Community is something that is very important to me. 

Why? Because I don’t think any of us is meant to go on this journey of life or business on our own.

Bringing others IN is part of the ease and joy I’m always talking about! 

Collaboration wins over competition every single time. This is the topic of podcast episode No. 8, Creating Your Community. 

Want to listen instead? Click here.

When you have a community, and take the time to nurture and build that community, that’s you igniting YOUR champions.

The benefits of doing this over time are immeasurable.

Look. I believe community can change the world, and I hope, over time, you might start to believe the same.

So first, let’s take a moment to define the way I see Champions and Advocates.

Champions are those people in your life and business that you are choosing to connect with, spend more time with, and make part of your ignition plan to continue to build that relationship.

Advocates are a result of the work you put in to nurture those champions. 

If you are a marketing department of 1, which I imagine many of you are, what kind of difference do you think it would make for your business if you are developing, igniting, nurturing, and building relationships with DOZENS of people, instead of trying to keep up with the hundreds or thousands you are connected with online?

So here’s a question.

What if you looked at all of your marketing as a tool for building relationships?

Then marketing is just a place to start and continue to have a conversation.

Focusing on relationships can be the difference between getting a meeting, getting a reply to an email, or getting ghosted, and nobody wants that.

Where do we start?

Let’s start by identifying who those champions and advocates might be.

Some of these people may be connections you already have, and others could be people you would like to be connected within the future. Dream a little when you’re thinking about who these people might be.

One of the bonuses of social media is that it can make it easier to connect with some of those on what I call your “Champion’s Wish List.”

Who are these people?

Having this list could be helpful, and here are some questions to get you started. 

• Who would you like to spend more time with? 
• Who’s already a fan? (Like that person who always calls you with great ideas for your business, or maybe they’re the ones that always comment on your content.) 
• Who are your favorite clients? 
• Who are five people you admire? 
• Who are some leaders in your business community? 
• Who are the people you always connect with at networking events? 
• Who are the people who serve the same market as you do? 

Get out a sheet of paper, or start a digital list or document, and start writing these people down. 

This list may have 10 people on it, or it may have 50.

I guarantee you it will be WAY easier to have a plan and strategy for keeping in touch with THIS list, than to try to commit to keeping in touch with ALL of your contacts. That sounds bananas. 

Also, know this list might shift and change over time. 

Building champions doesn’t happen by accident.

My hope is you will start your list and dream a little about what having champions on your team can do for your business.

Come on over to Facebook or Instagram at Ignite Your Champions and share when you’ve made your list. I look forward to hearing from you!