Don’t Make This Common Networking Mistake
By Neil Courtis and Steve Dalton for Harvard Business Review
Much has been written about the benefits of networking when you’re looking for a job.
The problem is, you’re unlikely to receive any of those benefits if you don’t follow up after the meetings you’ve requested — and that’s a surprisingly common failing. Recently, before a webinar for more than 1,000 alumni of European business schools and universities, we asked how often our participants had received follow up from networkers with whom they’d met — and we learned that more than half of them had never heard a thing.
Why aren’t networkers following up? Two pieces of conventional advice may be getting in the way.
The first is that in conveying thanks for a networking meeting, you need to do something remarkable (Write a note by hand! Include a gift!) or engage in emotional gymnastics (Convey sincere and heartfelt thoughts!). Clearly, this kind of advice can help, but often it leads to inaction, because it sets the bar so high.
The second is that you should reciprocate for the good turns you’ve received (Perhaps share an interesting article? Or offer to make some professional introductions yourself?). Reciprocity is a powerful driver in building relationships, of course, but it can be hard when you’re looking for a job because the people you’re likely to reach out to for advice will usually be more senior and thus hard for you to help.
So how can you follow up on networking meetings in a way that is achievable and effective?
To help answer this question, we asked our webinar participants to share their best and worst experiences of engaging with networkers, and in response we received more than 170 responses.
On the “bad” side of the ledger, many participants described hearing nothing at all. Some made references to being ghosted or ignored, and one even had this to say: “No follow-up at all, even after meeting almost 2 hours and sharing my own network.” The message is clear: Silence will not serve you well.
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