Posted by Wanda Loskot on November 11, 1998 at 19:01:46:
In Reply to: Friends and sales posted by Max Wysocki on November 09, 1998 at 13:08:19:
: you said that one should look for friends, not for sales.
: I agree with Bill that it takes a lifetime to build friendships, so what should we do
: to make some sales now? How to reconcile those two?
I don't think it takes a lifetime to build friendship - actually I KNOW it doesn't.
Good friendships *last* a lifetime and grow better and better over a time, but it takes
much less than a lifetime to create them.
I have many friends - and very few of them I know for a lifetime.
Some of the best friends I've got I found through the web - it didn't take me a lifetime
to build the relationships. I am on the web only 18 months!
Of course it does take SOME time to build a friendship. Sometimes it takes 10 e-mail
exchanges - sometimes 50. It can happen within 2 days or within 2 months. But you don't
need a lifitime. You can bank on it.
What I meant during the chat is to concentrate on making friends when doing networking
on the web - having a strong network will do a miracle for your business and sales.
Here are some examples:
One friend can open a door for you you could never open with 1000 banners or e-mails.
One year ago a friend catapulted circulation of mynewsletter from 75 to over 2000.
Within one day. He decided to send my newsletter regularly to his own subscribers base.
I didn't have to even ask.
Would he do that if I approached hime with a sweet link exchange letter?
I doubt it.
It would have dollar sign written all over it.
He did it - because the newsletter was darn good.
But also because he was *willing* to help.
And real friends do that - withput asking.
Many, many things like that happened to me.
One might thing by accident. Not by accident. I look for friends who share
my values an my priciples. And I become friend first.
Try it. You will be astonished.
Recently another friend of mine shared with me his entire database of newspapers
and e-zines with names of editors - totally organized, personalized mailing list.
It would take me weeks of work to compile - I know he didn't share it with no one
else. Will this make my press releases and articles appearing in more places?
You bet - and I will move only my one little finger to mail it.
Is it worth to spend a lot of time to build a friendship over a period of time?
I can't imagine anything else!
Of course - friends get a lot from me others will not.
The best of me is reserved for my friends!