Networking People

1. Limit the number of contacts per event. The most important thing is the quality of the contacts, which means the type of contact, the relevance to your business and interests, how good a connection you're making and the individual involved. At a typical event, five to 10 might be all you can handle. This may not seem like a lot of contacts, but it's really more than enough when you're talking to the right people. (That's why it's so important to have a networking strategy.) If you attend two events per week, that's 10 events a month, or 30 to 50 new contacts every 30 days. Continue to do that over the next couple of months--while following up with the people you've met--and you'll soon have more than enough high-quality contacts to keep you busy.

2. Spend five to 10 minutes talking to and listening to each person. Just because you're not handing out your business card to 1,001 people doesn't mean you should spend 20 minutes talking to just one individual. Invest a few minutes to get to know each person. Make sure to ask for her business card. Then follow up with her after the event; this is where the heavy lifting takes place. Remember, all we're doing now is setting the stage for future business.
3. Write notes on the backs of people's cards. Not only do notes help you remember what the other person said at an event, but it also slows you down a bit so you're not running around trying to meet the next person. On the front of the card, you can write the date and name of the event where you met the person; on the back, jot down a few quick notes about the conversation or anything else of note. When you contact the person later, this will give you something to refer to.



Here are a few things to remember when it comes to meeting new people:

* You're not interested in selling anything to this person you've just met; you want to find some way you can help her. You understand, of course, that what goes around comes around, usually in the form of referrals for your business.
* You want to create a visible identity with everyone you meet. A visible identity is the answer to this question: "How can I differentiate myself, in the mind of this other person, from the other five people she's already met?"

Keeping those two ideas in mind will give you a leg up when meeting new contacts. Using these simple approaches, you'll see an up-tick in the amount of new business and referrals you get while networking.