The seven habits of effective networkers

The most effective networkers focus on building relationships, rather than trying to sell to people. Amin Vepari, operations director at Enterprise 4 All North West, reveals some of the top tips that came out of a recent collaboration with Boost & Co partner BNI UK.

A question we often get asked by the business owners we work with is ‘How do I become a better networker’? Many people in business want to do more networking, but are unsure how to approach it and often lack the confidence to get the most from it.

We recently collaborated with global business networking group BNI UK to put on an event on this very subject. We were lucky to have BNI UK’s executive director Mike Holman, reveal the seven habits of highly effective networkers. Here’s what effective networkers do:

1. They set networking goals. Networking is a marketing activity and therefore it must show a return on investment of time and money
2. They understand less is more. Many people network too much. Networking success comes from depth of relationships not breadth of relationships
3. They prepare for every event. Always try to get the delegate list in advance so you can do some research on key people you would like to meet
4. They understand networking isn’t selling! Networking is about building relationships not selling to the room. Those that do, well they are effectively cold calling face to face
5. They act as a party host not the party guest! Networking is daunting so imagine it’s your event and you more naturally become a more confident networker
6. They know how to work a room. Some groups are open for people to join them in conversation and others are private, understanding the group dynamics is key to successful networking
7. They follow up. Great networkers always do what they say they will do and they always make time in their diary to follow up with people they have met

We had some excellent feedback from attendees, so much so that we’ve decided to follow-up on this event and make ‘effective networking’ the subject of one of our upcoming Grow-How Masterclasses on June 22.

The event will expand on the tips given above and give attendees the confidence they need to be better networkers. For more details on the event and to register click here.

Boost Business Lancashire offers a wide range of support programmes available for businesses. To discuss any of these programmes further contacts us on 0800 488 0057.