Business is no different to any other field in that you need strong working relationships in order to succeed. In fact, this is probably more important in business, because the more people you know, the more business you are likely to get. You will have the opportunity to form relationships over time and the strength of these relationships will determine how useful they are going to be to you.
Suppliers and clients are two groups of people who you need to have a strong working relationship with. Over time, they will come to trust you and if they enjoy working with you, then they are more likely to put business your way. It works both ways – if you have a productive relationship, you will both add value for each other’s businesses. They may also begin to put you in touch with others as the trust grows, which is when natural networking occurs.