Reciprocity is the name of the relationship game and always will be.

This post originally appeared on my blog at: http://dave-stevegoodwin.com/blog/?p=550. Don't forget that commenting on there will also give you a backlink as well as commenting here!

So I was reading a news article in a tweet on twitter about "10 Smart Things I've Learned from People Who Never Went to College" and #4 really struck me about what I have been doing lately in my social media networking.

It said:

4. Reciprocity is the name of the relationship game and always will be.
If you can’t find it in yourself to return a favor, or give back more than you got when someone helped you out of a bind, then you are relationship handicapped. While this may seem like basic intuitive logic (and it is), it’s amazing how often it’s ignored. While relationships shouldn’t be tit for tat arrangements, the underlying willingness to reciprocate—even if it’s really hard to do—must be there for the relationship to grow and flourish. None of us are one-way streets.

Now, why did this point hit me so hard? I think, as business marketers, we can sometimes get so wrapped up in what we are promotingand forget that there are lots of other opportunities out there for us to look at. I know that I am guilty of this sometimes. I go about talking to people and am not looking for another business opportunity. But, if the product is right and they can show me how it will help build value in my business, I am much more inclined to look.

I am not saying that people should just go out and sign up for everyone else's opportunities. You will end up overwhelming yourself very quickly and won't even know what you are doing because you will have so much stuff in your way. What I suggest is creating a business plan where you lay out exactly what you want your perfect business model to do. By placing your different programs within your business plan and creating your sales funnel, you will be able to look at new opportunities much more effectively because you will just need to understand what the product being recommended to you does and you can compare it with your current product to look for more efficiency, better price, etc.

That only encompasses the pitching side of things though. All too often I see blog posts with no interactivity, yet people are posting new ones all the time. I find it very weird that people will go through all the trouble to write new blog posts but not leave simple comments on other ones? I guess that there are just too many people in promote mode rather than trying to reciprocate with others. If we would start reading each other's stuff and commenting on it, even if we can't use the products. Just leaving a simple "hey you explained your opportunity very well there, I hope you do well with it!" comment can encourage and build a relationshipwith other people. You never know who might click back to your profile or blog post and possibly be your next customer!

If you focus more on giving then receiving, you will infect the world around you! Not to mention, you will start attracting more people!

So, what have you done for others today? Go comment on a few people's blog posts in your business niche, re-tweet some great articles from some people you follow on Twitter, share someone else with your lists that you think could bring value to your list. Just do something!

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Comment by Steven Goodwin on August 15, 2012 at 3:02am: @Louise - Well, just because it takes forever for you to type, doesn't give you an excuse not to write LOL. Get some speech to text software lol! I think you hit the nail on the head though. Giving of yourself to others will show people that you are a team player and that you can really build some great relationships with others. Plus, hopefully if you are being yourself, you will attract others like you! Thanks for taking the time out of your Super Busy day to comment on my post! It's most appreciated!

Comment by Louise on August 14, 2012 at 8:07am: I totally agree with you here Steve.

Giving is the name of the game !!

I feel blog posts are just one aspect of the whole marketing game where reciprocity can be shown.

While i do not post on many blogs out side of my own social site, - only because of limited time -

Oh... and because it takes me 25-30 minutes to write something with this many words LOL

I find that I'm always giving of my time to others, helping, teaching, sharing their posts, helping to promote, being there to answer questions.

Most take it as matter of fact, only some truly understand the Power of Reciprocity.

Shared !!

Comment by Steven Goodwin on August 13, 2012 at 12:03pm: @Peter - Yes, I love that you brought up the trade and barter system! We must work harder to create win-win situations with others! I think that reciprocity has much to do with this. Reciprocity doesn't always mean that you are joining an opportunity, it could be as easy as just thanking them for putting up a video, sharing an informative article with our lists, etc, all things I know you already do! The example you give is a classic situation of working towards a win-win situation! Awesome comment buddy! Thanks for your great insight!

Comment by Steven Goodwin on August 13, 2012 at 12:00pm: @Don - Thanks for commenting! You hit the nail on the head, buddy! I understand the limited timeframe to promote your opportunity, but I think that letting others get to know you by learning about you through THEIR own blog comments is a great way to attract people's attention! I always try to thank someone whenever I learn something from their work! I think this is partly what makes the world go round! Plus, by leaving comments on other people's blogs and work, I am leaving a link back to my own, therefore, promoting my own opportunities!

Comment by Peter Wright on August 13, 2012 at 1:35am: Reciprocity is what makes the world go around and definitely an important part of all business, not just on-line marketing. It is also the basis of an old type of trade - barter - which seems to be re-gaining its popularity.

We should however be careful about getting involved in too many opportunities, seems to me that is a huge reason why the majority of people fail in internet marketing, trying too many shiny new things and not persevering with one and focusing all their energy on that.

In addition to commenting on blogs, it is also a good thing to feature other peoples blogs on our own, I recently used a tightly focused recipe / cooking blog as an example in one of my blog posts. It was a blog published by a delightful person I "met" on twitter.

I did it with no expectation of any direct benefit for myself, but it has given her more visitors and in turn many of her readers have visited my blog. This is an excellent way to get guests posts for our own blogs and opportunities for us to get our posts published on other blogs.

If my memory serves correctly, Malcolm Gladwell wrote about this in one of his books when he explained how some people are "connectors".

Thanks for the good reminder Steve.

Comment by Don Haider on August 13, 2012 at 1:23am: Really good points you present here-Steve. I only focus on giving, because I know what goes around--comes around. People do become only concerned about promoting their current opportunity and only want contact IF you sign up with them or sometimes even no contact at all. Like a lot of people with a full time job right now, I find myself pressed for time and the priority emphasis is promoting my opportunity but that is no excuse not to ,as you have said, be a friend and leave comments,retweet,etc. It just has to be a habit. Wishing you great success in your promotions.