6 tips for those who want to make new acquaintances at a conference, and not just "exchange business cards"

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Any major event - be it a conference or a barcamp - today is a great place to establish business contacts and get into the circle of people with unique skills, ideas and often opportunities. But due to the lack of time and communication skills, developers, newly minted startup managers and even many bloggers turn their “trip to the conference” into a dull exchange of business cards and bury themselves on their smartphones. Undoubtedly, exchange of business cards and contact information in general is an important part of modern business communication … Just do not dwell solely on this.

Any new interlocutor a new acquaintance or a chance meeting at a conference is a unique case from which you can (and should!) "pull out" more than just another business card for your collection (by the way, if you haven't digitized the collected paper business cards yet, you should do it as soon as possible). Here are some important, albeit fairly simple ways. take networking to the next level.

It is clear that everyone who meets on the sidelines or even at a thematic discussion during the conference usually sees each other for the first time (especially if the conference is very large). The interlocutors should be introduced to a friend to a friend: In addition to exchanging business cards, have people say a few words about themselves and what they are working on.

It is worth coming to conferences, barcamps and various thematic meetings well in advance. The opportunity to network before the event officially starts will allow you to meet more people than during or after the conference.

Before arriving for a conference or barcamp, do not forget to brush up on key figures and facts about the industry, check out the list of attendees and speakers. Go through the blogs and news feeds to remind yourself of key facts, accomplishments, interesting details about who will be at this conference.

Do not forget to ask questions during reports, discussions in sections … And of course, not only ask, but listen carefully. Ability to listen and hear at conferences is often more valuable to you than being able to speak yourself.

Don't forget about official hashtags for events on Twitter and on the conference / barcamp pages on Facebook. What you missed for some reason will always be there.

Do not miss the opportunity to continue your acquaintance and communication outside the last conference, do not reduce everything to a banal pack of business cards and the promise to "call / write later." Drinking coffee or finding a reason for informal / formal negotiations is one of the key tools for generating new ideas and projects in your work (remember that the book “Never Eat Alone” was written for a reason).

Networking itself is not bad. But do not forget to expand its boundaries and flexibly use all the opportunities for business communication and meeting new interesting people in offline life.