A new year — and a new decade — is a great time to start fresh, overcome the obstacles and expand your circle! We have a few ideas to assist in the world of networking, provided by Hannah Buschbom, co-founder of The W Source™, financial professional with SagePoint and Santa Barbara, CA Chapter Head.

Visit the “go-to” Networking Hotspots. To increase the chance of running into potential clients or referral partners, frequent the coffee shop across from the courthouse, the local farmer’s market, or a popular sporting event.

Delegate Scheduling. Give your assistant the power to help you make appointments. Have them set a weekly calendar reminder to set up three coffee appointments with referral partners a couple weeks out.

Use the AM/PM Rule. Our industry is demanding with inbound calls, emails, and client requests. Here are some guidelines:

If a client calls before noon, respond before the end of the day, with at least a quick note “I want to acknowledge I received your email/call, and I’m doing some research”
If a client calls in the afternoon, I respond the next day before noon.

Leverage Technology. Three favorite and inexpensive easy-to-use tools:

Wunderlist - allows you to create a repeating task and reminds you to reach out to important connections and clients.
Google Alerts - Set up a Google alert on your top clients and referral partners. If their name or company is published in the news, Google will send you a notification. It’s a great reason to reach out and congratulate them on a new endeavor or invite them to a coffee to learn more about a charity they support.
Auto-Schedulers - Calendly and Timetrade are great tools to help schedule time with clients or referral partners. Send a referral partner a link to your calendar that is live 24/7 and allows them to pick a convenient time. This eliminates the back and forth of trying to make an appointment. Bonus - it sends them an automatic reminder the day before to reduce the chance they’ll forget about the appointment.

Join an Affinity for Professionals that Focuses on Your Area of Expertise. Having a pre-built networking group already in your calendar can be the best way to manage your time. It creates a recurring monthly event where you connect with 20-25 people… and that allows you to easily add networking to your routine.

Want to learn more or start a chapter? Contact The W Source™ be emailing info@thewsource.com, call 1-833-W-Source, or visit their website: www.thewsource.com.

Originally published in Advisor Group's Women Forward Edge, dated January 16, 2020.