Marketing yourself through networking is essential for ongoing career and professional success. Here are seven ways to maximize the value of professional networking meetings.

1. Be Strategic about Which Meetings You Attend

Networking in the wrong places won\'t help you or your career contacts. When deciding which networking groups to join, consider how much time is actually available to network. Some professional groups have very few, if any, committees and don\'t allow time for networking. Avoid these meetings.

Three types of professional networking groups offer different benefits:

• Join a group that will enable you to keep abreast of the latest developments in your field. • Join a career networking group that will enable you to learn more about self-marketing, interviewing, and making a successful transition. • Join a group that will allow you to interact with prospective employers and clients.

2. Become Active

It is much better to be active in one professional association then to periodically attend meetings of five or ten. Once you become active, people in the association get to know who you are and what you do. It takes time for people to recognize you, view you as a colleague rather than a stranger, and trust you.

Volunteer to serve on a committee or the Board. Try to get involved in activities that will enable you to interact with others. For example, it makes much more sense to join the membership committee then to volunteer to go off on your own and re-write the association\'s by-laws. Get to know the movers and shakers. Each association has a few key people who know everybody else and can make things happen.

3. Attend Meetings with the Right Mindset

You can spot a naïve networker from across the room. They come to networking meetings with a desperate mind set of "how can I get referrals and a new job." They spend the meeting darting from conversation to conversation passing out their business cards to everyone and saying things like, "let me know if you hear of anybody who needs my services," and "call me if you hear of anything for me." This approach not only doesn\'t work, it\'s a big turnoff to others. They have not yet earned the respect of people to warrant referrals.

Instead, it is better to come to networking meetings with the mindset of, "how can I help others at the meeting," or "I would like to meet at least one person tonight who I can meet with one-on-one," or "I am really curious about what others at this meeting do for a living." There are many ways you can help others. You can provide introductions; recommend books or web sites; provide information about people, companies, or trends; or simply listen and offer emotional support.

4. Ask Questions

Instead of worrying about what you will say to others about yourself and your business, focus instead on asking questions. There is no greater compliment you can bestow on someone than to ask them about themselves. Simple open-ended questions are best such as, "Tell me what you do for a living," or "What challenges is your business facing these days?" This can be a great way to start and maintain meaningful conversations. Come to the meeting with an inquisitive attitude.

5. Come Early and Stay Late

Inexperienced networkers come to meetings late and leave as soon as the speaker has finished. The best opportunities for networking are before the start of the formal program and immediately after the program. If you come only to listen to the speaker, you are missing out on much of the value the meeting can provide.

6. Follow-up Immediately

Does this ever happen to you? You meet someone at a professional meeting, exchange business cards, suggest that you follow-up with each other, and then nothing happens. You go back to your office, put their card near the phone, but never make the call. Two weeks later you look at the card and say to yourself, "Who is that person?"

It is important to follow-up immediately while the person and the conversation are fresh in both your minds.

7. Don't Try to Sell

Selling at professional meetings is usually inappropriate. Instead, use the meeting as an opportunity to develop a relationship and schedule a meeting for a later date.

In Conclusion

As an executive, your professional network is one of your most valuable assets. Professional networking meetings are one of the best ways to continually revitalize and grow your network. But if you attend meetings without a clear strategy for maximizing their value, you may end up as a wall-flower, merely watching other people network and wondering why you gave up the time in the first place.

Bruce Katcher is an Industrial/Organizational psychologist and president of Discovery Surveys, Inc. He can be reached at BKatcher@DiscoverySurveys.com.

Source :www.galtglobalreview.com