1. Stay connected to your friends. Though you may be tempted to hunker down and spend every waking minute in your store or office, this is the wrong time to drop out of sight. Keep going to those lunches and networking meetings. My friend Dan McComb, founder of the phenomenally successful business networking site, biznik, calls it "the strength of weak connections." Your friends won't necessarily be your clients or customers, but they probably know people who could be.

2. Network with colleagues-yes, even your "competitors." As a copywriter, I go out of my way to meet other writers. Not only do they prime the well of creativity and inspire me, but we actually look out for each other and refer specific jobs that come our way but don't fit our individual niches.

3. Help people at exactly the time when they can't help you back. I know. That sounds so counterproductive. I can just tell you that you will be remembered for a very long time if you help people, expecting nothing in return. Give them a piece of advice. Make time for a lunch. Answer a question or point them to a free resource. You will leave them with a warm feeling and they will tell others about you.

4. Reach out with consistent, warm touches. Return phone calls. Send helpful articles. Call to just find out how business is going for someone. Keep up your blog posts. Participate on the forums and online networking sites. Submit articles to online directories. Send a handwritten note or two by mail.

5. Keep sending out your e-newsletter. If you have an e-letter, make sure your issues go out on time. (If you don't have one, check out the getting started series on our blog.) A useful e-letter is one of the single most powerful ways to stay top of mind with your customers. It's a great tool for providing those regular, warm touches, the ones that nurture relationships and build customer loyalty.