3 Powerful Strategies to Bulletproof your Networking in the Future

The future of networking includes plenty of shiny new toys, but at what cost? Buckle up, it's gonna be a wild ride.

Networking used to be simple.

Attend local networking events.

Join business networking groups.

Setup one-on-one meetings.

Did I miss anything?

Today, networking has become more … complex.

Professional networking has exploded on LinkedIn.

Social networking has become ubiquitous on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), and hundreds of other platforms.

So, what does the future of networking hold for us?

And what do we need to do to prepare for it?

No one can predict the future or have the insights of a Nostradamus but, based on surging trends and a little imagination, we can reasonably foresee what’s coming.

What is agreeable to most everyone is that networking will drastically change over the next several years.

We have the technology. We can make it better than it was.

Better, stronger, faster (anyone else remember the 6 Million Dollar Man? ??)

Before we jump into discussions about networking with a bionic man or using transporters to teleport to networking events, let’s take a peek into what to expect in the next 5 - 10 years.

Out of curiosity, I asked several popular networkers what developments they expected to see in in the next few years. Here are the responses…

“Hybrid Events”

Already here.

Obviously, Covid accelerated the adaptation of the hybrid model.

“Virtual Meetings”

Same as above.

Zoom is here to stay.

“Holograms”

Maybe.

But I don’t believe the days of living in the world of “Star Wars” is in the near future quite yet.

So, what should we do to prepare our network for the next 5 to 10 years?

1. EMBRACE AI

The recent surge of artificial intelligence has been astonishing.

And there’s no turning back.

If you’re not networking with AI right now, you’re really missing the boat.

Nevertheless, many professionals still ask, “How can AI help me network?”

Let’s look at some ways…

1. Search for Connections - Artificial Intelligence will analyze your profile, content, and network. It will then suggest potential contacts that match your criteria.
2. Personalize Messages - AI will help find new contacts by capturing their attention and interest with engaging content.
3. Track and Manage Relationships - AI will remind you to follow up or update connections based on their postings, announcements, or achievements.
4. Measure and Analyze Data - AI will measure your performance and activity and provide you with fresh insights. It will then make suggestions on how to improve your results.
5. Explore New Possibilities - AI will expose you to different industries, markets, and professions. It will introduce you to people who have different backgrounds and experiences that will add value to your network.

2. EXPLORE APPS

Fasten your seatbelts … this is the area I think is most ripe for disruption in business networking.

There are close to 9 million apps in the world today.

Last year alone, there were more than 250 billion app downloads.

They serve a wide range of purposes and valuable to many different types of users.

But what about the apps for business networking?

So far, I have not been impressed.

But as we saw with dating apps these past 15 years, I believe a plethora of new and innovative business networking apps will rapidly emerge.

Professionals will be connected in ways no one could have ever imagined.

The biggest challenge?

Designing a networking app that ensures a “win-win” outcome.

All the professional networking apps I’ve tried so far resulted in me getting continually pitched or sold to…

No thanks.

3. ENGAGE WITH “V”-MAIL

Email’s not dying.

It’s evolving.

Although the exact terminology is still unknown, there will be advanced email systems that fully integrate voice and video (hence, the v-mail name).

MAIL —> EMAIL —> VMAIL

The rumors that email is a dying technology are greatly exaggerated.

As broadband continues to expand, wireless communications become more efficient, and storage space becomes more readily available, communicating via email should improve significantly.

Within your email, I envision you will be able to talk live with people or, if you’re busy, create a quick recording to respond in the “V”-mail.

What does this mean for networking?

Since it will be a much different user experience than what professionals are used to now, people will be thrilled to connect faster and more genuinely than ever before.

This means less time wasted on those hour-long Zoom meetings and faster one-on-one communications.

What does all this mean?

It’s time to prepare for the future of networking.

To do that, we need to leverage the present and learn from the past.

Great and exciting days are ahead.