by June Cruz | Featured Contributor
When most of us think of a follow up, we immediately think of an email or phone call to a potential business client or collaborator. But for this post, we are going to talk about the in person follow up to your online brand. Often times we spend a lot of time and energy perfecting our online brand and forget that the brand we are putting forward online is simply an extension of our real companies, services, or selves. There are only two major things to remember when working on your in person follow up:
1. Don’t Talk About it Be About it
This seems self explanatory, but is important to always keep in mind especially when your brand grows beyond a solopreneur operation. Your brand should always reflect you, your core values, beliefs and general lifestyle. So let’s say you are an organic brand, its important to know the field, your customers, and any innovations or changes to products. Then be sure your personal life falls in line with these aspects and especially the portions of your brand you promote within the market. As you build your team its important that they are passionate about your brand and also fall in line with what your brand stands for. Being about it is much more important than talking about it because when your brand is actively doing what your online image describes you create a lifestyle that is transparent, trustworthy and ultimately successful.
2. Know when to Drop the Pitch
Being genuine is so important, it’s the key to being a good representative for your brand. Often times when networking people think of sales instead of relationships. If you approach each networking event from an honest place of wanting to build relationships, and to have clients and collaborations that are in line with your brand, it creates a long-term effect rather than just a quick one time sale. One of my favorite quotes (and honestly I’ve heard it from so many entrepreneurs I’m not sure where it originated from) about networking is:
People do business with people they know, like and trust”.
I like this quote so much because it embodies what it means to be genuine and what we look for in other businesses and brands. We like engaging with brands that are genuine, transparent and honest, so as a business owner/ entrepreneur we ourselves should always try to model that same feeling of engagement for our clients, customers and fan base.
For me, these two keys keep me consistent, transparent and constantly looking for the most genuine connections, collaborations and teammates for my business. I hope they help you do the same.
—————————————————————–
June Cruz is a mom to an active toddler and the Founder and designer of ENAMOUR. ENAMOUR is a women’s clothing line featuring designs for the transitions of a day, creating beautifully comfortable clothing for women to feel confident at work or home.
When June isn’t in the design studio she enjoys family outings to local Cape Cod events and beaches as well as long road trips to warm destinations. She is a music and movie lover and finds inspiration in both. After becoming a mom, fitness and healthy living has become more of a focus in June’s life, so smoothies, sugar/cream-free coffee and running goals are all a part of her weekly routines.
