The Recipe of Business Relationships

What I have observed that foods – be they of any kind, there is something that completes the palate – the ketchup, the jus, the pickle, the green chutney, the sliced onion, the poppadum. Being an advocate of #ReturnOnRelationships, I can deeply identify the need to play a role of the Green Chutney to make business relationships deeper and long term.

Here I am sharing six essential ingredients to create the recipe for Return on Relationships:

  1. Be there – This simply means being there for anyone in your fraternity, so when they need your help for something, simply do it even if it is remotely possible. My mantra of ‘short life, enable more’ may seem philosophical, however, relationships work by indulging the heart. Any relationship. So be there, be punctual for any meeting and ensure atleast one key item that keeps the relationship on.
  2. Do not overwhelm – Maintaining business relationships does not require sending ‘wassup? Good morning’ texts and I do not recommend that. May be try wishing on their birthdays and ensure to stay connected atleast once a month or two. More than a quarter without a hello is not recommended as well. Here is what I do, every quarter I invest 2 hours to send out personalized texts (not emails) to my business connects. Something to the effect of – Hi, hope you are doing well. Been a while. Just meaning to drop in a hello. Have a wonderful week. This is how I set ‘no expectations’ that puts the other person at ease. Some respond back, some don’t, which is okay. But I ensure that the numbers are not just numbers, they are people, they are potential relationships which may convert.
  3. Invest time in knowing people – I keep thinking about micro moments. About how next I can create a moment of ‘delight’ for us. Yes, think ‘us’ rather than he/she or me. This takes conscious effort, time, passion with active listening is a catalyst. Take out time to visit events and create more opportunities to meet.
  4. Identify the opportunity – Usually, almost every day there is an opportunity to create a ‘WoW’ moment for someone. Be it your client, your friend, your business connects, your family. Where we get stuck is, we may feel that it is not in our priority of things to identify those opportunities. So, like Return on Investments take time, so does Return on Relationships.
  5. Not having an agenda is at times good – Creates magic and genuineness, however this only happens ideally when both sides have reached a specific comfort zone, though still, a stimulating conversation glue is required. Only lunch, coffee bear does not do it. Every meeting or call should be focused on making it an experience rather than just another meeting or call. There is a dire need to change this mindset, that I have observed.
  6. Silence does not work – Respond and close threads. Forgetting things is not a luxury that we can afford here. Have clarity and be upfront, yet articulate, honest yet kind.

And yes, your green chutney is your charm which is exclusive to only you! Keep working on that and keep that alive.


The views expressed here are that of the author and do not necessarily reflect that of Reputation Today.

Ankoor Dasguupta
Ankoor Dasguupta is a Marketing practitioner, and advocate of social impact, driven by kaizen.

Ankoor believes in the power of Energy and Energize while bringing to the table a pedigree of 23 years with a rare combination experience across the spectrum of media - print, digital, mobile, event productions & successful pilot projects. Worked across functions - ad operations, business operations, content, strategy, sales, events, media planning & buying. Ankoor has been part of six Sigma Green Belt project and also worked in cross functional roles with - conglomerates and start-ups. Ankoor has been part of the core pilot team of launching International IPs such as ad:tech, iMedia Summits and TechCrunch events in India. Ankoor has directed and enabled the winning of multiple pitches while actively involved in overall and tactical strategy. Trained from Dale Carnegie in Mentoring, Ankoor is a knowledge manager, avid writer with more than 50 published articles: speaker and jury in multiple forums including reputed B-Schools. Most recently Ankoor has been onboarded on the Advisory Board -Marketing Department at ISBR Business School. Ankoor is POSH Certified and has been selected to be part of core Committee for POSH at 2 organizations during his work tenure till now. Ankoor is also a Tabla player and wishes to sky-dive more often.

Be the first to comment on "The Recipe of Business Relationships"

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.


*