Unique Magazine December 2014
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3. Prepare. Most networking meetings have an introductions round - at 4Networking we<br />
call it the 40 Second round. This is your opportunity to engage with the other people in the<br />
room. Prepare it like you would any other marketing material. Write it down and, even<br />
better, record it on your smartphone to make sure it is the right length and that it sounds<br />
like you.<br />
You wouldn't "wing it" with any of your other marketing material. Don't do it here.<br />
20<br />
4. ALWAYS follow up. What happens when you leave the networking meeting? You<br />
check your 'phone. Wonder why you've got a missed call from your child's school,<br />
wonder why your best client has Emailed you and realise you're now running late for<br />
your next call.<br />
In short, you start to forget the conversations you had. And everyone else is the same.<br />
So you have the opportunity to be the one who stands out by always remembering to<br />
follow up. Call the people you have met and arrange to have a second, longer<br />
conversation with them. Don't wait for them to come to you.<br />
n<br />
ice<br />
ale<br />
5. Join up your networking with social media. You don't "get" Twitter or LinkedIn? Tough.<br />
It's too late to pretend that social media isn't going to affect business. You have the<br />
opportunity to be regularly in touch with your prospects on social media. You have the<br />
opportunity to remind them of your expertise. You have the opportunity to be there at<br />
exactly the moment when they realise they need your service.<br />
The things is, your competitors have that opportunity too. You may be better at what you<br />
do than your competitors. But they are better at keeping in touch on social media. Learn<br />
how to use it properly. Find someone in your networking group who can help you. But<br />
don't pretend you can do without it.<br />
The world is joined up online now and the people who are truly benefitting are those who<br />
realise that face to face relationships are even more important than ever. Those who join<br />
up their real life and virtual relationships build the strongest connections and the most<br />
mutually profitable networking.<br />
Got any networking tips of your own? Share them<br />
with Stefan on Twitter @NoRedBraces or you can<br />
find him on LinkedIn, Google+, Facebook and<br />
Instagram.<br />
Stefan is the author of the Amazon bestselling<br />
Business Networking for Dummies and Network<br />
Director of 4Networking - running over 5000<br />
breakfast lunch and evening meetings in the UK<br />
every year.<br />
GET THE BOOK HERE<br />
www.uniquemediagroup.co.uk
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