The Shy, Creative Professional’s Guide to Making a Public Introduction

By BNI & Referral Institute - Jul 04 , 2008

By Lori Chance

So you love your computer, but have heard that networking face-to-face with other people might be a great way to build your business. Great! Before you hyperventilate and go back to your computer-comfort-zone, here are some tips for making the most out of your opportunity to introduce yourself to a group of people.

Preparation

The first step to making the most out of anything is to prepare for it. Most people take the time to write down what they want to say and try to memorize it. This is one approach, but if you get nervous, it’s likely that you’ll forget everything. Try this instead:

1. Find out exactly how much time you’ll have to make your public introduction. Most networking events allow from 10 seconds to 60 seconds to make introductions. This is a broad range, so you’ll want to know in advance what you have to work with.

2. Decide what one thing you want to get across, and keep it to that one thing. To really stand out and be remembered, you’ve got to be as specific as possible in order to create a good picture in the listener’s mind. For example, instead of saying, “I help professionals write their books,” give a specific examples such as, “I helped an architect write a how-to book for the home-remodeler. If you’re about to remodel, come see me for a copy!” There’s a lot on everyone’s mind all the time. By providing one specific mental image, you’ll create a picture in someone’s mind that will move the distractions aside and remind them of their own projects, if they have any. Without the picture, the distractions quickly erase whatever you might have just said.

3. Write it down and practice it, but don’t try to memorize it. If you try to memorize it, then you’ll get nervous, you’ll get stuck on what words you were trying to use, rather than being able to make your point. But if you’ve practiced making your point in the appropriate time frame while allowing yourself to say it naturally in a variety of ways, if you get nervous you’ll still be able to make your point.

The Networking Event

If you’re prepared and ready you’ll be more confident, but it can still be a challenge to actually make it through a networking event if you’re not used to being around a large group of people.

Here are a few quick tips to help you get through the event itself:

1. Arrive early. In fact, try to be the first one there. Usually, either the speaker will show up first or the people in charge of the event. These are often key people to get to know, but since they’ll be running around setting up, they won’t be putting you on the spot. In fact, if you offer to help them with whatever they need to get ready, it’s not just a great way to break the ice, it begins to build a relationship, too.

2. Pretend you’re the host/hostess for the event, once you’ve checked in. What would you do if these people were coming to your home or office, and you wanted to make them feel comfortable? You’d probably say hello, shake their hand, let them know where the coffee is, and maybe even the restrooms. But since there will be more people arriving, you’ll shift your focus to the next person within a moment or two as well, and the guest would both appreciate the hospitality but also understand as you welcomed the next person. Later, you could see them and feel as if you’ve already met.

3. Have one or two questions in mind that you could ask anyone and that will keep them talking for a bit. Keeping the spotlight on the other person helps you be more comfortable, but since most people love to talk about themselves and their business, you also get a reputation as a great listener – and someone to get to know. A couple of questions that have always helped me are: How did you get into your business? and, What are your plans for the future?

Armed with a few simple ways to feel more prepared and part of the group, you’ll find yourself feeling comfortable in a networking setting within a few visits. From there, the opportunities to build relationships that turn into quality clients are endless.  For you authors who are marketing your books, such networking relationships can become the seeds of more satisfied book customers who are willing to tell others to buy your book, who will tell still others, who will tell still others . . . .

Lori Chance is the author of Who Am I, a self-coaching book for women who want something ‘more’ from life but don’t know where to start, and offers affordable life-coaching services to women around the world. Lori also mentors both traditional and creative professionals in BNI, the world’s largest referral organization. To learn more about Lori, visit www.LoriChance.com.