August 10th, 2011
Welcome back to part two of our four-part series on creating a successful networking event. In this installment, we’ll address ways to get people to attend your event.
Spread the Word
It may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people start planning an event with the best of intentions, but then it turns out to be a “secret meeting.” In other words, nobody knew about the meeting except for you and a couple of close contacts. Don’t worry about over-inviting right now, just get the word out. If you find you’re having a very high number of commitments and approaching maximum capacity, then you can ease off the inviting for a bit. Create some flyers or handouts to distribute not only to your contacts, but also for your contacts to pass along to their contacts. Depending on the size of your event, you may also want to purchase targeted Facebook pay-per-click ads or post flyers around the area. If your event is open to the public, be sure to add your event to sites like Meetup.com.
Refreshments
Remember, this is a networking event, not an entertaining event. People are here to meet and greet and find new business contacts, not to pig out. Keep the refreshments light and easy to eat (a good rule of thumb is: nothing that requires a fork or sticks in your teeth). Avoid any hors d’oerves with garlic or onion, or any other strong flavors that would make attendees self-conscious about speaking in close proximity to others while networking. Most people will do nothing more than nibble, so keep the snacks simple: water and coffee, crackers and cheese, perhaps a bit of fruit. This expense should be minimal.
Prepare the Participants
It’s a good idea to let your attendees know what to expect. For example, if you’re planning a small event in someone’s home, you might let the participants know how many people are coming, so they can plan to bring enough business cards plus any flyers, brochures, samples, etc. that they would like to share. A possible agenda might look like this:
7:00-7:15pm Meet and greet
7:15-7:20pm Welcome and introduction
7:20-8:30pm Each participant gets the floor for 5-7 minutes, round robin style
8:30-9:00pm Freestyle networking
Alternatively, for a larger event, you may choose to have refreshments provided by a sponsor or local company (or food vendor). Even if your event uses freestyle networking only, you would want to make an announcement about 30 minutes into the event, to introduce yourself, thank everyone for coming, thank the sponsor for providing the food and drink, and encourage everyone to mingle.
Don’t forget to secure your audiovisuals for the event. A DVD rental projector from Projector123.com is the perfect addition to any sized networking gathering, and at $95 per rental, you can’t beat the price. Click here now to visit Projector123.com.
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