{"id":6008,"date":"2013-12-04T13:57:06","date_gmt":"2013-12-04T18:57:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.123print.com\/?p=6008"},"modified":"2015-07-16T19:34:23","modified_gmt":"2015-07-16T19:34:23","slug":"walking-in-a-networking-wonderland-8-tips-for-networking-during-the-holidays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/walking-in-a-networking-wonderland-8-tips-for-networking-during-the-holidays\/","title":{"rendered":"Walking in a Networking Wonderland \u2013 8 Tips for Networking During the Holidays"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"8It\u2019s that time of year. Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose, and \u2026 Holiday Networking! With social calendars quickly filling up this month, now is a great time to take advantage of the potential networking opportunities at your upcoming events. Read on for 8 tips to make some great connections this holiday season.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Every Event is a Networking Event<\/span>
\nThis time of year, what\u2019s there to be down about? You\u2019re constantly surrounded by good family, good friends, and most importantly \u2026 good food. Will all that tryptophan (aka essence of turkey) coursing through people\u2019s veins, most people are incredibly receptive to striking up a conversation.<\/p>\n

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Make a Goal<\/span>
\nOne proven way to make some connections is to go in with a goal in mind. For example, at your neighbor\u2019s holiday party, make a goal to talk to five people whom you didn’t know before. Not only will this help you network, you\u2019ll feel good for hitting a personal goal you set for yourself.<\/p>\n

Bring Business Cards and a Pen<\/span>
\nSuppose you have a great conversation with Jane Doe at that neighbor\u2019s holiday party. She starts talking about finding a local place to get flowers for her daughter\u2019s wedding, and wouldn’t you know it, you run a flower shop! Not only that, but one of your employees is Jane\u2019s cousin! Now is the perfect time to whip out your business card<\/a> and give it to Jane. Then, take the opportunity to make your business even more memorable by pulling a pen<\/a> out of your pocket and jotting down \u201cFlowers for your daughter\u2019s wedding \u2014 where Cousin Lisa works!\u201d This personal touch goes a long way in making your business card stick out from the pack.<\/p>\n

\"123Print<\/a>
123Print Business Card: “Quilted Corner”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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Don\u2019t Hover By Your Friends<\/span>
\nDon\u2019t forget your mission \u2014 make new connections with people who could help out your business. Break free from the comfort of your BFF to snag some valuable face-to-face time with prospects.<\/p>\n

Follow Up<\/span>
\nDon\u2019t make empty promises \u2014 this is the number one way to be easily forgotten. Even if the follow up has nothing to do with your business (i.e. the name of a great landscaper you can recommend) it is important to follow through with your promises. This reflects responsibility on both you and your business.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Bore People<\/span>
\nWhen asked what you do for work, don\u2019t bore people with an epic spiel of your past, current and upcoming projects. Instead, give them a short, elevator speech about what you do and how you help people. More importantly, ask them questions about themselves and their line of work to draw out any opportunities for collaboration.<\/p>\n

Be Unforgettable<\/span>
\nWith so many people to go through, it\u2019s easy to forget new names and faces. Make sure you\u2019re remembered as being attentive, interesting and personable.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t Forget to ask for Their Contact Info<\/span>
\nJust as important as it is to give out your business card, it is equally important to ask for someone else\u2019s. That way, if someone has expressed interest in your products or services,\u00a0 you can reach out to them instead of waiting for them to reach out to you.<\/p>\n

Do you have any other tips for networking during the holiday season?<\/strong>
\n Let us know in the comments, or connect with us on<\/strong> Facebook<\/b><\/a>, Twitter<\/b><\/a> or<\/strong> Google+<\/b><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s that time of year. Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[212,575,620,782,785,1031],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6008"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6008"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6008\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8988,"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6008\/revisions\/8988"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6008"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6008"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.123print.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6008"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}