Use Organized Events for Business Networking

Attending organized events may also play a role in your business networking and job search, since this can be an easy way to expand your business network quickly. Here are some popular choices for business and social networking events:

• Chamber of Commerce mixers,
• Service clubs such as Rotary and Kiwanis,
• Trade and professional association meetings in your industry,
• Lectures, workshops, conferences, and fundraisers hosted by educational institutions, community organizations, and affinity groups,
• Social, cultural, and sporting events that include receptions or other mix-and-mingle time,
• Private gatherings organized for the purpose of meeting new people and schmoozing, and
• Job clubs.

You will have more success at this kind of business and social networking if you go back to the same groups over and over than if you keep going to new groups all the time. Find two or three that seem to have the right mix of people, and keep going back.

Follow-up Is the Key to Business Networking

If you don't follow up with the people you meet, though, you are wasting your time in meeting them. You may think that once you have told someone what type of job you are looking for, if they hear of something, they will call you. The truth is that if they have met you only once, they probably don't even remember you, and it's even less likely that they will remember where they put your number.

After meeting someone new, send them a “nice-to-meet-you” note and invite them to attend another event with you or make a date for lunch or coffee. Find out what the two of you have in common, and see if there is an activity you could share.

Building relationships likes this takes time and effort, but relationships are the core of networking. The people in your network should be people you truly enjoy interacting with, because if you’re doing it right, you’ll be spending a lot of time with them.

Says Duron, "Don't limit yourself to just networking in your industry; everyone is interconnected. Getting to know a day care director makes sense even if you don't want a job in day care, because she knows so many people. Waiters and hairdressers are often the first to hear about coming changes that lead to open positions. As long as you have your antennae out and listen, you can connect with anyone."

Don’t expect business and social networking to be a quick fix for your job search. It can take time for your relationship-building efforts to pay off. You need to put in the effort to get to know people, and trust that you will see results from it. But the best time to begin building your business and social network is while you are still employed.

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**C.J. Hayden is the author of Get Hired Now! and Get Clients Now! Since 1992, she has helped thousands of professionals make a better living doing what they love. C.J. is a Master Certified Coach who leads workshops internationally – in person, on the phone, and on the web. Find out more about C.J. and get a free copy of How to Find a Job in 28 Days or Less.