What’s the most important reason you go to a networking event? Yes, of course! To make contacts with other people. Now how can we do this in a professional, friendly, yet effective way and still make the connections we want? Here I will give 5 ways to get the most out of a networking event.
1. Don’t try and talk to every single person at a networking event. Your goal is NOT to mingle with every person you see. You are less likely to have a quality discussion and make a true connection by approaching networking events in this fashion. Usually these events are large in size, so pick out 5-8 people and have quality discussions. Make friendships first then ease into business discussion. People can easily and quickly sniff out the person that is wondering what everyone can do for him and for his company. This persons fast approach and demand to talk about business before anything else gives them away. It’s the ME, ME, ME person we all come to know at one time or another. You most likely will not want to do business with this person and definitely don’t BE this person So key number one is to MAKE A FRIEND.
2. Don’t be shy! These events are specifically for you to make new connections. So everyone is at the event for the same reason, why stay in one place the whole time? Get up and approach people, move around to different areas of the room. This is why you came right?? To meet people? Let’s do it! It’s FUN!
Tim Ferriss, author of New York Times best seller ‘The Four Hour Workweek’, answers questions from Ryan Carson, founder of Carsonified.com about his new book! EXCELLENT!!!
You have heard it numerous times… It is not what you know, but who you know that will get you farther in life. Think about where a majority of your opportunities have come from for jobs, activities, events, parties…they are all from our personal network of friends, family, co-workers, and the people that are closest to us. Also, who do people want to do business with? Friends or non-personable Businesses? Obviously we would rather do business with friends and people we have close personal relationships with. This is because we feel most comfortable and know we will not be getting taken advantage of. Now why do I mention this? I mention this because this is exactly what all the social networking tools on the internet do! Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, Orkut, FriendFeed, Flikr, Digg, Del.icio.us, Reddit, Ning and many many more… they build relationships! The most popular tools by far are Facebook and Twitter. Their ease of use and simplicity make it extremely easy to update your status, build your network, post photos, instant message, make a fan page, create a group and much more. The power of these sites is in how you can build close trust and relationships by your connections through networking and social media. People will get to know you and trust you. I am not saying meeting people face to face isn’t important, it is! That’s why they have tweetups. This is an event where people from twitter come together and actually converse face to face. This is community building. This is POWERFUL! When you start to have a big following you will realize the power of Social Media and Social Networking. You will connect with a broader range of people in your specific interests and businesses that you could never have if you weren’t using social networking tools such as these. So if you aren’t on board, sign up for Twitter and Facebook right away and start making friends and relationships that will last a lifetime! It’s a BLAST!
"As social media consultants, We connect businesses with their target market, increase sales, & build customer relationships. We use Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Wordpress & Aweber for results."
So key number one is to MAKE A FRIEND.
