How to Build Community as a Entrepreneur

For many people, becoming an entrepreneur is a major goal. But at the same time, it can be a completely different way of working when you’re used to being employed full-time by a company. Not only that, you no longer have a team behind you, and you’re taking on a lot of the work yourself. While that is always the nature of entrepreneurship, it doesn’t have to be a lonely experience. Instead, you can look to build a community around you for support, friendship, and to raise awareness of your business. Let’s consider how you can do this.

1. Network in Your Field

Networking will always be a huge element for any career or business. But when you’re an entrepreneur, and you’re trying to establish yourself, networking will be a big contributor. Not only that, but networking with people in your industry will always enable you to build community. Whether you’ve been in your industry for a while and you’ve just gone solo, or you’re brand new, networking can help you to meet new people and establish yourself along the way.

2. Make Connections Online

However, it’s not just about industry events. You can also be proactive about meeting people online. A huge part of modern business is being on social media. No matter what platforms you want to use, you will be able to meet new people and make connections. This can not only enable you to make friends with people who are in the same position as you, but you can also start to foster a sense of community around your work too.

3. Find Coworking Spaces

One thing about being an entrepreneur is that you’re often working alone. This means it can get very lonely. But you can also start hotdesking to change that! Finding the best coworking spaces can mean that you not only have a professional space to work from, but you can also build community and meet new people. You will find that a lot of entrepreneurs and freelancers will enjoy coworking in major cities. This gives you a great way to meet people and build a sense of community too.

4. Meet With Clients Regularly

As an entrepreneur or freelancer, you may find that you’re dealing with clients on a daily basis. Of course, you will want to build and nurture these relationships from a professional perspective, but you will also want to go beyond that with the idea of creating community. Your clients can be great contacts for you. Not only will meeting with them regularly help you to deepen the relationship, allowing you to create a lasting bond over time, but it can also give you a sense of community and human interaction too.

5. Hire Great People

Alongside your clients, there are also the people that you work with regularly. Even if you work alone, you will always find that you need support. You may have started out freelancing solo, but at some point, you may need to grow your team. From assistants and creatives to sales support and customer services, you may need to hire people directly or create partnerships and outsource work to them. This helps you to build community and provides you with great working relationships too.

6. Create a Support Network

However, the working relationships you have in place may not always be the best connections for support. In most cases, there will be people in your network whom you can go to for advice or chat things through with. But that won’t be the case with everyone! When you’re an entrepreneur, having a strong support network is so important. There will always be ups and downs, so knowing that there are people you can rely on is vital. Knowing who you trust and who will be key figures in your support network, whether these are people you know professionally or personally, is key.

7. Build an Audience

Finally, you may find that building an audience can be a crucial part of your entrepreneurial journey. While you can always find community in a range of different ways, actively looking to build an audience can be beneficial for many reasons. Not only does this enable you to meet new people, including like-minded people who may go on to become friends, but it will also support you in business. Having a community around what you do is crucial for success. It will also help you to raise your profile and establish expertise and authority. This is something you should look to do early in your career.

Image source: Brooke Cagle via Unsplash.