Croissants vs. Bagels: Strategic, Effective, and Inclusive Networking at Conferences by Robbie Samuels

Author:Robbie Samuels [Samuels, Robbie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Movement Publishing
Published: 2017-07-22T22:00:00+00:00

How to Follow Up

Exchanging business cards does not indicate you are establishing a relationship. Evidence of this is when you actually make plans to reconnect. So stop obsessing over collecting as many business cards as possible, because all you end up with then is a stack of business cards on your desk. Focus instead on having conversations where you leave the person wanting to talk further.

Remember, networking is about building

relationships, not collecting business cards.

Are You Good at Follow Up?

Of course, actually following up is key to building relationships. When I present my Art of the Schmooze session, I ask participants to raise their hand if they are good at follow up—only a few tentative hands go up. This is why it’s important to have strategic goals and a networking plan. Know before you even leave for the event why you’re going and who you hope to meet.

Be Prepared

In the “Be Strategic” section, I recommended writing a draft of your follow-up email before you go to an event. Writing this draft message will guide you through the steps of identifying who you’re most excited to meet (either a specific person or a general description), what you hope to talk about, and what you want them to know about you.

You’ll find a specific guide for writing this draft email in the “Resources” section.

Be Confident

Writing this email draft will also help you get in the right mindset before going to the event. You’ll enter more confident and with a stronger sense of purpose. Having clear goals and a strategy will help you meet people you’ll want to stay connected with after the event. Don’t lose track of these priority connections.

Track Priority Connections

At the event, separate the cards you were handed after only a brief conversation, from the ones where you spoke in-depth. This could be different pockets or just by turning down the corner of the cards you want to prioritize.

Doing this will make it easy to identify which people you want to prioritize following up with after the event. Ideally, you would also write a note on the back of each business card to remind yourself where you met, what you discussed, and any specific follow up you had planned to do (or asked them to do).

Take a Photo

Personally, I like the physical reminder of receiving a business card, but I’ve also met people who have found it useful to take a picture of the business cards they want to prioritize. If you are disciplined about organizing your photos after each event, this may work well for you.

The Evernote app has several features that make it possible to scan business cards, add notes, and set reminders to follow up. With LinkedIn and Evernote integration there are even more possibilities.11

Even if you take home a stack of business cards from a conference, it might still be a good idea to take photos of priority business cards—so you don’t risk losing them in the chaos of packing, traveling, and unpacking.

Follow Through

Since you already have

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