Effective Networking - The Follow Up

Here at Business Butler, we understand the importance of networking opportunities for small businesses and SMEs. Networking can have a range of benefits and its key that you are able to make the most of any opportunities.

We have put together the following list of ways to be effective in your networking and that you make the most out of any new contacts…

Set aside time after the event

It can become quite overwhelming when you’ve met many different people and businesses at events and wish to follow up with them afterward. Set aside some time to go through business cards, sort new contacts into different categories such as leads, potential partners and useful contacts and add people to your LinkedIn.

Annotate business cards

When you meet a contact at an event it’s a great idea to make some quick notes on the back of their business card after the event. This will allow you to remember key things you discussed, when and when you met them, and to ensure you remember who they are for any future events or correspondence.

Use a business card app

Storing hard copies of people’s business cards is becoming a thing of the past, you can help ensure you don’t lose a business card again by using a business card app. An app such as Gather Capture and ABBYY allow you to scan a business card which is then converted into a digital profile within the app for that contact. Here you can add further notes, contact them and even add their headshot to keep a record of each of your new contacts.

Identify your goals for each contact

The contacts that you meet will have varying importance to your business and its needs. It’s important for you to assess the importance of each contact to your business and then determine who should be prioritized. Some contacts may be disregarded from the start, such as those who gave you their card without taking the time to speak to you or immediately pitched their product at you.

Other contacts may fall into the categories of useful/interesting contacts, people you have a specific reason to follow up with and those you wish to build a relationship with.

Taking the time to analyse your new connections and decide which people are worth you following up with can save you time in the long run and ensure that you are building a network of contacts who you can benefit from in the future.

You can find out more about small business networking opportunities in Swansea by searching Eventbrite.