Are you like most people who hate networking? You are not alone.

There is a misconception that prevents most solo-entrepreneurs from networking success. Just going to events and exchanging business cards won’t improve your list and generate positive income. When you get home, the business cards get filed for a ‘rainy date’ and most likely that date doesn’t come. Months later when you dig out the old shoe box, you feel it’s been too long to establish contact. You don’t have a follow-up system, and it’s killing your business.

When I work with clients and ask if they have a follow-up system, most of the time the answer is ‘I don’t know the right waiting period to contact the people I met. I don’t know what to say. Or, I don’t really know the best way to promote my business.’

Networking is much more than just shaking hands and exchanging business cards. Before you attend an event you need to be prepared, but your job doesn’t stop at the end of the evening. The event is just the first step of the networking process.

Avoid the 3 Most Common Networking Mistakes:

1. You don’t know your target market. When you attend a networking group without picking the right target market, you will not get quality contacts. Select a networking group because it is related to your market. Don’t select one just because you saw an advertisement for a random event, because you will be setting yourself up for disappointment. Don’t waste your time and money schmoozing with people who have no need for your products and services. Fish where the fish are.

2. You don’t’ have a spiel. You may stammer or have to rethink your answer to the first question asked after your name: “What do you do?” You are the expert on your business. You must explain your business consistently and be able to define your services or goods in one or two sentences. Don’t use industry jargon, management speak or clichés. Instead, explain the benefit of your products and services and why you are the right person to fix their problems. People don’t really care about everything you do; they care about what you can do for them. Prepare and memorize a consistent and effective elevator pitch.

3. You don’t have a successful follow-up plan. When you attend networking events you will come home with piles of business cards. What you do with those cards is the most important part of networking. With too many business owners, the cards end up in a shoe box or sitting around for months. If you don’t have a follow-up system you will become overwhelmed with the amount of business cards piling up. Essentially, at that point, the cards and the contacts you spent money and countless hours making become useless.

You need a successful follow-up system. People won’t buy from you after a 3 to 5 minute conversation at a networking event, so you will need to contact people a certain numbers of times before you’ll see results. Statistics show that we need to hear or see the same message at least 7 times for it to sink in. Big brands and big companies keep making commercials even though the whole world knows their product; it’s because they never want you to forget!

How you will follow-up with your contacts?

You need to work out a plan before your next event. Will you first send an email, a post card, a brochure, a greeting card, or do you call? How often will you connect with people? Once a week, once a month, quarterly? If you have a system in place you won’t have to wonder what the next step each time you will meet a new contact, you won’t have to waste the time winging it. Your marketing plan will become more efficient, leaving you with more time. And we could all use more time.

-Knowing your target market allow you to choose better networking events and weed out contacts that you won’t be able to turn into clients.
-Having an polished elevator pitch will help you attract more clients and more referrals.
-Generating an effective follow-up system will allow you to turn more contacts into clients.

Do you want to learn how to avoid those 3 common networking mistakes and turn all your contacts into paying clients, download my free audio “Networking Made Easy” at www.PowerofNetworkingSecrets.com