The Relationship Edge: The Key to Strategic Influence and Selling Success, Third Edition

Chapter 1. RELATIONSHIPS ARE EVERYTHING

We all would like an edge in life, a quality or factor that makes us superior in performance, in ability, in achievement. Strong, positive relationships with other people—associates, superiors, customers, family members, and casual acquaintances—give us that edge. When I ask seminar groups, "How important are relationships in your business?" most answer, "Relationships are everything" or "Nothing is more important." It's hardly news that your relationships—positive or negative—affect your business and personal life profoundly.

What is news these days, however, is that the way we establish, build, and maintain relationships is being affected in a big way by social media—LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and scores of other sites.

True, you cannot put up a LinkedIn or Facebook profile and expect positive relationships to follow automatically. You have to do a lot more work. On the other hand, if you expect to increase and improve your business relationships, you cannot ignore social media or underestimate the importance of technology and the role it will play in relationship development from now on. Your presence on the Web doesn't have to be major (although that wouldn't hurt), but you have to be there. In today's world you need these three things: a process to build a positive relationship, a meaningful presence on the Web, and a mastery of how best to use technology to build, maintain, and leverage relationships.

And not just any relationship. The ...