Joining Up Your Networking: Why Going to Events Is Only Half the Story

Joining Up Your Networking: Why Going to Events Is Only Half the Story

When people ask me to coach them on networking skills and help them get better results, they usually start out expecting that we will just talk about networking. What they are often looking for is to become “better” at networking in isolation. Better at walking into a room. Better at their 60 seconds. Better at making small talk.

And those things matter. But they are rarely the whole problem.

I’ve worked with hundreds of people over the years and, whilst there is no single solution, very often the way to get better results from networking is to look at the whole picture. What you do outside the events matters just as much as what you do inside them.

In order for business networking to consistently lead to sales, there are a number of things that make a huge difference. Most people do some of these well. I know a handful of people who do all of them, and the results they get are quite something.

Here are the elements I think matter most.

A killer 40 or 60 second introduction

This is often the easiest win available and, even on its own, will lead to more enquiries and referrals. I write introductions for a lot of my clients and help them update them regularly, which matters more than most people realise. What troubles me is seeing people invest serious time and money into their networking without having a planned, rehearsed introduction ready when they stand up. Like any part of your marketing, this is worth spending real time on, getting outside advice on, and updating based on feedback. Even if that feedback is silent.

A plan for your one-to-ones

Whether it is the ten-minute in-meeting chat or a longer one-to-one outside the event, these conversations are not just meant to be a nice catch-up, though so often that is exactly what happens. What is your plan? What will you talk about? Remember, you are not there to sell to them. And will you actually take any action as a result of the conversation?

A plan for the meeting itself

Be there early. Stay after it finishes. Do both with purpose. There is a social element to every networking event I have ever been to, and there is nothing wrong with that. But whether the event is fifty percent productive or ninety percent productive is largely up to you. You set the pace.

A structure for following up

I have been saying this for years and I will keep saying it: most people leave the responsibility for following up to the other person. Do not do that. Whether your follow-up is active or passive, do something. Every big opportunity starts with a little conversation, and your job is to keep those conversations going. A simple CRM and a clear follow-up plan will put you ahead of the vast majority of people in any networking group.

A product or service that is easy to buy

No matter how good your networking, people need to know exactly what you are selling and how to buy it. You need to understand that clearly yourself before you can help your networking contacts understand it. When you make what you do easy to understand, you dramatically increase your chances of getting referrals. People refer what they can explain easily.

Clarity on the referrals you actually want

Just as important as being clear about what you offer is being specific about the referrals you are looking for. Do not leave your busy networking contacts with the job of working that out. Think about it yourself, be specific, and make it easy for people to help you.

A website that works

A website that helps people understand what you do and how to work with you has been essential since the late nineties. Even with LinkedIn profiles, Facebook pages, and everything else, your website is still the hub. It is your shopfront. Many of us need more than one site to reflect the different sides of what we do. Either way, it needs to work properly and make it easy for people to take the next step.

Being the first to bring value

The people who become known as the “go to” person in any networking group are almost always the ones who give first. That means actively looking for referrals for others, sharing useful information, making introductions, spotting opportunities. This does not mean giving your services away for free, though it often gets misread that way. It means being genuinely generous with your attention and your network.

An active social media presence

Staying visible between meetings is what keeps you front of mind. But this does not just mean scheduling posts and walking away. It means understanding where your contacts actually spend time online, whether that is LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, or YouTube, and showing up there consistently. Engagement is the point. Most people will not bother, which means the ones who do stand out immediately. Effort is currency.

A content marketing strategy

“We have written some blogs” is not a strategy. Neither is a blog that only talks about your own business updates. Creating blogs, articles, videos, and podcasts with genuine purpose can add an enormous amount to your networking results. Good content demonstrates that you know your stuff, helps you bring value to relationships at scale, and educates your prospective clients so they arrive already convinced. It takes effort, but it compounds.

Email marketing

I have lost count of the number of times I have heard “email marketing is dead.” It is not. For my own events, I can track sales directly back to specific email campaigns. I can see someone open the email, visit the site, and book. Open rates are lower than they were ten years ago, of course they are, but the person who is reading every email you send is exactly the person you should be speaking to today. Do not ignore them.

Traditional marketing

Leaflet drops, exhibiting at shows, targeted direct mail, postcards, print advertising. Just because social media exists does not mean these stop working. A lot of my contacts get brilliant results from approaches that predate the internet entirely. Do not ignore something just because it is not new.

PR

The opportunity most businesses miss because they do not quite understand how it works. Being seen everywhere creates a powerful cumulative effect. Imagine someone reads something you wrote online, then hears you mentioned on a podcast, then sees you quoted in the trade press. That is all completely achievable for any small business, anywhere. Most will not bother, which is exactly why you should.

Sales

Still a dirty word for too many business owners, and yet it is the key that unlocks everything above. Understanding what you are selling and how to sell it confidently transforms businesses. All of the above creates the conditions. Sales is where it converts.

Putting it all together

Every day I work with clients I try to look at joining up as many of these elements as possible, or as many as they can take on at once. Getting three or four of these right puts most business owners ahead of the majority of their competition. Getting six or seven right is genuinely powerful.

You do not have to do everything at once. Pick the areas where you know you are weak and start there. Small improvements across multiple elements add up quickly.

If you would like help working out where to focus, my Networking Success Programme walks you through a proven process for turning your business conversations into clients. Or if you are looking for a business networking keynote speaker for your next event, I would love to talk. Either way, you know where to find me.

Stefan Thomas is a keynote speaker, corporate trainer, and author of Business Networking for Dummies.