So you’ve got a nice collection of contacts, how, why and how often should you keep in touch with them. Here’s 18 simple ways to start with.
- Email, ‘Tweet’, or other message ‘just to say hi’.
- Email with interesting snippet from a magazine or the web.
- Phone them for a for a chat and leave a message if they’re not there- they’ll get back to you if they want to.
- Invite them to a professional or academic event- even if they don’t come but they’ll remember you asked.
- Send a press cutting that may be of interest to them.
- Spot a career opportunity that might suit them and share it with them.
- Offer them a theatre, golf, hospitality invitation from work if you can.
- Share Internet links with them via LinkedIn and Twitter.
- Keep up with your LinkedIn status updates, and comment on theirs- even if you just say ‘nice ‘photo’.
- Send them a ‘Good luck’ text, message or note when they’ve something important on.
- Share stuff with them with a ‘Saw this and thought of you’ message
- Call to ask for their advice when you need it, and sometimes when you don’t.
- Send Birthday, Christmas, Diwali, Hanukah, messages.
- Invite them to talk at your university, firm or other event.
- Ask them for a recommendation or to be a referee for you.
- Invite them to join your network on Linked in.
- Invite them to join a discussion group on Linked in.
- Meet up with them for a coffee.
Jim Harvey
Managing Director at The Message Business
Jim is the MD of The Message Business, a company which helps FTSE 100 companies to sell themselves, and their products better. Speech writer, Prezi trainer and designer, coach and consultant, Jim also finds time to be a proud father and husband.
