Prepare to politely brag and speak about your highlight of the year. Review your list of successful projects; select a few that are the most indicative of the clients you work with, the problems you solve and the skills you bring to these situations. Consider anecdotes and events of a more personal nature as well.
Apply the Marketing RBI paradigm to your membership. As you may recall, two of the components are:
– Speaking (Here’s the Pitch): Create opportunities where you can speak to the members, as a panelist or moderator, or on the association’s podcast.
– Writing (Keeping the Box Score): Contribute to the organization’s newsletter or blog.
When you implement these activities, remember this step:
– Extend Your Presence Online (Cover All the Bases): Promote your involvement and the group’s activities in your posts on LinkedIn and other social media platforms.
You can see how these tactics have supported my business development. Try them yourself.
This email template is easily customized to help you re-connect with the contacts you made at the conference. Be inspired by the possible topics and slots to insert specific references to follow up with each person you met.
Have fun at the conference. You traveled quite a distance and paid for a hotel stay to attend this meeting. Follow some or all of these tips to make the most of this event — and the next one.
Janet has given engaging and extremely practical programs at NYCLA’s CLE Institute. Attendees learned techniques that they could implement to build their networks, as well as hands on training on how to get noticed and quoted by the media. She is a pleasure to work with and a true professional, who I highly recommend
A directory listing, like an elevator pitch, offers a bare minimum of information. You have to engage in conversation to flesh out the details. To start the relationship with a fellow member, introduce yourself by email. Focus on YOU, the reader/member, and establish shared interests. Your goal is to have the next conversation.
Hold a pre-meeting meeting. Arrange to meet your guest for a coffee 30-minutes before the meeting. Use this time to re-connect and catch up on their latest news. Hear what their agenda for the meeting might be. Plan to work the room together and maximize the moment.
Try ALL FIVE strategies and then focus on the ones where you feel most comfortable. Networking may be your favorite and speaking may give your stomach butterflies. Or vice versa. The e-book gives examples of how you can take some practice swings and become more comfortable with the approaches you don’t ordinarily use.
Prepare in advance to share your contact details. You can easily copy and paste your name, email and phone in the Zoom chat, preferably in the middle of the networking session, when everyone has arrived and settled in.
Save this contact information block as a DRAFT email to keep it handy. You’ll never worry that you typed so quickly you dropped a digit from your phone number.
Plan your post-conference activity. Take selfie-photos with the attendees you meet and event hosts. Post the pictures individually on LinkedIn with the name (@New Contact) and refer to the idea you discussed. Email the photo (and perhaps the link to the post) to the person with a note about your great conversation, along with the article or contact you promised. Invite them to connect with you on LinkedIn. You’ve started an in-person conversation; keep up the momentum.
