We have a building down the street from us that has housed five different restaurants in the past two years. The first had been around for years, and the owners were a part of the community. But they decided to retire, and sold the business. That owner “forgot” to pay taxes, and was shut down in a matter of months. And so the cycle began. Restaurant number two opened and shut down. Same with number three, four and five. Right now there is another large dumpster out front, so I’m sure number six will be open in just a few more weeks.

Why did each of these businesses fail so quickly? Ultimately it came down to traffic. If there aren’t enough people coming through the doors to make ends meet, you can’t survive as a business.

In order to get new business through your doors, you have to generate the traffic. Whether its recommendations from friends, coupons mailed to nearby homes, or networking with local businesses, you have to do something to generate the traffic.

That same thought process carries through to the online world as well.

In order to make connections online, you have to be “talking” in the right places. Its great if you blog, but if you are the only one reading it, it won’t do you any good. Same goes for Twitter, Facebook and more. [Read more…]