Photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash
Networking is an important part of your professional career development. It can broaden your opportunities as well advance your career. Some people love it, some people hate it.
When COVID-19 hit, face-to-face networking opportunities disappeared altogether, to be replaced by virtual networking.
As with in-person networking, virtual networking takes certain skills to be successful.
Get your online profile in order
Potential connections will get to know you via your profile. It’s your online calling card. At a minimum, make sure that your LinkedIn profile is up to date and optimised. If you are registered with any professional bodies or have your own online portfolio, update these too. In the absence of being able to hand over your business card personally, try a virtual business card app instead.
If you have social media accounts that you use for work, keep these relevant and up to date and restrict access to your personal accounts.
Find the right people to connect with
Your time is precious, and you don’t want to spend it focused on the right activities. Networking is no different. You need to work smartly to find the right groups and people to connect with.
Research each platform and event to make sure that it is going to be time well spent.
Prepare for a virtual event
Even though you’re working from home and don’t have to travel to an event. There are a few things you should do to prepare to make you feel more confident.
Check your equipment and make sure that your camera and audio are working well. If you don’t have a suitable background, add a virtual one that is suitable for the event you’re attending.
Dress for the occasion. You don’t need to be in formal wear (unless the occasion calls for it), but something smart and comfortable will make you feel more confident.
Learn to convey your personality virtually
It’s very difficult to connect with people virtually in the same way that you do in person. The social cues, body language and tone of voice is missing and building a picture of your authentic personality.
Learn to be responsive and friendly online, if you find it difficult, start by talking about something you have a passion for, it’s often much easier to start this way.
If you’re not confident expressing yourself online, either through video or writing, then practice is the key. Sign up for some networking events and see what everyone else is doing. Who is networking well and why is that?
Some good tips to remember at a virtual meeting or event include:
Engaging early – introduce yourself early in the conversation and strike a balance between fading into the background and taking over the conversation.
Keep your contributions short and to the point. It’s much more difficult to tell a long convoluted story virtually.
Speak up throughout – don’t leave everything you have to say or ask until the end. Keep the conversation flowing by adding to the conversation regularly.