedIn is a must have for new business owners to build credibility and find professional contacts. Platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are great for quickly sharing and connecting over content – be it news, works in progress, or relatable links.
Pro tip:  Creating a blog or Youtube channel can be effective ways to create more in-depth, personable content that is still easily available and shareable. Evaluate what kind of audience you’re appealing to and test out some of these different platforms for sharing your business.

Social networking is an important part of building your business, and if done right you can end up with strong professional relationships. You may never know where your connections take you or what opportunities are available, so make sure you’re ready and your content reflects the approachable, proficient business owner you are. For more information on networking, online or in person, check out our product HandBrander to help grow your personal brand.

Personal Branding Tips for New Freelancers

As a freelancer, you are responsible for creating and maintaining your image and reputation and for promoting the products and services you offer. This can be quite a difficult task, especially if you are relatively new to freelancing. Consider these few personal branding tips, which are useful to all freelancers, but especially to newbies.

Exude Uniqueness. #findyourniche

When starting out, many have the tendency to just do what others are doing. Though it can be great and very helpful to have a role model, you also need to stand out from those who are in the same industry and offering the same products and services as you. If you essentially “copy” an already established freelancer with a loyal client base, how much success will you have? deep knowledge and expertise

If you essentially “copy” an already established freelancer with a loyal client base, how much success will you have? Likely not nearly as much as that established freelancer. If you unknowingly “copy” a not-so-successful freelancer, how much success will you have? Have you even drawn out what success means to you and given yourself a deadline to reach it?

Instead of doing only what others are doing or only offering what they offer, why not offer something completely unique? Find your niche, sharpen it, and do what the others are not willing to do in order to establish it. Then others will want to copy you.

Be Real. #onlinetransparency

Make sure not just to “talk the talk, “ but also to “walk the walk.” In order for your reputation to remain intact, you want to be known for doing just what you promise. Have some proof that speaks for itself online. Whether it’s a third-party interview, a world record, or video evidence of you “walking the walk.”

You also want to be consistent in your interaction with others. The way that you present your brand should be the way that you present yourself in person as well. Think speech, conduct and dress as a few to start with.

In addition, don’t be afraid to infuse your personality into your work. As long as your presentation of self “agrees” with your brand, it is absolutely fine to be yourself. And, it makes it a lot easier.

Create Awareness. #socialmedia

One of the best things you can do to encourage a solid personal brand, is to create awareness. One of the best ways to do that is by means of social media, where countless numbers of people can be reached. By using several different social media platforms, you can gain maximum exposure and engage with the online community. Tweet me @handshakin if you agree.

By implementing the above 3 tips, new freelancers can get off to a great start and more experienced freelancers can refresh and strengthen their personal brands. If you’re too busy, check out our HandBrander to help you become an expert in your industry as soon as possible.

The Furthest I've Gone to Schedule a Guest

Recently, my friend Mike Kilcoyne asked me to blog about this. For those of you I haven’t met yet, I’m the Founder and host of the Handshakin Video Series, featuring today’s top entrepreneurs on networking and personal branding strategies. Here’s the craziest thing I’ve done to get a guest to sit down on camera with me…

So, like, I’ve done a lot of crazy things to get people’s attention. Today, we are able to schedule about one billionaire per month — finding the attention of future Handshakin guests is not a problem. But that wasn’t always the case.

In 2015, when I had only interviewed 3–4 guests, I knew who I wanted to interview. His name was Brad Feld, who is a highly popular venture capitalist with Foundry Group. He has a killer personal brand, and is an incredible thought leader for Colorado Entrepreneurs. This really attracted me to ask him to be on my video series, but it was scary…

I actually got a response when I first emailed him!!

But then the conversation went cold. Probably because I was making the wrong ask and rambling. And my email signature, nickname, and subject line SUCKED.

-But I wasn’t about to give up there: The next time I was in Boulder (where Foundry Group is based) I walked straight into their headquarters and checked in on the iPad and selected “Brad Feld.”

He wasn’t available, so his assistant Mary came to the front to see who was randomly checking in. I met her and told her I was in town from Denver and just wanted to say hi and that I was trying to schedule Brad on my video series. She gave me her information and I told her I would follow-up.

-Next, I followed up with his assistant Mary and learned he was out of town for the dates I proposed. Hmph… what to do next? I’ve put a good amount of effort forward, and I thought I was relevant, and was only getting brief responses that translated to no’s. I gave it a break for a few weeks.

-My last effort was researching an event that Brad was going to be at. He was going to be talking to Startup Grind event and I bothered his assistant again to ask if he had some free time before. She said she’d ask and get back to me. I stayed hopeful. I also sponsored the event, to ensure I got some facetime with Brad at the event in hopes of scheduling after that. But,…

He agreed to schedule an interview before the event! As I’ve learned from many of my guests, polite persistence is key to entrepreneurial success. Was I crazy to randomly stroll into their headquarters? How about email over and over again? No, I’m not. Other successful entrepreneurs are doing way more than what I did here on a daily basis.

YOU should go do something out of your comfort zone today to reach your goals faster. Close this blog post and go take action right now. 
-Or, if you want to build your online credibility to increase your confidence to execute, check out our personal branding service, HandBrander.​

How to Buy a Domain Name for Your Startup

Oftentimes, I’m asked “how do I go about purchasing one?” Or, “what determines the price or value of a domain name?” Also, “someone else owns myname.com, how can I get it?”

Here’s my answer to those questions, as well as a few helpful tips. But first, let’s clarify the two types of domain names that you’re considering purchasing.
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1. A brand new, never registered domain (known as hand-registered domains in the industry).

To purchase domains, I prefer godaddy.com or uniregistry.com.

Pro Tip: Use instantdomainsearch.com to save time before purchasing.

2. A previously owned domain. There’s basically two ways to do this.

-DIrectly from the owner

If someone already owns it, you can find out who (unless they have privacy protected) by typing whois.domaintools.com/handshakin.com, just replacehandshakin.com with the domain name and extension you’re trying to buy. Good luck negotiating with them — you’ll need it!

Pro Tip: Use escrow.com for a secure transaction if you’re negotiating 1-on-1 with the owner/seller.

-Directly from the company

Many companies (including mine) now invest in domain names as appreciating company assets. Although mine is not geared around flipping domain names, we surely want to protect assets that may be of value to us in the future. Most companies that are built around this will have their prices listed one sites like sedo.com and godaddy.com.

Pro Tip: ​Estibot.com is a domain valuation website. It is being adopted quickly in the domain industry although is still new and not always very accurate.If you liked this article, please check out our product HandBrander, where we help entrepreneurs with their online brand.

4 Tips For Shy People To Succeed At Networking

Networking events are the perfect place to meet people to help you grow your business. However, if you are a shy person in nature, they can be your worst fear.

You might think that you can get away without networking but you really need to face your fears so that you can grow your business.

Here are some tips for shy people to succeed at networking.

• Be Yourself. Many people can be pushy and aggressive when they network. There is nothing wrong with being shy and awkward in networking situations. It happens more than you realize. You may even bond with someone over it!
• Ask someone you know to introduce you to others. Though you may want to spend the evening with someone that you know, it defeats the purpose of going to a networking event. Instead, ask that person to introduce you to others. This is much easier than walking up to strangers and introducing yourself!
• Smile at others at the event. If you don’t have someone to introduce you, try smiling at others. This can be seen as an invitation for others to come over and talk to you. Be sure to really listen and join in the conversation. Even if it is not going to help your business, it is good practice.
• Join a club or group that relates to something that you really enjoy. If you enjoy reading, join a book club. If you like to watch football, find others that like the same thing. Once you get more comfortable around new people that have similar interests, you will have an easier time opening up to people that don’t.

Shy people may have trouble at networking events but, with some practice, they can still do well. They should always be themselves because most of the people at the event are also feeling a bit awkward! If you know someone, feel free to ask someone to introduce you around. If not, be sure to smile at others to invite them over to you. You might want to practice networking by joining a group of people who like similar things like reading books or watching football. Once you get over talking about something you love, it will be easier at a networking event.

Contact us to help you with your networking, both online and off!