Networking Tips for Conference Goers
We all may know what it looks like to have a strong network, but most people don’t know how to build one. Asking for advice can be a mixed bag: The people most talented at networking don’t know how they do it – they just talk to people and a network grows around them.
Like the other 99 percent of people, I had to work hard to learn how to network. Here are my tips.
Start by Finding the Connection
The entire purpose of an in-person professional conference is to bring people together and establish or strengthen their connections to one another. Everybody is here for that reason. Everybody, from entry-level newcomers to the guest of honor, is here to grow their network.
When you meet someone at a professional meeting, find a connection where you can make yourself a net benefit to their work. To find that connection, listen more than you talk. Ask questions. Find out what they’re passionate about when they’re not at meetings and conferences.
Tip: The best time to strike up a conversation is when you’re waiting. Arrive at events early, keep your phone in your pocket, and strike up conversations to fill the time.
Make an Offer or a Request
Once you’ve found the connection, make an offer or request. Is there someone you can connect them with? Is there a resource you can share with them? Are you willing to serve on their advisory committee or focus group? Offers are better than requests, because an offer puts the ball in your court. Once you’ve fulfilled the offer, you can follow it with a request. When you make a request, it should be easy to fulfill, it should highlight your shared interest, and it should start a conversation.
When I make an offer or request, I ask for their business card and write a note on it about what I have to do. I put those annotated cards in a special pocket in my jacket or bag, reserved specifically for people I have to follow up with. (I keep everybody’s card; but I only follow up with the ones I found a connection with.) Then I make sure to follow up within a week of getting back to the office. You made the offer or request, so you have to be the one to follow up. In your follow-up, fulfill your offer and thank them for connecting with you.
The best offers are offers to make a connection – sharing your network with them. When you’re listening for a connection (see above), think about your own network, no matter how small it is. Even if you can’t find a connection for yourself, you might think of a good connection in your network. “Oh, do you know John Smith at the Health Expert Group? No? You two would get along really well. Let me have your business card and I’ll send an email and introduce you to each other.”
Stay in Touch
Keep track of your most important connections. Send them emails them once every one or two years. That’s all you need to keep in touch until your relationship grows closer.
That’s enough for “dos.” Here’s a nice article about networking “don'ts.”