Tips on Small Talk When Going to Networking Events -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In your business, do you go to business functions, chamber meetings, and networking events? Do you feel uncomfortable entering a room when you don't know a single person there? Did you know that what you feel is very normal? The number one fear for most people is to speak in front of a group. The second fear is speaking with a stranger. So breathe a sigh of relief. You really are not alone! Here are some tips from the book "The Fine Art of Small Talk" by Debra Fine.
1) Before you go to a networking event, think of three topics to talk about. It may or may not be about your business. It could be about recent events, something interesting that happened to you, a great restaurant that you visited, etc. These will be your back up conversations, just incase you need them.
When you walk into a room of strangers;
a) First pick an approachable person. This person will most likely be feeling very much like you. Usually, an approachable person will be standing by his or herself, and not in a large group.
b) Smile, and make eye contact with that person.
c) If they smile back, you have engaged them. It's okay to approach them. Walk to them, introduce yourself along with a short tagline, and shake their hand. For instance, "Hi, my name is Mary. I'm new here". They will most likely mirror your gesture.
Typically, people start our conversations in one of two ways.
1) The first is with a statement, such as "What a beautiful house", or "Wow, this is really a great turn out for this function". If you start a conversation with a statement, you need to follow it up with an open ended question. So instead say "What a beautiful house. Where did you learn how to decorate?" or "Wow, this is really a great turn out for this function. What brought you here today?"
2) The second way is with a close-ended question, such as "How were your holidays?" With a question like that, you will most likely get a standard answer, so it is important that you follow it up with an open-ended question, such as "How did you celebrate?"
When you get into a conversation, you will have 4 sources for information to grab a topic for conversation from.
1) From verbal information. What are they telling you? Typically, someone will only tell you information that they are willing to share with you. For instance, they may say, "I was planning on attending this event last month, but I was ill". They shared with you that they were ill, so you can continue the conversation by saying "I am sorry that you were ill. Are you all right now?" Another example may be that they tell you that they work for AT&T. AT&T can be your next source of conversation. You might say, "So how is it you came to work for AT&T?" Just keep listening for that verbal information.
2) From things you see. These are things you observe. Let's say you are visiting a prospect, and you are in their office. You see a diploma from the University of Michigan. You might say "Oh, I see you went to school in Michigan. What brought you to Colorado?"
3)From their behavior. What is something that they are doing? Maybe you are at a dinner party and the person you are having a conversation with is the cook. You might say "Everything smells wonderful. Where did you learn how to cook like that?"
4) Based on the location. If you are at a wedding, you might ask "Are you connected to the bride or groom?" You can then follow it up with, "And how is it that you know Kathy?" The same is true for a networking event. If you are at a networking event, you can ask "What brought you here?"
Once you have built a rapport with the person, it is easy to use your 30 second commercial for your business. You will most likely be asked "So what do you do?" This is your opportunity to tell them about you. After you use your 30 second commercial, you might ask them a question about their business.
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