The Networking Secret!

The most important aspect of savvy networking is the follow-up. If you don't follow-up after attending a networking event, all of the steps you did before and during the event will be wasted time. Genuine connections and relationships are established after the event ends. There are a few key questions you should ask yourself after you attend a networking event. These questions will help you understand your networking patterns. Based on your answers, you can evaluate your networking skills as well as your networking objectives. You should use these questions after each event that you attend. The more you network, the easier these questions will become to answer.

Who did I connect with?

You are going to meet a lot of people. Not everyone will be a person of value that you should pursue a relationship with. There are some people who you will instantly hit it off with. There are others that you may need to take the time to get to know to further develop a relationship. It may be hard to determine which people you should pursue a relationship with. Refer to your networking objectives when you need guidance. It is a good rule of thumb to touch base with each person that you meet at a networking event; you never know when your networking objectives may change.

Following a networking event, you should write down a list of names—the people who come to the top of your mind are the people you should connect with first. The reasons why that person is on your mind will help you spark a follow-up conversation. If you can’t remember each individual, use business cards to remind you of the people you connected with.

Why did I connect with those individuals?

These questions may take some time to answer, as it requires that you dig deep to understand yourself. 

Understanding the reasons why you connect with people will help you become more effective at networking. The first step to answering this question is to refer to the list of individuals you connected with at the networking event. After you review the list, think of how you came to speak with that person. You should also consider what you were doing moments before you connected. If someone introduced you, think of the introduction to help you determine why the two of you were introduced. Do not rush to answer this question; take as much time as needed to evaluate the reason why you connected with each person completely.

What do we have in common?

One of the easiest ways to build a relationship is to discuss what you have in common with another person. Referring to the list you created of who you connected with, think of what you have in common with each individual. You can also use the information you gathered during your quick Internet search in preparation to attend the event. You should have at least one thing in common with a person if you intend to pursue the professional relationship. The commonality can be as simple as you both work in the same industry, or you went to the college in the same football conference.

How can I help the people I met?

To be successful in networking, you want to establish a relationship that is mutually beneficial. A mutually beneficial relationship means giving not just receiving. After connecting and having a conversation, ask what I can help this person with? If, during your conversation, a person mentioned that 

They would like to learn how to use Twitter to effectively communicate with their clients; you should send them an article that addresses that issue. By actively listening and engaging in conversations, you can determine the best way to help each person you meet. Most of the ways may seem small, but small gestures can go a long way. It shows another person that you not only listened, but you are investing in the relationship.

One of the most important, but often forgotten, aspects of networking is the follow-up. Keeping in touch is as easy as following these tips.

1. Bear in mind it’s better to give than it is to receive. Approach networking from the viewpoint of “What can I do for you?” Professional and personal relationships are most successful when both parties feel like they can benefit from each other. There is nothing more awkward than reaching out to a person several months after meeting them and asking them for an introduction or requesting more information on a job. With that in mind, before you request anything of someone else, ask how you can provide some value to them. It may be as simple as sending them an email with a link to an article (on a topic that the two of you discussed at the networking event) or introducing them to someone in your network. It is important that, after you meet a person, you make contact with them before you ask for something in return. Building the relationship should be your primary focus, not requesting them to do something for you.

2. Use an app to keep up with people you meet. An app that I often use is LinkedIn; it allows you to instantly look up someone. This can be particularly useful when everyone runs out of business cards, and, within a few clicks, an invite to connect can be sent. Many times I leave a networking event with a stack of business cards. One day after attending an event, while your memory is fresh and you still remember details from the gathering, pull out the business cards you collected and head over to your favorite networking app. Connect with the people you met using business cards as a tool. First, sort the business cards into stacks. You can start with two stacks. Pile A contains cards of people who you made a genuine connection with. Pile B contains cards of people who you need to talk with more to determine if a professional relationship will be mutually beneficial or not. After you sort the cards, go to LinkedIn to send connection invitations. By sending messages to connect the day after the event, you increase the chances that you have not forgotten details of your conversation with a person. You will also improve the chances that the people you met still remember you as well. When you send a message on LinkedIn, never use the generic prepared message on the invite. Customize the message to the person you met. If you met a lot of people and had multiple small-group discussions, send them a similar message but type their name in the header of the message and send the invite individually. In your message request to schedule a time for coffee or lunch to continue your conversation.

3. Send a note or email within twenty-four hours after you meet someone. As time passes and you get busy, people will forget who you are, so follow-up with them soon while you’re still fresh on their mind. If you want to stand out, send a handwritten note; it’s a nice treat to receive a piece of mail and escape the email gridlock. People do not get a lot of handwritten messages, and, by doing so, you are sure to stand out from everyone else. Your email or note should be short and to the point. Two or three sentences are all you need to write. An example of a follow-up letter is below:

Jacqueline,

It was a pleasure to meet you yesterday at the community fund-raiser. Let’s get coffee soon and continue our discussion on the best new restaurants in the city.

Best Regards,

[Your Name Here]

This example gets right to the point and is polite and friendly. Since you mentioned getting coffee, you should follow-up a few days later with a phone call or email to schedule the coffee meeting.

1. Connect on social sites. I would highly recommend connecting on LinkedIn, one of the largest professional networking sites. Its current features allow you to receive an alert when a person is promoted or moves to a new company. This is an excellent way to stay in contact and send a quick note to say congratulations. Sending a congratulatory letter or email takes a little time, but the person who receives the message will actually appreciate it. Sending a short email message to celebrate someone’s success is an excellent way to build a relationship. Use your networking goals description to decide if you should connect on Twitter, Facebook, or any other site.

2. Schedule an in-person meeting. Whether it is coffee, lunch, or dinner, this is your opportunity to further your connection and establish a relationship. Your next meeting does not have to be coffee. It could be lunch, dinner, or attending a sports event. The purpose is to get together in a setting that will allow the two of you to build a relationship.

As you begin to network, you will find methods that work best for you. You will spend less time researching events because you will be more in tune with how networking works and what it means. Your network will become more diverse, and your net worth will increase over time. Networking is not an instantaneous event. Each relationship has to be cultivated and nurtured; while you may want to build a relationship with everyone you meet; this is not realistic. The more you practice your networking skills, you should be able to quickly identify what you have in common with other people, and understand if there is a genuine opportunity to cultivate and grow relationships.