Business networking: the process of establishing a mutually beneficial relationship with other business people and potential clients and/or customers
To many, this evokes less than pleasant memories of evenings (or early mornings) spent passing out business cards and hoping that the time and energy spent are worthwhile. I’ve done my share of these events. Some have been fun and I met people that made me glad I took the time to attend. Others have been horrible and I regretted pretty much every minute there.
And still I attend and hope for the best. The Woody Allen quote “80% of success is showing up” rattles around in my head when I’m heading out to another event.
I have decided to put together a networking strategy vs. the random approach I’ve been using. I want to be open to all types of opportunities, but maximize the benefits and make sure when I’m there I feel great about the time and effort spent. Having a little fun wouldn’t hurt either.
Here’s my list I now use when evaluating events.
1. Diversity – There must be different types of people and businesses represented (not all events are business related - like a book club or community group but diversity of ideas & people are a must)
2. Convenience – The day/time has to work with my other commitments and not require a radical change to my schedule/lifestyle
3. Benefit – Beyond meeting other people, will there be any other advantage to attending?
4. Ease of Participation – I’d like to feel welcome (at least as a guest) before having to pass a test for admission, pay dues or feel like I must learn the secret handshake to be part of the club (okay no one really has a test but some meetings can be pretty intimidating to newbies)
If an event fits all 4 of these I will put it on my calendar. If one is missing, I will investigate and get more info to see if it’s right for me. More than 1 missing – not for me.
I’d love to know what you think.
Do you participate in a group that you’d recommend?
How do you select which events to attend?
Do you bother at all?
What works for you?
1 comment:
I liked your post, Phyllis. I recall with some annoyance the frustration and discomfort I felt at many networking events. A “rush up” greeting followed by the instant exchange of business cards; uncomfortable moments with both of us looking down reading the cards trying to figure out what good this person might do us; the realization that we were both pursuing the same quarry but not each other; the abrupt, unceremonious separation (“dropped like a bad habit”) and then on to replay the same dance with someone else.
What I discovered was that most of the time I was wasting time talking to other people just like me: salespeople.
I stopped going…until I found Twitter. Meeting folks on Twitter first makes the in-person meet much more effective. I don’t collect as many cards but I make more friends. What could be better? Everyone likes to do business with friends.
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