January 20, 2025 • 17 mins
Networking doesn’t have to be awkward or overwhelming—it just needs a plan!
In this episode, I’m diving into how to create a networking strategy that feels authentic and actually works. I’ll share why having a clear plan is the secret to building meaningful connections, staying consistent, and making the most out of your networking efforts.
You’ll learn:
- Why aimless networking is a waste of time (and how to fix it).
- The key components of a networking plan that works for you.
- How to personalize your follow-ups so they actually lead to results (and not just another ghosted email).
- Simple tools to keep track of warm leads and never let opportunities slip through the cracks.
Plus, I’ll introduce you to my Networking Planner — a game-changing tool to help you stay organized and intentional with your networking efforts. This planner has everything you need to track events, connections, and follow-ups, so you can network with confidence and ease.
Ready to take the stress and overwhelm out of networking?
Tune in now, and let’s build a plan that helps you grow your business, one genuine connection at a time!
Links & References:
Download my free Networking Planner here!
- Join us at our next PWR Virtual Speed Networking Event!
For even deeper connections, check out the Powerful Women Rising Community!
Loved the episode? Here are four ways you can show your support:
1. Buy me a coffee to show your appreciation!
2. Leave a five-star review
3. DM me on Instagram and let me know
4. Share it with a friend!
Connect with Your Host!
Melissa Snow is a Business Relationship Strategist dedicated to empowering women in entrepreneurship. She founded the Powerful Women Rising Community, which provides female business owners with essential support and resources for business growth.
Melissa's other mission is to revolutionize networking, promoting authenticity and genuine connections over sleazy sales tactics. She runs an incredible monthly Virtual Speed Networking Event which you can attend once at no cost using the code FIRSTTIME
She lives in Colorado Springs with two girl dogs, two boy cats and any number of foster kittens. She loves iced coffee, Taylor Swift, and Threads.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to Powerful Women Rising, a podcast for
female entrepreneurs ready to dobusiness their way.
Grab your coffee and join hostMelissa Snow, business
relationship strategist andfounder of the Powerful Women
Rising community, as sheinterviews industry experts and
shares insights on strategy,marketing, mindset and more.
(00:25):
Here you'll find the tools,strategies and inspiration you
need to feel empowered, takebold action in your business and
keep rising.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Hey everybody, welcome back to another episode
of the Powerful Women RisingPodcast.
I'm your host, melissa Snow.
If we haven't met yet, hi, it'sme.
Hi, I am not the problem, I'mthe host.
My name is Melissa Snow.
I am a business relationshipstrategist, I am a networking
(00:56):
expert, but I'm all aboutnetworking without the sleaze.
I'm all about helping youfigure out how to network
effectively to grow yourbusiness, but doing it in a way
that feels true to you.
And that is a really importantpart of what I do.
Because I think sometimes whenpeople hear me say that I'm a
networking expert, they assumethat I'm like really good at
(01:17):
schmoozing, that I'm like veryoutgoing, a total people person,
very polished, put together andlike love to work the room, and
that could not be farther fromthe truth.
I actually get really stressedout in those kinds of situations
.
I do not enjoy the networkingevents where there's no
(01:38):
structure and you just go in andlike have a drink and chat with
whoever.
You have to start your ownconversations with random people
, like that is not the vibe.
I'm actually kind of awkward,I'm an introvert and I still
manage to make networking workfor me.
So if I can do it, you can doit too.
(01:58):
I think I said in the lastinterview I was talking about
something and I was like listen,my shirt is on backwards half
the time, like I don't even knowwhat's going on.
So I all that is to say thatyou can learn to network
effectively without having to besomeone that you're not.
If you are an outgoingextrovert who loves talking to
(02:19):
strangers, you can find a way tonetwork that works for you, and
if you are not, you can alsofind a way to network that works
for you.
And if you are not, you canalso find a way to network that
works for you, and that is whatI'm here to help you do.
I am also the founder of thePowerful Women Rising community,
which is an online communityfor female entrepreneurs, where
you get to grow your businesswith other amazing female
(02:40):
entrepreneurs and you get tonetwork with them in a way that
doesn't add more work to yourplate.
We do co-working calls together.
We do mastermind calls together, where you really get to tap
into the collective wisdom ofthe group and there is a lot of
it and all of these differenttypes of calls are designed to
(03:01):
help you kill two birds with onestone.
You're getting your work done.
You're getting your work done.
You're getting your questionsanswered, you are brainstorming
and coming up with new ideas,figuring out how to overcome
your challenges, and whileyou're doing all of those things
, you are connecting deeper anddeeper with the other women in
the group, so you are becomingeach other's support system.
You're becoming each other'sbest referral partners.
(03:23):
You're becoming each other'spower partners partners.
You're becoming each other'spower partners and collaborative
partners, and there's so muchmagic that happens inside that
community.
So if that is of interest toyou, definitely click on the
show notes and check it out.
We would love to have you joinus.
All right, let's dig intotoday's episode, which is all
about creating a networking plan, which doesn't sound super
(03:45):
exciting, but it's actuallyreally important, because if you
don't have a plan, as withanything in business, you don't
really know where you're going.
It's kind of like I used to saythe same thing when I was a
dating and relationship coach tomy clients about having a plan,
and, while that doesn't reallysound sexy and being intentional
(04:05):
, isn't really like what we'reexcited about when it comes to
dating.
If you don't have a plan, it'sbasically like getting in the
car and starting to drive butnot actually knowing where
you're going, and you may findsome really cool places to stop
along the way.
They may be totally worth yourtime.
You might be like, oh my gosh,that was so great, I'm so glad I
(04:26):
found that museum, but you'realso probably going to waste a
lot of time and a lot of gasgoing to places that you never
really wanted to be.
That is true with dating and itis true with networking.
So today we are going to talkabout how to transform your
approach to networking bycreating a networking plan, and
(04:49):
this is kind of a follow-up tothe episode that I did a couple
weeks ago about evaluating yournetworking efforts from last
year.
So if you haven't listened tothat one yet, definitely check
that one out after this.
But today we're talking aboutmoving forward with intention
and accountability and reallyhaving a game plan that is going
to make your networking notonly more consistent but also
(05:10):
more impactful.
This is how you're going toavoid getting to June and being
like, oh man, I really intendedto network more this year.
Or spending your whole yearbeing like man, I really need to
start networking, I really needto network more.
I really need to network more.
I really need to find somewhereto network.
And then months and months andmonths go by and you're still
(05:31):
not networking and your businessisn't growing and you can't
figure out why.
So quick heads up.
I have created an amazingnetworking planner that you can
download on my website and it'sgoing to make everything that
we're talking about today amillion times easier.
We're going to talk more aboutthat later, but if you are
already sold, go grab it atpowerfulwomanrisingcom slash
(05:54):
planner.
Otherwise, let's get into it.
First, let's talk about why youneed a networking plan.
I want you to ask yourself thishow intentional are you with
your networking efforts rightnow?
Be honest about that.
And when I say how intentionalare you, what I'm talking about
is how much are you winging it?
(06:14):
How much are you just showingup to random events, collecting
business cards, forgetting tofollow up, having really good
intentions that you're notactually following through on?
Maybe you are joined a groupthat you don't attend
consistently or you're notgetting as much out of it as you
could.
You're leaving opportunitiesand money on the table by not
(06:38):
being intentional.
So having a plan isn't justabout staying organized, but
it's also about showing up withpurpose, when you know exactly
which events you're attending,why you're attending them, who
you're hoping to meet and howyou are going to follow up with
those people.
This is how you're going tomake the most of your time and
your effort, and, if you'reanything like me, time is
(07:00):
something that you areconstantly trying to figure out
how to get more of, so let's notwaste it by throwing spaghetti
up against a wall and hopingthat it sticks.
Creating a networking plan isgoing to help you be accountable
for your efforts, because ifit's on the calendar, if it's on
paper, it's real.
It's going to help you stayconsistent, so that you're not
(07:21):
just networking in bursts whenyou're desperate for leads or
have some free time, and it'sgoing to help you follow up more
effectively, which is where thereal magic happens, and what I
hear over and over and overagain from people about their
biggest struggle with networkingis that follow-up, and I'm
going to help you with thattoday.
So what is a networking plan?
(07:42):
What does it look like?
It's not just about schedulingevents and knowing where you're
going, although that isimportant.
It's also about creating asystem that keeps you
intentional and organized withwhat you're doing.
So this is part of why Idesigned that networking planner
to include a few key sections.
First is an event tracker.
This is a space to write downall the networking events that
(08:04):
you're planning to attend forthe month.
Why is this important?
Why can't I just figure it outas I go?
Because when you commit toevents in advance, you are less
likely to flake out on them orto procrastinate.
Plus, it helps you balance yourtime and energy.
You know what you're doing, youknow how spread out or not
spread out it is, so you canallocate and save your time and
(08:27):
energy accordingly.
This is what's going to keepyou from getting to the end of
every month and being like shoot, I really meant to network more
, shoot, I really meant to go tothat event this week or this
month.
This is how you hold yourselfaccountable and make sure that
you do the things that you wantto do, because you know they're
going to grow your business.
The planner also includes aconnection tracker.
(08:49):
This is where, after everyevent, you write down who you
met, where you met them and anyimportant details that you want
to remember.
And this might seem likeoverkill, but I'm telling you,
being able to personalize yourfollow-ups is going to change
the game.
If you think about it, wouldyou rather get a generic hey, it
(09:10):
was really great to meet you atthat fill in the blank with the
event.
I'd really love to connect andlearn more about your business.
Like that's so boring and Idon't even remember who you are
and I'm not actually convincedthat you want to connect with me
.
I'm thinking maybe you justsent this email to literally
everyone who was there, asopposed to getting an email that
(09:32):
says hi, melissa, it was sogreat to chat with you about
networking and how you've usedit to grow your business.
I really loved your perspectiveon networking like a human and
not like a salesy weirdo.
I would love to connect withyou more and learn more about
how you've been able to leveragenetworking to grow your
business.
(09:53):
That little bit ofpersonalization can be the
difference between building arelationship and getting ghosted
.
If you think about it in termsof dating, which I love these
analogies any of you who haveever done online dating know
exactly what I'm talking about.
This is the difference betweensomeone who sends a message that
shows they've actually lookedat your profile and like
(10:16):
internalized what you've saidabout who you are and what
you're looking for, and they'vegotten a little creative so that
you know, hey, he's actuallypaying attention to you or hey,
she actually noticed that.
This is something that you'reinto, as opposed to the people
who send the same message to thesame person over and over and
(10:36):
over.
Right?
He copies and pastes to everysingle woman.
Hey, beautiful, your profile isreally interesting.
Would love to get to know youmore.
Like, okay, bro, I'm over it.
It works the same way when itcomes to follow up with
networking, and then the planneralso includes a space to track
your warm leads.
So this is the section whereyou keep track of people that
(10:58):
you've already connected with.
You've met them previously.
You've done that initial followup, but you know you need to do
more to keep that relationshipgoing, to keep yourself top of
mind with that person, to makesure that you are moving the
relationship along.
So it could be scheduling acoffee chat, could be sending
them a resource that youpromised, or just checking in
(11:20):
with them, engaging them onsocial media.
This is the way that you makesure that no one slips through
the cracks.
Networking isn't aboutcollecting as many business
cards as possible.
I don't know how many times Ihave said that on this podcast.
It's really about buildingrelationships, and relationships
take time and consistency.
And you guessed it follow-up.
(11:41):
Following up doesn't have to beweird or salesy.
In fact, it shouldn't be weirdor salesy.
The best follow-ups are theones that feel genuine and
personal, and that's why keepingtrack of those important
details about people that youmeet is really important.
It shows that you're payingattention and that you actually
care about them and not justwhat they can do for you.
And this is also why keepingtrack of those warm leads is so
(12:04):
important, because you don'twant to waste your time on that
first follow-up.
If you're not going to keep therelationship going, there's no
point right.
And if you've listened to someof my prior episodes, you know
I'm not saying that you have toconnect once, twice, three times
, 10 times with every singleperson that you meet.
(12:24):
You don't have to put everysingle person that you meet on
this planner, but if there'ssomebody that you connect with
that you think I really vibewith her, I really like her, I
could learn something from her,we could collaborate together.
If there's some reason that youwant to get to know this person
better, put them on the list Ifyou connect with them that
first time and you're like, okay, maybe that's not really what I
(12:46):
thought it was going to be,they don't have to go to the
warm lead section.
Go to the warm lead section,but every time you decide you
want to get to know this persona little bit more and a little
bit more.
That's when you keep themmoving into those warm lead
section.
Consistency is another big deal.
In case you haven't noticed, ifyou only show up to one event
every six months, you'reprobably not building momentum
(13:10):
or relationships with that groupof people.
You're basically just startingover every time.
So having a plan like this ishow you can stay active in the
right circles and keep your nametop of mind with those people.
Using that planner makes all ofthis super easy.
You start by thinking about whatyour goals are.
(13:30):
Think about what you want toachieve this month, because your
goals with networking mightchange depending on the month.
There might be some monthswhere you're really looking for
potential clients and referrals.
There might be some monthswhere you're looking for people
to collaborate with.
Maybe there's a month thatyou're really just looking for
people who can help you revampyour website and take it to the
(13:51):
next level.
Or you're looking for mentors,or you're looking for friends,
or you're just looking forpeople that you like being
around because it's boring andit's lonely.
So decide what your goals areand then let those goals guide
your decisions for the month.
Use that event tracker to mapout which events you'll attend
so that you don't overwhelmyourself.
(14:12):
Focus on quality over quantity.
Just because there's fourspaces doesn't mean you have to
attend an event every singleweek.
If it's a month where you havea little bit more capacity,
maybe you can attend five events.
If it's a month where you havea little bit less capacity,
prioritize two events.
Maybe this isn't the month thatyou try something new, but it
(14:33):
is the month that you make surethat you show up to those events
or that group that you've beenparticipating in consistently
for the last five or six months.
Look for events that align withyour goals and values and
prioritize those, and then,after each event, take five
minutes to jot down the peoplethat you met, that you want to
follow up with and any keydetails.
(14:53):
This is gonna save you so muchtime and so much brain power
when it comes to following upand then, at the end of each
week, check your warm leadstracker and schedule your
follow-ups.
This is where the plannerreally pays off, because you're
keeping the momentum going withpeople who are already
interested in you and what youdo.
All right, so there you have it.
(15:14):
That is the what, why and howof creating a networking plan.
Use the networking planner ifit is helpful for you.
If it's not, find a way thatworks for you, as long as you
remember that the key tosuccessful networking isn't just
showing up Although thisplanner is going to help you do
that but it is really aboutbeing intentional and consistent
(15:36):
and personalizing your efforts,and the best way to do that is
to use a system that keeps youorganized and accountable,
whatever that system is.
If you're ready to take yournetworking to the next level and
you want to try my networkingplanner, even just as somewhere
to start, go to the websitewwwpowerfulwomenrisingcom slash
(15:57):
planner and grab it.
It's free, it's easy to use andit's going to make all of this
so much simpler.
Plus, it's a great way to startthe year off on the right foot.
All right, friends, thanks fortuning in to another episode of
Powerful Women Rising.
If you found this episodehelpful, share it with a fellow
entrepreneur who could use alittle boost in their networking
(16:17):
efforts.
As always, I would love to hearyour thoughts, so drop me a
message on Instagram or leave areview Until next time.
Speaker 1 (16:39):
That's a wrap on this week's episode of Powerful
Women Rising.
Thanks for hanging out with us.
Until next time, in a way thatfeels real and true to them.
Want to keep the party going?
Check out the show notes fordetails on our next virtual
speed networking event, or joinus in the powerful Women Rising
community Until next time.
Remember that building abusiness your way is the best
(16:59):
way.
Welcome to Powerful Women Rising, a podcast for
female entrepreneurs ready to dobusiness their way.
Grab your coffee and join hostMelissa Snow, business
relationship strategist andfounder of the Powerful Women
Rising community, as sheinterviews industry experts and
shares insights on strategy,marketing, mindset and more.
(00:25):
Here you'll find the tools,strategies and inspiration you
need to feel empowered, takebold action in your business and
keep rising.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
Hey everybody, welcome back to another episode
of the Powerful Women RisingPodcast.
I'm your host, melissa Snow.
If we haven't met yet, hi, it'sme.
Hi, I am not the problem, I'mthe host.
My name is Melissa Snow.
I am a business relationshipstrategist, I am a networking
(00:56):
expert, but I'm all aboutnetworking without the sleaze.
I'm all about helping youfigure out how to network
effectively to grow yourbusiness, but doing it in a way
that feels true to you.
And that is a really importantpart of what I do.
Because I think sometimes whenpeople hear me say that I'm a
networking expert, they assumethat I'm like really good at
(01:17):
schmoozing, that I'm like veryoutgoing, a total people person,
very polished, put together andlike love to work the room, and
that could not be farther fromthe truth.
I actually get really stressedout in those kinds of situations
.
I do not enjoy the networkingevents where there's no
(01:38):
structure and you just go in andlike have a drink and chat with
whoever.
You have to start your ownconversations with random people
, like that is not the vibe.
I'm actually kind of awkward,I'm an introvert and I still
manage to make networking workfor me.
So if I can do it, you can doit too.
(01:58):
I think I said in the lastinterview I was talking about
something and I was like listen,my shirt is on backwards half
the time, like I don't even knowwhat's going on.
So I all that is to say thatyou can learn to network
effectively without having to besomeone that you're not.
If you are an outgoingextrovert who loves talking to
(02:19):
strangers, you can find a way tonetwork that works for you, and
if you are not, you can alsofind a way to network that works
for you.
And if you are not, you canalso find a way to network that
works for you, and that is whatI'm here to help you do.
I am also the founder of thePowerful Women Rising community,
which is an online communityfor female entrepreneurs, where
you get to grow your businesswith other amazing female
(02:40):
entrepreneurs and you get tonetwork with them in a way that
doesn't add more work to yourplate.
We do co-working calls together.
We do mastermind calls together, where you really get to tap
into the collective wisdom ofthe group and there is a lot of
it and all of these differenttypes of calls are designed to
(03:01):
help you kill two birds with onestone.
You're getting your work done.
You're getting your work done.
You're getting your questionsanswered, you are brainstorming
and coming up with new ideas,figuring out how to overcome
your challenges, and whileyou're doing all of those things
, you are connecting deeper anddeeper with the other women in
the group, so you are becomingeach other's support system.
You're becoming each other'sbest referral partners.
(03:23):
You're becoming each other'spower partners partners.
You're becoming each other'spower partners and collaborative
partners, and there's so muchmagic that happens inside that
community.
So if that is of interest toyou, definitely click on the
show notes and check it out.
We would love to have you joinus.
All right, let's dig intotoday's episode, which is all
about creating a networking plan, which doesn't sound super
(03:45):
exciting, but it's actuallyreally important, because if you
don't have a plan, as withanything in business, you don't
really know where you're going.
It's kind of like I used to saythe same thing when I was a
dating and relationship coach tomy clients about having a plan,
and, while that doesn't reallysound sexy and being intentional
(04:05):
, isn't really like what we'reexcited about when it comes to
dating.
If you don't have a plan, it'sbasically like getting in the
car and starting to drive butnot actually knowing where
you're going, and you may findsome really cool places to stop
along the way.
They may be totally worth yourtime.
You might be like, oh my gosh,that was so great, I'm so glad I
(04:26):
found that museum, but you'realso probably going to waste a
lot of time and a lot of gasgoing to places that you never
really wanted to be.
That is true with dating and itis true with networking.
So today we are going to talkabout how to transform your
approach to networking bycreating a networking plan, and
(04:49):
this is kind of a follow-up tothe episode that I did a couple
weeks ago about evaluating yournetworking efforts from last
year.
So if you haven't listened tothat one yet, definitely check
that one out after this.
But today we're talking aboutmoving forward with intention
and accountability and reallyhaving a game plan that is going
to make your networking notonly more consistent but also
(05:10):
more impactful.
This is how you're going toavoid getting to June and being
like, oh man, I really intendedto network more this year.
Or spending your whole yearbeing like man, I really need to
start networking, I really needto network more.
I really need to network more.
I really need to find somewhereto network.
And then months and months andmonths go by and you're still
(05:31):
not networking and your businessisn't growing and you can't
figure out why.
So quick heads up.
I have created an amazingnetworking planner that you can
download on my website and it'sgoing to make everything that
we're talking about today amillion times easier.
We're going to talk more aboutthat later, but if you are
already sold, go grab it atpowerfulwomanrisingcom slash
(05:54):
planner.
Otherwise, let's get into it.
First, let's talk about why youneed a networking plan.
I want you to ask yourself thishow intentional are you with
your networking efforts rightnow?
Be honest about that.
And when I say how intentionalare you, what I'm talking about
is how much are you winging it?
(06:14):
How much are you just showingup to random events, collecting
business cards, forgetting tofollow up, having really good
intentions that you're notactually following through on?
Maybe you are joined a groupthat you don't attend
consistently or you're notgetting as much out of it as you
could.
You're leaving opportunitiesand money on the table by not
(06:38):
being intentional.
So having a plan isn't justabout staying organized, but
it's also about showing up withpurpose, when you know exactly
which events you're attending,why you're attending them, who
you're hoping to meet and howyou are going to follow up with
those people.
This is how you're going tomake the most of your time and
your effort, and, if you'reanything like me, time is
(07:00):
something that you areconstantly trying to figure out
how to get more of, so let's notwaste it by throwing spaghetti
up against a wall and hopingthat it sticks.
Creating a networking plan isgoing to help you be accountable
for your efforts, because ifit's on the calendar, if it's on
paper, it's real.
It's going to help you stayconsistent, so that you're not
(07:21):
just networking in bursts whenyou're desperate for leads or
have some free time, and it'sgoing to help you follow up more
effectively, which is where thereal magic happens, and what I
hear over and over and overagain from people about their
biggest struggle with networkingis that follow-up, and I'm
going to help you with thattoday.
So what is a networking plan?
(07:42):
What does it look like?
It's not just about schedulingevents and knowing where you're
going, although that isimportant.
It's also about creating asystem that keeps you
intentional and organized withwhat you're doing.
So this is part of why Idesigned that networking planner
to include a few key sections.
First is an event tracker.
This is a space to write downall the networking events that
(08:04):
you're planning to attend forthe month.
Why is this important?
Why can't I just figure it outas I go?
Because when you commit toevents in advance, you are less
likely to flake out on them orto procrastinate.
Plus, it helps you balance yourtime and energy.
You know what you're doing, youknow how spread out or not
spread out it is, so you canallocate and save your time and
(08:27):
energy accordingly.
This is what's going to keepyou from getting to the end of
every month and being like shoot, I really meant to network more
, shoot, I really meant to go tothat event this week or this
month.
This is how you hold yourselfaccountable and make sure that
you do the things that you wantto do, because you know they're
going to grow your business.
The planner also includes aconnection tracker.
(08:49):
This is where, after everyevent, you write down who you
met, where you met them and anyimportant details that you want
to remember.
And this might seem likeoverkill, but I'm telling you,
being able to personalize yourfollow-ups is going to change
the game.
If you think about it, wouldyou rather get a generic hey, it
(09:10):
was really great to meet you atthat fill in the blank with the
event.
I'd really love to connect andlearn more about your business.
Like that's so boring and Idon't even remember who you are
and I'm not actually convincedthat you want to connect with me
.
I'm thinking maybe you justsent this email to literally
everyone who was there, asopposed to getting an email that
(09:32):
says hi, melissa, it was sogreat to chat with you about
networking and how you've usedit to grow your business.
I really loved your perspectiveon networking like a human and
not like a salesy weirdo.
I would love to connect withyou more and learn more about
how you've been able to leveragenetworking to grow your
business.
(09:53):
That little bit ofpersonalization can be the
difference between building arelationship and getting ghosted
.
If you think about it in termsof dating, which I love these
analogies any of you who haveever done online dating know
exactly what I'm talking about.
This is the difference betweensomeone who sends a message that
shows they've actually lookedat your profile and like
(10:16):
internalized what you've saidabout who you are and what
you're looking for, and they'vegotten a little creative so that
you know, hey, he's actuallypaying attention to you or hey,
she actually noticed that.
This is something that you'reinto, as opposed to the people
who send the same message to thesame person over and over and
(10:36):
over.
Right?
He copies and pastes to everysingle woman.
Hey, beautiful, your profile isreally interesting.
Would love to get to know youmore.
Like, okay, bro, I'm over it.
It works the same way when itcomes to follow up with
networking, and then the planneralso includes a space to track
your warm leads.
So this is the section whereyou keep track of people that
(10:58):
you've already connected with.
You've met them previously.
You've done that initial followup, but you know you need to do
more to keep that relationshipgoing, to keep yourself top of
mind with that person, to makesure that you are moving the
relationship along.
So it could be scheduling acoffee chat, could be sending
them a resource that youpromised, or just checking in
(11:20):
with them, engaging them onsocial media.
This is the way that you makesure that no one slips through
the cracks.
Networking isn't aboutcollecting as many business
cards as possible.
I don't know how many times Ihave said that on this podcast.
It's really about buildingrelationships, and relationships
take time and consistency.
And you guessed it follow-up.
(11:41):
Following up doesn't have to beweird or salesy.
In fact, it shouldn't be weirdor salesy.
The best follow-ups are theones that feel genuine and
personal, and that's why keepingtrack of those important
details about people that youmeet is really important.
It shows that you're payingattention and that you actually
care about them and not justwhat they can do for you.
And this is also why keepingtrack of those warm leads is so
(12:04):
important, because you don'twant to waste your time on that
first follow-up.
If you're not going to keep therelationship going, there's no
point right.
And if you've listened to someof my prior episodes, you know
I'm not saying that you have toconnect once, twice, three times
, 10 times with every singleperson that you meet.
(12:24):
You don't have to put everysingle person that you meet on
this planner, but if there'ssomebody that you connect with
that you think I really vibewith her, I really like her, I
could learn something from her,we could collaborate together.
If there's some reason that youwant to get to know this person
better, put them on the list Ifyou connect with them that
first time and you're like, okay, maybe that's not really what I
(12:46):
thought it was going to be,they don't have to go to the
warm lead section.
Go to the warm lead section,but every time you decide you
want to get to know this persona little bit more and a little
bit more.
That's when you keep themmoving into those warm lead
section.
Consistency is another big deal.
In case you haven't noticed, ifyou only show up to one event
every six months, you'reprobably not building momentum
(13:10):
or relationships with that groupof people.
You're basically just startingover every time.
So having a plan like this ishow you can stay active in the
right circles and keep your nametop of mind with those people.
Using that planner makes all ofthis super easy.
You start by thinking about whatyour goals are.
(13:30):
Think about what you want toachieve this month, because your
goals with networking mightchange depending on the month.
There might be some monthswhere you're really looking for
potential clients and referrals.
There might be some monthswhere you're looking for people
to collaborate with.
Maybe there's a month thatyou're really just looking for
people who can help you revampyour website and take it to the
(13:51):
next level.
Or you're looking for mentors,or you're looking for friends,
or you're just looking forpeople that you like being
around because it's boring andit's lonely.
So decide what your goals areand then let those goals guide
your decisions for the month.
Use that event tracker to mapout which events you'll attend
so that you don't overwhelmyourself.
(14:12):
Focus on quality over quantity.
Just because there's fourspaces doesn't mean you have to
attend an event every singleweek.
If it's a month where you havea little bit more capacity,
maybe you can attend five events.
If it's a month where you havea little bit less capacity,
prioritize two events.
Maybe this isn't the month thatyou try something new, but it
(14:33):
is the month that you make surethat you show up to those events
or that group that you've beenparticipating in consistently
for the last five or six months.
Look for events that align withyour goals and values and
prioritize those, and then,after each event, take five
minutes to jot down the peoplethat you met, that you want to
follow up with and any keydetails.
(14:53):
This is gonna save you so muchtime and so much brain power
when it comes to following upand then, at the end of each
week, check your warm leadstracker and schedule your
follow-ups.
This is where the plannerreally pays off, because you're
keeping the momentum going withpeople who are already
interested in you and what youdo.
All right, so there you have it.
(15:14):
That is the what, why and howof creating a networking plan.
Use the networking planner ifit is helpful for you.
If it's not, find a way thatworks for you, as long as you
remember that the key tosuccessful networking isn't just
showing up Although thisplanner is going to help you do
that but it is really aboutbeing intentional and consistent
(15:36):
and personalizing your efforts,and the best way to do that is
to use a system that keeps youorganized and accountable,
whatever that system is.
If you're ready to take yournetworking to the next level and
you want to try my networkingplanner, even just as somewhere
to start, go to the websitewwwpowerfulwomenrisingcom slash
(15:57):
planner and grab it.
It's free, it's easy to use andit's going to make all of this
so much simpler.
Plus, it's a great way to startthe year off on the right foot.
All right, friends, thanks fortuning in to another episode of
Powerful Women Rising.
If you found this episodehelpful, share it with a fellow
entrepreneur who could use alittle boost in their networking
(16:17):
efforts.
As always, I would love to hearyour thoughts, so drop me a
message on Instagram or leave areview Until next time.
Speaker 1 (16:39):
That's a wrap on this week's episode of Powerful
Women Rising.
Thanks for hanging out with us.
Until next time, in a way thatfeels real and true to them.
Want to keep the party going?
Check out the show notes fordetails on our next virtual
speed networking event, or joinus in the powerful Women Rising
community Until next time.
Remember that building abusiness your way is the best
(16:59):
way.
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