Networking is an important part of growing your business and is a crucial part of marketing your business. You can attend networking events for businesses to grow your business contacts and get your businesses name circulating through the community. If you use business networking events for marketing your business, you will see a huge growth in your marketing attempts, and this will pay off in a huge way down the road.

Finding Business Networking Events

It’s actually quite simple to find local business networking events since the wonderful internet and social media is at your disposal. There are many ways to find them, you just need to know where to look. Facebook is a great way to find business networking events, and if you already have friends on Facebook that attend networking events, you can simply ask them to send you invites or you can join a group and never miss one again. An alternative to this is the awesome sit that is Meetup.com. You simply put in what you’re looking for in your area and it will find all of them available.

Before the Event

There are a few things you want to have taken care of before you attend your event. First, make sure you have eaten beforehand, some might offer finger foods, but it’s hard to actually network with a plate of food in your hand. Write down what you want to achieve before you attend the event. Ask yourself questions about what your most important goals are that you want to meet by attending the event. Make sure that you dress accordingly, some network events have dress codes that you need to follow.

During the Event

If you allow yourself to show up early you will beat most people to the punch and it will be much easier to talk to other people before the huge crowd comes in. Even if you’re feeling nervous and not confident, act as though you are. Make sure to smile and seem inviting and personable, nobody wants to approach someone who looks miserable and doesn’t want to be there. Make sure to spend plenty of time meeting new people, which is what the event is for! Don’t spend the whole time talking to people you already know, take a step outside of you comfort zone and introduce yourself to new people.

After the Event

If you have obtained contact information for a few people, make sure to contact them within 24 hours after the event. You want them to know that you are interested in pursuing a business relationship with them. If you really hit it off with someone, why not invite them out for a cup of coffee or lunch? This will give you time to get to know them even more and to possibly grow your business even more. 

Burnside | A technology professional with more than two decades of experience writing.  He has served as contributing author for ‘Talking Tech’ Column in the Pride of Durham News Paper(NC), and has an ongoing contribution here on CyrilBurnside.  He is a professional services consultant with PC99Solutions, an IT consulting firm for small business. Contact us today and watch your online business grow.