I've been to a couple of networking events in the last week - the Business South trade show and a Business Link meeting in my home town.
At both I heard a clear message being presented - people are reluctant to engage. Business Link's speaker, ex-BBC man Roy Sheppard, was blunt about it. "Most of you want to run away at this point," he said, when we were asked to talk to someone we didn't know.
He was making a joke but the fact that over forty business people turned out to hear him explain how to network effectively was proof that it's not a skill many of us are comfortable with. And our town was only one stop on a road show of multiple venues in the south.
At Business South I watched the usual dance between exhibitors and visitors - the former lying in wait at their stalls, trying to catch the eye of passers-by and inject a quick "hello" to open a conversation; the latter scurrying past with their eyes firmly fixed on something in the distance.
I'm sure that part of the mystery and worry about networking is because we don't have a clear understanding of why we do it. There's an expectation, often self-imposed, that networking is a very thin veneer for selling. And most of us don't enjoy selling.
My approach to networking is not to proactively promote what I do. I want to hear what people have to say to me, which may include their sales pitch. I listen politely and ask questions about what they do and why. I demonstrate interest but make no promises. If I think I can share their information with someone who'd genuinely find it useful, I tell them so. I don't offer them a business card but I'll give one if they ask, which is quite often.
Inevitably when someone is talking to me they'll ask what I do, so I tell them and I explain the benefits of copywriting to businesses. I believe they listen more attentively because they've invited me to speak and they usually ask more questions and, at some point, request a card.
For me networking is about building a web of contacts. I can't predict what value they'll be to me in the future, nor I to them.
But one thing I do know: if I never make the effort to speak to them I'll never become a part of their network, nor they of mine. So ideally I want to talk to everyone, and I suggest that you do too.
Article by Andrew Knowles, freelance copywriter.
