.svg)
March 24, 2022
blog
Are you a networking guru?
Not yet?
Don’t worry–few are.
But it’s smart to strive to become one. Networking is good for business, no matter whether you’re an industry professional, salesperson, startup founder, business owner, or anyone else looking to make connections with like-minded individuals.
Mobilo is here to help you graduate to better, more effective networking with five simple and easy-to-implement secrets. Taking action on even one of these recommendations can do wonders for the connections you make and the results you get.
Some of us are blessed with the gift of gab, but most of us aren’t.
If you’re not, when speaking to others, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. Especially when talking with people you don’t know well, there are three conversation tools that are guaranteed to make you likable:
Can’t find something to say? Give a compliment or ask a question. When the other individual replies, try to find a broader topic that you both relate to (common ground).
It’s not as if you should turn into a robot, but many of us struggle with awkward pauses with people we don’t know well. The next time you feel tension in the air, remember one of the above three conversation tools to keep things moving.
Purely business relationships have their purpose–but oftentimes, the strongest business connections come from two individuals who genuinely know each other well. That’s why it’s common to develop business relationships outside of the office.
You might not be hanging out with every connection you make in a personal setting, but that doesn’t mean every interaction you have has to be strictly business. For example, if you’re waiting for people to trickle into a Zoom meeting, try asking if anyone has seen any good movies or TV shows recently. If two people have watched something similar, that’s an instant connection. And all it took was a simple question to get the relationship started!
In person, it’s wise to get to know the other individual on a personal level in almost any setting. For example, imagine you’re a small business owner. Dozens of individuals come through your door every day. If you do minimal networking, individuals will come back to your store only if they need the wares you sell. But, if you form relationships with the individuals in your store, they won’t just come because of your wares–they’ll come because of their relationship with you.
The above is a small example of the power of mixing personal with business. Even the strongest of relationships, both personal and business, usually start with casual conversation. You never know where things might lead, so take the initiative and start getting to know the other individual on a personal level as is appropriate.
Outside of formal conversations where many individuals are involved and small talk needs to be minimized to keep communications efficient, you usually can’t go wrong trying to form more of a personal connection. In fact, talking strictly business has the potential to bore you and the other person–leading to yawns, and preventing any meaningful connection from forming in the first place.
Mobilo smart business cards allow you to completely transform how you connect with new people.
In the past, the primary way to give people your information was by handing them a paper business card. Although this method is technically functional, it’s a bit outdated:
Mobilo changes everything with one simple tap. With four unique modes, you have the ability to easily connect with individuals in both casual and formal situations.
Mobilo is more efficient and useful than paper business cards are, especially considering the Personal Landing Page and Link to Any URL modes can be used outside of traditional information exchanges in many casual settings.
Lastly, Mobilo makes you memorable–an essential part of effective networking.
They’ll be saying, “I remember that person; they had that very cool business card.”
If you go on a first date and it goes well, do you wait four months to follow up?
Probably not. And if you do, your results probably aren’t spectacular.
The same applies to networking. Follow up fast. In fact, following up immediately is far better than waiting too long. You want to take the positive energy from your initial interaction and build on it before it dissipates.
When you follow up, don’t just say who you are. Instead, get the conversation started. Questions are a fantastic way to do that, and volunteering resources for discussion that were pertinent to your prior discussion is also a surefire way to move forward.
The wrong way to follow up is by being overly pushy. Don’t try to sell them on anything yet. Don’t ask them questions that lead into sales tactics unless your initial interaction was relevant to that approach. You want to draw people into wanting to connect with you–not try to force them into doing something. Although, you should feel free to ask them about their products and services–they’ll be more than happy to talk about those.
Even with the proper followup tactics, not every relationship will be strong as steel right off the bat–and that’s okay. Nurture the relationship by following up every so often (every couple of weeks to every month or two); again, use thought-provoking questions and relevant resources to get the conversation going.
Mobilo automatically saves all of your networking contact information, and you can conveniently tag contacts with any notes about your past conversations, which makes following up in a personal manner a breeze. From the Mobilo dashboard, download your list of contacts to an Excel file or pipe them straight into your CRM. Mobilo supports over 3,000 CRM integrations to make your life as easy as possible.
So far, we’ve covered the following:
All in all, if you aren’t a social butterfly, you might not love the secrets we’ve given you so far. They undeniably work–but they also might make you feel uncomfortable, and we naturally tend to avoid situations that are uncomfortable to us.
Although it may seem counterintuitive, you need to learn to love being uncomfortable when you network.
New relationships are almost always uncomfortable at one point or another. Instead of dreading that discomfort, relish it. Know that if you are uncomfortable, that means you are usually taking the right steps towards success.
At the start, executing this idea may seem like torture. But soon, with some practice, something very interesting will happen–you’ll stop feeling so uncomfortable. You’ll be able to talk to anyone, anywhere, and always have something interesting to say to keep the conversation flowing. You’ll be one of those people who seem to just “get” networking, and your business results will reflect that prowess.
There is, of course, a caveat. Don’t simply try to feel uncomfortable for the sake of being uncomfortable. If you’re about to send an email talking about a very controversial subject with a brand new connection and you start feeling uncomfortable–maybe act on that instinct and talk about something a bit more mainstream for now. Similarly, if you and another individual simply aren’t vibing, you don’t need to push the envelope and try to develop a connection at all costs–some things just aren’t meant to be.
But when it makes sense to feel uncomfortable, learn to love that feeling. It means you’re on the right track, and over time, with practice, you’ll stop feeling any sort of negative emotions related to networking.
Many lists of networking tips will put social media front row and center. While social media is important, we don’t believe it’s the single most important facet of effective networking.
Here’s why: Real connections aren’t usually made on social media. Think of how many people you follow. How many of them do you know really well? Probably only a few.
Real relationships are usually formed with in-depth one-on-one conversations, not likes and shares. However, social media does still play an important role in networking:
Feel free to ask for social media profile links directly when you connect with another individual. Or, if you see them in an email signature–there’s no harm in dropping a follow and liking some of their recent posts.
You might also choose to share your own social profiles via the Personal Landing Page mode on your Mobilo card. When they follow you, follow them back.
Just don’t rely too much on social media and expect it to do all of the work for you. Unless you’re an influencer, social media is probably going to be most helpful as a supplementary resource to your other networking efforts.
If you were expecting a super sneaky secret to becoming a networking guru, we’re sorry to disappoint. There (unfortunately) isn’t a single magical phrase that will make valuable connections appear at your feet.
But with the right conversation tactics, a smart business card like Mobilo, the right frequency and candor of followup, learning to love being uncomfortable, and the right amount of social media usage, you will quickly graduate from a networking novice to one of those people who seems to know everyone–and you’ll reap the benefits of being such a networking savant.
Go forth, take action, and start making more, higher-quality connections with the secrets described above. Make sure to pick up a Mobilo smart business card to make your networking efforts significantly more effective as you go along.
.svg){kind=small}
Get your digital business card today.
.svg){kind=small}
.svg){kind=small}
