It’s been a month, so if you haven’t done it already, now is the time to sit down and make sure your social circles know where you’re trying to go this year. I suggest doing this by sending an email to your friends, family, and colleagues letting them know how they can support you in 2012. Now, we walk a fine line with this- do it the right way and you might find that the people in your address book are your biggest supporters, they just needed to know how to help. Do it the wrong way (read: photos, poetry, anything awkward or begging) and you will be in the category otherwise reserved for boring Christmas family newsletters.
It is completely appropriate to keep in touch with your friends about your career developments (in moderation, of course). By doing so you can avoid the Chandler Bing/Friends scenario where you have a friend for X number of years but absolutely no idea what they do for a living. Don’t be Chandler! It is incredibly hard to network if people don’t even know where you go in the morning.
So when you send that email out, think carefully about it. Focus in on the major points they need to know about what you are trying to accomplish, and help them understand what their role can be, if they so choose. Do NOT send the email out until you have run through this checklist:
1) Keep it brief. Your friends have the choice of checking Facebook for the third time this morning or reading your email… why not make that decision easy for them? If they see a longwinded email coming up on their Blackberry, they will save it for later, and we all know “later” usually means “oh, never”.
If you make it short and sweet (and ideally engaging, funny…), they won’t mind taking a break to read it in the middle of the workday. Make it memorable and they’re that much more likely to do whatever you’re requesting, whether it’s referring you clients, “like”ing your company’s facebook page, or attending an event you have coming up. Make it authentic to you and the communications they usually receive from you.
2) Use subheadings. Let people skip to the information they want. Bonus points if you make the subheadings interesting. (“Why I Will Name My Firstborn After You”, “Three Steps To Securing Sainthood”)
3) Assure them. Is there anything you need to assure them about? Perhaps they need to know that you won’t use their information or personal contacts inappropriately. Or maybe you just need remind them that they don’t have to worry about getting spammed by you on this topic, that this is a one-off email to get you going for the year. I suggest avoiding blackmail if possible.
4) Try to avoid duplication and ‘reply all’s. These are two top pet peeves for people. Reply all can be avoided by bcc’ing the parties you’re sending to. cc openly at your own peril.
As for duplicate emails, now is the time to clean up your mailing list. If you send the email, however compelling, and they get it 3 times, they might delete it out of irritation and not even get to reading it. I’m guilty of doing this, and you probably are too. It’s a silly error in etiquette and so avoidable – so avoid it! Make sure your mailing batches are clear before you press send even once. (You’re only sending in batches of 20 people because you know to avoid spam filters… right?!)
5) Connect the dots. Be specific, and make it easy for them to help do what you’re asking them to do. This is the most important thing. There may be 100 things your friends and associates could do to help you get ahead in the coming year, in fact, you’re an entrepreneur, so there probably are. But don’t be like the kid who got granted 3 wishes and tried to wish for 1 million more wishes. Don’t be greedy. I suggest you hone in on 3-5 clearly defined actions that can be done easily (“Please forward this email to anyone who might find it useful”, “Please follow me on Twitter”, “Please add me on LinkedIn”). You added “Please” to your requests, right? Because you’re polite.
Let them know why you’re sending the email and what’s in it for them (or their friends). It’s helpful to acknowledge gratitude in advance, and prepare them for any rewards they might receive. Failing a proper reward system, a nod to good karma will usually do the trick!
Good luck, and may the powers of the original social networking be on your side!