3 Tips to Become a Better Networker

So you just attended a small business mixer and can't help but wonder whether you were successful. You met a handful of very nice people, ate great sushi, exchanged information and business cards. Was that it? You're left wondering if you've actually accomplished anything. Were you persuasive enough to convince people to use your product or service? Will you ever cross paths with these people again?

They say that networking is essential to developing your business. So how do you know you are networking well? I like to keep it simple with these three tips:


Have a goal in mind
Approach the event as an opportunity to achieve a specific objective. Whether it's to meet a specific supplier, potential customer, or even just to practice your "elevator speech". Setting a goal keeps you focused on being productive. The more specific the goal the better. For example, in my case "meet 5 people tonight that have not used any photography services in over 60 days" would give me the opportunity to meet 5 potential customers and discuss ways my services would benefit them.


Relax
At a networking event everyone is there to do the same thing! There will be experienced networkers as well as newbies. All are trying to meet people and establish relationships, so there is nothing awkward about it when you put it in this context. For the most part they all have a high-level grasp of the protocol. Introductions, brief discussion, exchange information and cards and move on to the next introduction. So relax and enjoy the event, but keep your goal in mind.


Follow up
This is the most important part of networking: developing the relationship. At the very least a follow up email or note to let your contact know you were glad to meet them, enjoyed the chat, etc. You may want to propose a meet where more formal business can be discussed. Another extremely effective approach to this is to understand where they need help. Then look for ways to help your contact. You may not be able fulfill their need directly but maybe you can refer your contact to another person in your network who can. Now you are helping them AND leveraging your network. Whoa, I think we may have crossed into advanced networking!

Networking is essential but that doesn't mean it can't be fun. Approach networking opportunities with a goal in mind, don't put too much pressure on yourself and most importantly - develop the relationship. Don't expect to be an expert networker from the start but you'll see once you put a little effort into it that it's not that hard!