Using Organizations to Build Your Network Quickly

Anne Baber and Lynne Waymon
March 3, 2010 | COMMENTS

As we've researched networking concepts throughout the past 17 years, we've found that people have many questions about using organizations. Chances are, you are a member of half a dozen groups. Some of these groups are very informal, like your neighborhood; some of these groups are very formal, like a professional association. Check the following Q & A to see if you getting the maximum benefit from the organizations to which you belong.

Q: I'm not in sales and I'm not looking for a job. Why should I join organizations?

Organizations can do a lot for your career, including:

• Demonstrate your skills and expertise
• Try out new things in a low-risk environment
• Learn new skills and expand your expertise
• Add to your resume
• Make a career change
• Get feedback about yourself and your activities
• Measure your outcomes against your peers' outcomes
• Set stretch standards for your business
• Establish your reputation with people who might help you and your career
• Give back to younger members of your profession
• Create career options and opportunities for yourself
• Find new resources
• Discover new directions
• Gain recognition for your accomplishments and successes
• Achieve professional certification and Grow personally and professionally.

Q: How many organizations should I join?

What's your purpose? If you work for a corporation, join organizations that will teach you about the industry and bring you in touch with resources to get the job done. If you are in sales and your product is bought by small businesses, then join lots of organizations that have small businesspeople as members. If you are job hunting in a certain industry, join groups that target that industry for its membership.

Q: How do I find just the right organization for my purpose?

Look at the calendar in your newspaper's business pages for names of local organizations. Go to the library and look at the Encyclopedia of Associations. You'll be able to find 800 numbers so you can find out about a certain organization's website. Ask people who might know—colleagues at work, peers in other organizations, people who are successfully doing what you want to do. Ask your clients/customers what groups they belong to.

Q: How do I assess what I'm getting from the organizations to which I belong?

Make a chart. Use the following headings such as name of organization, purpose(s) of organization, your role in the organization, your purpose, number of people in the organization (who could help you achieve your purpose).

Make another chart. On this chart, calculate the amount of time and money you are devoting to the organization during this year.

Compare the two charts. Considering the time and money involved, which organizations are most likely to help you attain your goals?

Q: If I need to join a new organization, how can I be sure it's the right one for me?

Once you've targeted a few organizations, do your homework. Don't leap before you look. Attend a couple of meetings as a guest. Talk to new members and old members. Read several issues of the newsletter. Scan the membership directory. Before you write your check and commit your time, remember that you are about to place a very talented person (you!) in a key position. Assess the organization's value to you by answering these questions:

1. How many members are there? (The bigger the better for networking, but it may be easier to move into leadership opportunities in smaller groups.)

2. Can I get excited about the group's mission? Does it connect with my networking goals?

3. Are people in the group likely to need my product or service or to refer business to me? Are people in the group likely to provide valuable resources or information?

4. What do people say about the group? What's its reputation in the profession or community?

5. What opportunities will the group offer me to associate with my peers? With stars in the field?

6. Does the group set a good networking culture by encouraging people to introduce themselves and talk to each other about important business and career agendas?

7. Does the group have special activities to help newcomers feel welcome and meet people?

8. How easy is it to participate? How quickly could I move into a leadership role that would give me visibility and career experience?

9. Do the leaders seem genuinely excited about their participation or are they playing "somebody has to do it?"

10. Are the programs interesting? Do the topics and speakers provide valuable professional growth?

11. What would my time commitment be? Can I make that commitment for at least one year?

12. What exactly could I contribute to this group?

Q: Once I join, how can I immediately begin to get to know people?

Here are some things you can do to get involved—before you are elected to the board.

• Get to the meetings 15 to 20 minutes early. Introduce yourself to the other people who are there. They are likely to be the movers and shakers.
• Give yourself a job. Look around and be helpful. Pitch in at the registration desk. Greet newcomers. Assist with the room set-up.
• Talk about important things to the people you meet. Forget the ball games and the weather and interview other members. You could use some of the questions in the immediately preceding section.
• Set a goal for the number of people you are going to meet. Be reasonable. You could exchange names and cards with lots of people, but you'd leave the event really not knowing anyone very well. If you talk in depth with four people you will accomplish more.
• Know how to learn people's names and make your own memorable. Here are two tips to get you started. To learn a name, repeat it: “It's nice to meet you John.” To make your own name memorable, repeat your first name twice: “ I'm Anna, Anna Larsen.” Ask the person you are talking with to introduce you to someone else. Say: “Do you know anyone else who is new to Kansas City ?” Or: “Do you know someone else who is involved in setting up a sales training program?”
• Know how to say what you do. In a short sentence, tell the thing you want someone to remember about what you do. In another sentence, give a vivid example of yourself doing that thing. Think carefully about what you want to teach people about yourself.
• When someone asks, “What's new?” have something interesting to say about yourself. Tell a success story to illustrate what you do.
• Always have an agenda. In advance of the meeting think of three or four things you would like to find out about or know more about. Also, be ready to tell three or four things of interest to people in the group. Read a trade journal to prepare or be ready with a shortcut or resource.
• Use the meeting to set up other meetings. For example, you met Fred and would like to know him better. Say: “How about getting together for coffee next week?” When you call Fred to set it up, say: “Why don't you bring along someone else from the group that I should meet?”

Q: As I get involved in the group, does it matter what committee job I take?

No, it doesn't. Just be sure that you do anything you do very well. Heed the “All or Nothing Rule”: If you do one thing well, people will assume you do everything well; if you do one thing poorly, people will assume you do everything poorly.

Q: What am I really trying to accomplish as I get involved with the group?

Since people want to do business with people they trust, you are trying to teach people to trust you. People will trust you if they believe in your character and your competence. So, you must demonstrate both your character and your competence.

Q: I'm so shy. It's excruciating for me to enter a room full of strangers. What can I do to get more comfortable?

Researchers say that nearly 60% of all Americans are shy most of the time. So, you needn't feel alone. Learn all the skills you can that will help you interact more comfortably. Join a small organization first and use it as your laboratory to test out networking skills. Involve your fellow members in practicing skills and in giving you feedback.

Q: What are the biggest mistakes people make when they join organizations?

• They join but don't go
• They appear but don't interact
• They skip the networking portion of the meeting, arriving just in time for the meal and duck out just as the speaker is winding down
• They talk and sit with people they already know
• They make no effort to be visible; instead, they try to blend into the crowd
• They wait for others to make the first moves
• They think handing out business cards is networking
• They give up too soon and don't give themselves or others time to establish relationships
• They arrive without any idea of what they have to give or what they want to get
• They violate good networking protocols (netiquette) within the group
• They forget the best way to show character and competence is to contribute time and energy

Anne Baber and Lynne Waymon are principals of Contacts Count, a nationwide consulting and training firm that specializes in networking and career development.