Several weeks ago, I recommended Susan RoAne's How to Work a Room, The Ultimate Guide to Savvy Socializing In Person and Online. It's a fun read, with lots of tips on how to be cool and confident in a room full of strangers.
Today, I'd like to tell you about RoAne's The Secrets of Savvy Networking, How To Make The Best Connections - For Business And Personal Success. In this follow-up, RoAne shares strategies for keeping track of business cards, remembering who's who, and staying in touch after the event.
The Secrets of Savvy Networking discusses the risks and rewards of making referrals. And the importance of saying "thank you" when someone refers a client to you. In chapter seven, Thanks for the Memories, RoAne illustrates this point with the story of a speaker who lost additional bookings (at several thousand dollars a pop) because he didn't bother to thank his benefactor. As RoAne says, "If you have time to receive help, favors, gifts, advice, you would be wise to make time to give acknowledgements".
My favorite section is chapter five, Paying Up Pays Off. Here, RoAne explains the fundamentals of reciprocity. Hint: when you use a favor, you owe a favor. Besides being the right thing to do, when you don't pay up word gets around. She also includes a few ways to keep track of your "markers".
Frank, funny and filled with practical advice, The Secrets of Savvy Networking tells you how to go beyond making connections. RoAne explains the long-term process of developing mutually beneficial relationships. And that's what good networking is really all about.
