From Handshake to Deal: Mastering the Art of the Post-Event Follow-Up
Ever feel like your networking efforts vanish into thin air after the event? You're not alone.
As a business owner, sales professional, or marketer, your time is valuable. Effective networking is essential for building relationships, generating leads, and driving business growth. But simply collecting connections isn't enough. The key to maximising your networking ROI lies in the follow-up.
So you're back from a great networking event. You made some great new contacts and had some productive conversations which you kept notes of using your Profyle digital business card. What's next?
Follow ups!
Arguably the most important part of networking is following up. This maintains the momentum you've created, allows you to nurture new relationships and follow through on the promises you made. Trust and credibility are the bedrocks of any relationship and a prompt follow up will immediately start to build this for you.
Why should I follow up?
The benefits to prompt and well crafted follow ups are numerous:
Turn first conversations into real relationships by building trust, credibility and confidence
This will help you move from casual acquaintances to a valued part of their network and make them feel like the time they spent with you was worthwhile and productive.Convert opportunities into actions
If you've promised something (a meeting, a product brochure, pricing information, testimonials an introduction to someone else), then this is your chance to convert your words into actions. Conversely, not following through on your promises will harm your ability to build a relationship, make you look unreliable and severely hamper your ability to drive value from your new connection.Be top of mind
If you want your new connection to be thinking about you, your products or service offerings - then you want to be top of mind. A follow up after an event provides an excellent opportunity to remain top of mind and increase the probability of turning a conversation at a networking event into value for you both.ROI
Your time is valuable. Effective follow ups will help you to drive return on your investment of time that you've spent attending events.
When to follow up
TLDR: whenever you said you would.
If you didn't specify when you would follow up, a good rule is the next business day, or at most within 48 hours. This will demonstrate your professionalism and keep you top of mind.
If you met at a conference or they said they were taking some time off, then it might be appropriate to delay the follow up to a more convenient time. Make a note of this in your calendar or CRM tool.
Of course, if you used your Profyle Card, some of the hard work has already been done for you. A record of your new contacts is saved within your Profyle Card account, and any new contacts have been emailed your details and any short notes they made on your conversation. But this does not remove the need for a personal touch.
What to include in a follow up
Your follow up will depend on next steps you will have discussed, but it's a good idea to include the following:
A reminder of where you met and perhaps who introduced you both (unless it was an organic meeting)
A recap of who you are and links to any helpful information
A personal touch to demonstrate genuine interest. Do some homework on the person and company - check their website or LinkedIn so you can refer to something relevant.
A quick summary of what you discussed
Next steps (a call to action) and any promises made, for example attaching links or documents, making recommendations or other referrals.
Keep the tone friendly, personal and professional, for example:
Hi Graham, it was great to meet you at the Advertising Expo yesterday. I enjoyed our conversation about new ways to reach target audiences. Thanks for pointing me towards at your recent LinkedIn article on calculating ROI of advertising, I'll certainly be using some of these concepts! I'd love to continue our discussion on a call. Do you have some availability later this week, perhaps Friday morning? As promised, please find attached some information on Acme Co's new service that we talked about and you can read more on our website [link].
If you discussed a potential partnership: Include a brief outline of the partnership opportunity and your proposed next steps.
If you offered to share resources: Provide links to relevant articles, case studies, or white papers.
If you promised an introduction: Make the introduction promptly and cc the person you're connecting them with.
I'd also recommend keeping things short and sweet. You can (and should) follow up again in a few days if you don't hear back. Don't be afraid to try a different approach in your second follow-up – perhaps offer a different resource or suggest a brief phone call.
Conclusion
Did I miss anything? Do you have any other tips for how to follow up on networking events? Let me know in the comments.
Recommended Reading 📖
Building and nurturing networks is not a new topic, and the following seminal reads are great resources on the value of relationships and how to build them.
The Trusted Advisor: 20th Anniversary Edition Paperback David H Maister, Robert Galford, Charles Green
This 20th-anniversary edition of "The Trusted Advisor" updates its classic framework for building client relationships in the digital age, emphasizing that technical skill alone is insufficient for professional success. It introduces the "trust equation" and outlines five key steps—engage, listen, frame, envision, and commit—to cultivate client trust. The book provides practical guidance and real-world examples to help professionals effectively navigate complex relationships and become trusted advisors.
Never Eat Alone and Who's Got Your Back Keith Ferrazzi
Ferrazzi is a strong advocate for "relationship capital" and building a network of mutually beneficial relationships. He discusses strategies for staying in touch, providing value, and being generous with your connections. Never Eat Alone focuses on building the network, while Who's Got Your Back delves more into the support aspect, which is a key part of maintaining valuable relationships.
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion Robert Cialdini
Cialdini's work on reciprocity is crucial for understanding why providing value to your network is so important. His book explores the psychology behind why people are more likely to help those who have helped them.
Give and Take: Why Helping Others Drives Our Success Adam Grant
Grant explores the power of generosity in business and life. He argues that givers, those who prioritise helping others, are ultimately more successful in the long run. This mindset is essential for effective network maintenance.
Find your 9others Katie Lewis & Matthew Stafford
9others founders Lewis and Stafford will help you discover the questions you should be asking yourself as you start and scale your own start up, and why you should go on your own journey to find your 9others.
To help exchange and collect details from the people you meet, a digital business card from Profyle Card is a great way to stand out from the crowd.
Please note that some links in this article may include affiliate links to Amazon. To sign up for a free 30 day trial of Amazon Prime and enjoy one day delivery on millions of items click here. For access to 200,000+ audio books on Audible including thousands of business and networking titles, start your free 30 day trial.
Thanks for including the @9others book Chris 🙂