Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is about how to create online water cooler moments,
Speaker 1: that is, little moments of connection with people you mostly
Speaker 1: interact with virtually. This tip, like several other networking tips
Speaker 1: we've discussed this week, comes from writer and investor J.
Speaker 1: Kelly Howey's book Build Your Dream Network. If you think
Speaker 1: about the proverbial office water cooler, it's where people gather
Speaker 1: to share information and get to know each other. The
Speaker 1: downside of a real physical water cooler is that you're
Speaker 1: limited to the people in your actual office and realistically
Speaker 1: on your corner of your floor. The online world is
Speaker 1: much more vast. You could meet anyone at this virtual
Speaker 1: water cooler, and by visit frequently, you increase the chances
Speaker 1: of making real connections, even with fairly high profile people
Speaker 1: in your industry. How we suggest that you should aim
Speaker 1: to create multiple touch points when creating your own online
Speaker 1: water cooler moments. She offers a menu of items to consider.
Speaker 1: For instance, if the person is an influencer, follow their
Speaker 1: posts on linked In, sign up for their newsletter, write
Speaker 1: an Amazon review for their book. Even well read books
Speaker 1: might have only a hundred or so reviews, which means
Speaker 1: that yours will get seen. You can read and comment
Speaker 1: on the person's blog posts or Instagram posts, and the
Speaker 1: more you do this, the more your name will become
Speaker 1: known to the blogger and their community. You can subscribe
Speaker 1: to and spread the word about their podcasts, and of
Speaker 1: course rate their podcasts on Apple Podcasts. You can share
Speaker 1: their content on Facebook or by retweeting it. You can
Speaker 1: use their particular hashtags. Many people search on Twitter or
Speaker 1: Instagram for their hashtags, and we'll see this touch point.
Speaker 1: This might not be true if the person has two
Speaker 1: million followers, but someone in your industry with twenty followers,
Speaker 1: of course they'll notice. You can participate in any online
Speaker 1: sessions or webinars they're hosting, and as you're participating, share
Speaker 1: your insights. Now, of course, you don't want to be
Speaker 1: creepy about any of this. You probably don't want to
Speaker 1: be the first person commenting on every post. But the
Speaker 1: funny thing is that the more we see someone's name
Speaker 1: and interact with them, even virtually, the more we feel
Speaker 1: like we know them. I realized this the other day,
Speaker 1: and I was trying to explain how I knew someone,
Speaker 1: and it occurred to me that I had never actually
Speaker 1: met her in real life, but we've exchanged enough online
Speaker 1: comments and touch points that I felt like I knew her,
Speaker 1: possibly better than I know some people I actually know,
Speaker 1: like neighbors or my kids classmates parents. So how will
Speaker 1: you create online water cooler movements? How will you connect
Speaker 1: and grow your network virtually? Take a few minute today
Speaker 1: to think about this, and take a few minutes every
Speaker 1: day to invest in these activities. Over time, you'll start
Speaker 1: to feel better connected, even without leaving your house, which
Speaker 1: you still should do at some point, but that's not
Speaker 1: the only route to robust network. In the meantime, this
Speaker 1: is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making the
Speaker 1: most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to hear
Speaker 1: from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,
Speaker 1: or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,
Speaker 1: and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod that's B the number four,
Speaker 1: then Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me
Speaker 1: an email at Before Breakfast Podcast at iHeart media dot
Speaker 1: com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.
Speaker 1: Thanks so much. I look forward to staying in touch
Speaker 1: Before Breakfast is a production of I heart Radio. For
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Speaker 1: favorite shows.