On the Freelance Switch blog, Mark Shead has a post about nine steps towards genuine and effective networking. They’re not radical ideas, but one I like is “take people to lunch.”
Shead says he uses this method when he travels. He keeps track of where people live and offers to buy them lunch when he’s coming through town.
Of course the same thing can work locally. One of the classic marks of the basic introvert is that he or she does better communicating one-to-one than in big groups, so if that’s you, inviting someone who is doing interesting things to lunch might be a great strategy. Who to invite? How about:
* writers you admire
* a journalist who covers your topic
* an editor of a publication you like
* a subject matter expert in your field
Your mission is not to sell them anything, a fact you should make clear in the invitation, just to have a chat and maybe learn something.
(for tips and techniques on being more productive and creative, subscribe to my free monthly Brainstorm e-bulletin. Just send an email request to [email protected])