Thanks to the guys at Make Your Mark for the heads up on this article:
Our final tips come from Ambassador Adam Arnold, CEO of the Smarter Group.
1. Locate the key players in your industry (for me this is university welfare/housing advisers as well as Chief Environmental Health Officers / Planning / Building control at local councils)
2. Approach the key players and introduce yourself. Talk openly about your business and ambitions; it’ll prompt you into action and word will get round!
3. Maintain relationships. Don’t think a quick introduction and a coffee is enough to get people on your side – relationships take time!
You can read the full article Its’s who you know don’t you know on the Make Your Mark site [link removed*]

* Sadly Make Your Mark was shut down a couple of years ago. I believe it was actually swallowed up by the Peter Jones Enterprise Academy although I can’t find any concrete proof.
If anyone knows what actually happenned to it please feel free to let me know in the comments!