Common Networking Mistakes
The Top Three Slip-ups that Every Budding Networker Should Avoid
For many people, attending networking events can be a stressful experience. Learn how to avoid the most common pitfalls and get the most out of business functions.
Attending networking events can be a great way of getting the word out about a business. They also offer businesspeople the opportunity to make valuable connections with people who may want to purchase or promote their products. However, there are a few pit-falls that individuals new to the world of business networking might find themselves tumbling into. These mistakes can easily be avoided, as long as individuals are prepared and know what to expect from the networking environment.
Being Impolite
There are a number of things that violate networking etiquette:
- Interrupting people when they are talking
- Talking for an extended period of time about oneself
- Not asking other people who they are and what they do
- Barging into a group when it is clear that they do not want to be disturbed
- Blatantly looking for the next person to talk to
Aggressive Sales Tactics Are Not Appropriate
Networking events are not the place for business owners to be aggressively promoting their products or distributing company pamphlets. This will only serve to irritate the individuals that they come into contact with and will probably eliminate any chances they have of developing mutually beneficial links with people. If it appears that somebody might be interested in the company, products or services then a separate meeting should be scheduled.
Do Not Talk to the Same Person all Night
Making a connection with somebody and getting into an interesting and animated discussion with them can be a great experience. However, conversations with people at networking events should be kept short and sweet. After all, everyone is there to make as many beneficial contacts as they can. This cannot be done by only partaking in two conversations all night. To give business owners the best chance of connecting with the maximum amount of useful contacts, they should spend no more than five minutes with each individual.
Getting Drunk
Although it can be tempting to down a few glasses of wine for Dutch courage, this approach can quickly backfire. In "The Jelly Effect', published by Capstone in April 2007, Andy Bounds says that a good networker will ‘always drink less than everybody else.’ Of course, the safest option is to abstain from drinking at business events altogether. That way, networkers will be on the ball and alert at all times, ready to take advantage of any opportunities that come their way. If drinking is unavoidable, the aim should be to have a couple of glasses before moving onto the soft drinks. An eye should also be kept out for overzealous drinks waiters topping up glasses.
Other Resources
There are a number of tools that can prove useful in your quest to become a better networker. “The Jelly Effect” has already been mentioned in this article but other helpful books include: “The Professional Women’s Guide to Networking” by Beth Caldwell, “Savvy Networking” by Andrea Nierenberg and “Power Networking” by Marc Kramer. These books are all available from Amazon.
If you are unsure about where to find your nearest networking event, there are a variety of online listings that you can explore. For functions in the UK you can visit www.business-scene.com and in the USA you can go to www.searchforevents.com, although if you Google "networking events" many more websites will be displayed. Also, read this Suite 101 article for more advice on how to get the most out of your networking experience.
