NETWORKING EFFECTIVELY MEANS ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTION & THEN ‘LISTENING’
I think the theory behind the words is more important that the exact words. With the theory, you can use whatever words work for you.
Networking is about building alliances. NETWORKING EFFECTIVELY MEANS ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTION & THEN ‘LISTENING’
Unfortunately, at networking events, people (especially the untrained or unexperienced) are generally in ‘take mode’.
They want to get their message out and search the room for prospects. If networking were just about doing business with just the people in the room, we’d all starve.
There aren’t enough people in the room (even if we go to networking meetings all day).
Creating alliances is about nurturing relationships where those involved are looking out for one another.
A great way to start that is to network in ‘give mode’ rather than take mode.
I don’t want to start the conversation by telling what I do.
No one wants to begin a relationship with human junk mail. I will matter to the other people in the room if I am a giver.
The other people in the room are spending their time to be in the room because they need something; so, I can matter to them if I do something to try to help them get it.
To me, good starter questions are generally along the lines of:
“What are you looking for in this networking event?”
“ How can I help you find it?
“ There are a lot of people in the room tonight, how will I know if I meet someone who is a prospect for you?”
“ Who is a good prospect for you and how will I know if I find them?”
The best follow up to that is actually finding someone at the networking event and making the introduction for the new ally you are trying to develop.
NETWORKING EFFECTIVELY MEANS ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTION & THEN ‘LISTENING’
I use a hypothetical questions along the lines of,
“Let’s pretend I bump into someone who tells me about a problem. If the first words out of my mouth are, ‘You have to call Dave Smith,’ who did I meet and what’s their problem?
The key isn’t the exact words. It’s asking a question to try to determine what my (potential) ally is looking for and how to help them find it.
Then, I have to be sincerely interested in their answer and actually try to do it.
Networking isn’t about going to networking meetings, it’s about building a network of allies. It may be a very long time before I can find a good prospect for you, maybe never. However, sincere desire to do so, evidenced by action steps like making the effort to know how, is the foundation of an individual alliance or a network of alliances.