Digital White Papers

KMMKT20

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I L T A W H I T E P A P E R | K N O W L E D G E M A N A G E M E N T & M A R K E T I N G T E C H N O L O G Y 58 networked pre-Covid: you would have dedicated a certain amount of time, you would have had a certain level of visibility in your industry and market, and you would have had your preferred type of networking (one end of the spectrum is one-on-one coffees, the other end of the spectrum is happy hours and industry events attended by hundreds of other like-minded people). WHAT DO ES VI RTUAL N ET WO RKI N G LOO K LI KE? Networking virtually actually follows a similar process. My personal view is that LinkedIn is your best friend for the foreseeable future to leverage the best networking experience. It's the only online platform which is dedicated to everyone in their professional lives only. Additionally, the functionality of LinkedIn makes it almost too easy, along with it being an incredibly secure platform. PUT TI N G TH IS I NTO AC TI O N : • What is your cadence? Establish your own unique best practice to actively network on LinkedIn. Due to the size of LinkedIn, if you just 'pop in and out' it can feel disjointed, impersonal and overwhelming. On the other hand, if you make a dedicated effort to do, for example, 10 minutes a day, 1 hour a week, or simply every morning while you are having your coffee, it becomes a pattern and you will feel engaged and purposeful in your networking. • How will you engage? Will your main type of engagement be to share industry- relevant articles and contributions with your greater network? Or, will it be to educate your network through your own thought leadership? Perhaps a more passive approach is more your style and you simply wish to re-share or comment on what your network is doing. Or, you can use LinkedIn to call out great team member contributions, introduce and connect like-minded people, seek out new prospects, monitor activity in a particular space… that is the beauty of LinkedIn as a virtual networking platform, the possibilities are literally endless. Don't try to do all of these things. Pick one or two that work with your comfort level and style (think about what you did pre-Covid in a networking situation) and replicate that online. • Creativity is the base level. Being creative in how, when and with what purpose you have is an absolute much when reaching online to either an individual or a group. Everyone is beyond busy. Everyone has limited time. Most are struggling with work and personal boundaries given the virtual environment. Make it easy for them. A short, engaging – and, this is the kicker – meaningful and personal note or connection is the base line right now. Putting this into action: EX AM PLES O F H I G H - Q UALIT Y AN D M EAN I N G F U L VI RTUAL N ET WO RKI N G • Reach out to a professional peer and schedule in a 20-minute morning coffee before the day gets too busy; share something you've learned in recent months and ask how that person is doing given all of the circumstances currently

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