10 Easy Steps To Incorporate Social Media Into Your Networking
- Attending an event? Ask the organiser for the attendees list so that you can select those you want to meet and then search their social media tags in order to connect with them prior to the event, saying “you’re looking forward to meeting them”- a great ice breaker when you finally do meet face to face.
- Follow all events you plan to attend on their social media platforms- most common tend to be Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn and you can then share, ‘like’ and comment in the lead up to include yourself in the mix and let others know you plan to attend, which may then strike up conversations beforehand, giving you more to talk about at the actual event-Engagement at this point is key.
- Be visible at the event itself and tag in both the organisers and guests you’re with and include a photograph/room shot as an added bonus!
- Post and connect via social media after the events you have attended to say it was great to meet that person – follow up with a private message such as “would you like to meet for a coffee?” or “I’d really like to explore how I can help you further going forward” …
- Be efficient – We all know social media is often a job in itself and so make it easier for yourself by downloading the apps to your phone, so that you can connect and interact on the go.
- Manage your social media for your business via platforms such as Hootsuite and Buffer, which are free to download and use for a certain amount of platforms and businesses, in particular they are useful for scheduling posts in advance, so well worth exploring.
- Connect via LinkedIn with those on your target list and don’t ‘cold connect’, send a polite message /introduction/follow up message to those you invite to accept you and try to ensure you only connect with those you have had some form of contact with prior or have mutual connections with already, unless of course you have an agenda or reason for reaching out.
- ALWAYS have a professional head-shot picture on your social media profiles and never use a selfie style shot or even worse no photo at all- people often think you are spam if they don’t see a picture of someone human!
- Keep your profiles professional and regularly updated, people buy people as we know, so remember to add a little about your interests/hobbies so people can attempt to find commonalities ,which will in turn help you build healthy and genuine business relationships.
- I’d like to finish with a quote from social media guru Gary Vaynerchuk, “When people are using their devises, its probable that almost half are networking on social media”, therefore if you’re not, you’re likely to get left behind, so keep up with your competitors and ensure you are in the mix when it comes to networking via social media- Good luck!
Fiona Duncan, RSViP
www.rsvipnetwork.co.uk
www.fionaduncansteer.co.uk
