By Aga Merx
“I am going to a networking event; how do I prepare?”
Dress appropriately. If the event is for business owners, you want to represent your profession well. You want to dress in logo wear, in professional clothing that makes your company look good.
Confirm the address and the time so that you don’t arrive late. Some events are more like open houses, but some have an organized agenda. You would want to check the time and be punctual; otherwise everyone will notice that you were tardy.
“Do I need business cards?”
Bring business cards. Pass around the business cards and make sure to collect business cards from the other participants at the events.
We often go to business networking events and collect business cards, but we don’t do anything with them after the event. Business cards don’t have any value unless we do something with the information on those cards. The easiest thing is to either import them into an Excel file or use an app that will help you retain the contact name and information that is on the cards.
“What do I do with the business cards?”
We should follow up with the people that we met within 24 to 48 hours. The easiest thing is to send an email telling them it was nice to meet them. There is no need to sell your product in the email. That may put people off and discourage them from contacting you again.
It’s much easier to send an email saying it was very nice to meet the person. Make sure your email signature contains all of your contact information. That way, if someone wants to reach out to you, they have easy access to your contact information. There is no need to remind the people you met what you do — your email signature, your company or your title likely clearly indicates what you do. If they have more questions, they will reach out to ask you.
Do not add the email address from the person that you met to your drip campaign. First, it’s against the CAN-SPAM policy and, secondly, people mind being added to subscriptions and newsletters when they really did not opt in. That also leaves a negative impression and you do not want to be known as the person who just sells the services and products and imposes them onto people.
“How many networking events should I attend?”
You are welcome to attend as many networking events as your schedule allows. There are some events that will fit your profession better than others. Some cost more than others. What’s important to remember is that you can network yourself out of your job because there are a lot of networking events. Thus, a suggestion is to find the events that fit your schedule, limit them to two or three a month (unless you belong to a networking organization that meets weekly). It is more important to find key individuals and referral sources and to follow up with them than to attend many networking events and not build any relationships after having met the people.
“How do I learn what events there are?”
You can start an account on Meet Up (app or online) or Eventbrite and peruse the upcoming events. If you know members of chambers of commerce, etc., they usually know about many events. Additionally, see what workshops and seminars are offered. You can attend these and benefit twofold: You can connect with others and you can gain good knowledge and experience.
Aga Merx is a vice president and SBA department manager for Bank of American Fork. Her experience with the Small Business Administration started when she worked for the Small Business Development Center.