Recently, I attended the Wisconsin Entrepreneurs’ Conference, which was a wonderful two day event focused on education and highlighting Wisconsin entrepreneurship. While attending this conference, I started to think about the appropriate networking techniques to maximize my time. So, below are nine strategies to think about as you attend conferences.
1. Research speakers – Take the time to review the list of speakers and decide which ones you would like to meet. Take the time to research their backgrounds ahead of time so you have a good starting point for a conversation. Review the conference Website, talk to conference organizers, or search the Internet to find some of this information.
2. Research attendees – Pay special attention to the types of attendees who may be at the conference. Talk to the conference organizers, past attendees, or view the conference Website to find this information. It is important to know who will be there so you can effectively target your message and meet the most appropriate people.
3. Don’t discount sponsors/exhibitors – Make sure to acknowledge the sponsors by visiting their booths. Even though they are there to market their business, they also want to meet people. So, spend time talking to some of them. Because of their visibility, they are in a position to meet many of the attendees so they could provide you with leads.
4. Maximize break times – Every conference builds in break times so you can network with each other. Because conferences take all day, we have a tendency to want to check emails and voicemails. While it is okay to do this, don’t spend the entire break time with work related activities. Make sure you mingle and meet people. After all, one of your conference goals should be to meet people.
5. Sit near new people – As you get to know people at a conference, you have a tendency to sit with them during meals and various panel discussions. This is also true for people who you may already know before the conference. While it Is good to try to build these relationships during the conference, it really should be continued during happy hours and after the conference. During your conference time, you should try to meet as many new people as you can.
6. Attend happy hours – At each conference, a formal or informal happy hour has usually been planned. Make an effort to attend these gatherings because it is a great way to meet people and further build existing relationships. After a long conference day, it is nice to talk with people in a relaxed setting.
7. Immediate follow-up – After you meet people you connected with, make sure to follow-up with them in a couple of days after the conference. People get a lot of business cards so make yourself remembered by following up immediately. If you wait too long, then you may be forgotten.
8. Congratulate the organizers – At the end of a conference, it is important that you reach out to the organizers and congratulate them for a job well done. Organizing and running a conference is a lot of work so it feels good to be appreciated. You never know what could happen as a result of your nice gesture.
9. Volunteer – As you get to know the conference organizers, ask them if they could use help next year. By getting involved in the planning and execution process, you will get to meet various new people including other volunteer and speakers. Volunteer work is a great relationship building technique.
What other tips can you share?
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It's easy to miss the best value from conferences. Speakers often offer so much learning we miss out on where most of the potential of the event lies...the rest of the delegates.
We have introduced dedicated networking time to the 2008 Professional Speakers Association UK Convention to enable our members to make more of the opportunities in the room.
I wrote about this after last year's PSA convention here - http://networkingandreferrals.blogspot.com/2007/11/conference-commando.html
Posted by: Andy Lopata | June 14, 2008 at 03:55 AM
Yes, I agree with you Andy that sometimes people don't interact with each other at conferences as much because of the speakers. At the same time, people are networking whether they realize it or not because they do talk to other people in between talks and during breaks. I believe that conferences should have dedicated networking time.
Posted by: Jason | June 14, 2008 at 03:30 PM
Jason, I agree that immediate follow-up after a conference or other event is key.
I know that I also tend to get overwhelmed by all of the ideas for collaborations that I generate, so I've found it key to really target one project that I think will produce the most powerful results. This also helps guide your communications with your new contacts.
For those who might be interested, I have a post on my blog about ways to maximize your post-conference energy for good results here: http://www.blog.neverthesamerivertwice.com/2007/11/16/7-ways-to-keep-the-post-conference-buzz/
Posted by: Maria - Never the Same River Twice | June 16, 2008 at 07:57 AM
Good thoughts Maria. Thanks for the blog post as well.
Posted by: Jason | June 17, 2008 at 07:37 PM