When you receive an invitation
to a networking event, whether it’s from a professional association or the
local Chamber of Commerce, you have to make a conscious decision about whether to attend and why.
As I’ve written about
elsewhere, you need to know that you can muster up the energy, enthusiasm and confidence
to put on a happy face and make a good impression in order to network
effectively. Otherwise, it will be a waste of your time and you should stay
home.
Assuming you will be able to be
positive and you decide to go to the event, ask yourself
these questions:
1.
What do I want
from this event?
Consider the context, the topic
and the people likely to be there:
- How relevant is the topic/setting/content to me, my work or my company?
- What am I going to learn or how can I help myself or my company with this information?
- Who are the people that I will likely meet there? Potential clients, referral sources, existing customers?
- Am I looking for a new job or new clients or to build my brand? (If you’re currently employed and looking for a new job, consider carefully how you will share that information).
- Am I obligated to go because I serve on the board for the group or I’m a donor? Is this something that my boss is expecting me to attend?
- Will I be representing myself or represent my organization at this event?
2. What is my message?
One of the key ingredients of
successful networking is the confidence that when you open your mouth to
introduce yourself, what you say will make sense and be interesting to the
other person.
This doesn’t happen when you
are making it up on the spot, but because you thought about it and prepared
ahead of time. Consider:
- What will I share about myself with this particular group of people?
- What can I talk about that will be interesting to them?
- What do we have in common (industry, job title, geographic location, interest in this cause)?
- How can I customize my message for this audience to meet my goal of what I want from this event?
- What questions can I ask that will help generate a good conversation?
3. How can I practice that message?
Like with any important
communication, it’s not enough to think
about how you will introduce yourself and share your message. You actually should practice the words out loud, so that when someone
asks, “what do you do?” or “tell me about yourself,” you don’t stumble over your
words.
Practice saying your name and
introduction with confidence and a smile so you can sound and feel relaxed.
This will help the other person relax and make for a more engaging
conversation.
You don’t need to memorize what
you will say, but practice deliberately enough so you can cover your key points
clearly without sounding robotic.
Your words matter. You want to
speak in a way that people will understand so they say, “Oh, tell me more,” as
opposed to their thinking, “You just said a whole bunch of words, but I don’t
know what you said.” Ask yourself:
- Do I have an unusual name that I need to take extra care to enunciate and pronounce clearly?
- Is my company well known? If so, is it known positively or negatively?
- How can I explain my work to someone who is/is not an expert in my field?
If you ask yourself these
questions and carefully consider the answers before you network, you will build
your networking skills and have a more positive experience at the networking
event.