As you may or may not have heard, our Director Stephen Johnson is lined up to be the marketing panelist at the 2013 Annual Australian Insolvency Forum at Stamford Plaza in July. Strategy and Action were chosen for our experience in ‘identifying and exploiting hidden assets and opportunities’.
For some, the thought of yet another networking event is cringe-worthy; standing in the corner, working up the courage walk up to a stranger and commence small talk. Others see it as an opportunity to collect as many business cards as possible and shake as many hands in the allotted amount of time. Networking is not speed-dating people! Nor is it pointless and scary…
Some of your greatest opportunities could come from a chance connection made at a conference or networking event. With a golden opportunity coming up for us, we decided it was time to have a look at how people approach networking, so we can give you some advice on how to get the most out of your time spent.
Firstly, if you’re one of those people who move through networking events like a hurricane categorising everyone you meet into prospects and non-prospects, it’s time to stop. It’s time to start making genuine connections with every person you speak to instead writing them off in the first few minutes.
It’s tempting to cut short your conversation with someone, if you feel they won’t be of any value to you in the future, but with that said, do you know where you will be in 5 years? Just because someone’s services or knowledge may not be needed in your company today, doesn’t mean they won’t in the future.
The more people you know–really know–the more likely you are to make that important connection you need to take your career, company, or venture to the next level.
Lesson: Listen to every person that talks to you, engage in conversation and leave a lasting impression. Remember that they will be assessing your value to them as well. You’d hate to think that someone would write you off after a few minutes so don’t do the same to them.
Secondly, stop thinking about networking as “networking.” Networking should not be about meeting as many people as possible in as short amount of time. There is no glory in returning to your office with a handful of business cards if nothing comes from your efforts, and there is no need to continually add to your LinkedIn connections unless you can establish a meaningful relationship with these new connections.
When you first get a sense of who someone is, try to figure out what you can do for them, instead of focusing on what they can do for you. Who can you connect them to? What can you do for them (outside of selling them your services)? What resource or information can you share that will help them out? True connection is a two-way street.
Instead of making it a goal to meet every, single person in the room, make it a goal to have at least 5 engaging conversations and anything more than that is a bonus!
Lesson: You don’t have to meet every, single person in the room. Focus on forming real connections instead of engaging in pointless small talk.
Thirdly, attend events that you feel will be of actual value to you and your company. Find events that are relevant to your industry and that will be a valuable use of your time. When you attend events where you meet quality people, make a list of similar events to attend in the future.
With that said, don’t be afraid to take risks with the events you attend either. Some may be solely for the purpose of networking. Some may have speakers or panelists where you can take away useful information or have your questions answered. But whatever they are, if you feel a desire to attend, do it.
Lesson: No matter how uncomfortable the thought of ‘networking’ may make you, let the opportunity to make quality connections outweigh your fear.
Lastly, don’t forget to follow-up! It’s all well and good to shake someone’s hand and say “I’ll call you”, but if you don’t follow up on your new connection it makes you look bad… really bad. Not to mention, that if it was a truly valuable connection made, they may longer be interested if they feel you’re not serious.
Make an effort to follow up with the people you clicked with, plan a day of meetings within a few weeks of your initial introduction and get to know each of them more deeply. Seeking to establish quality relationships with a few people often provides the greatest payoff for your networking efforts.
Lesson: It’s all about the follow-up! Aim to make contact with your connections within 10 days of meeting them and see where the relationship takes you.
