Networking in Expos Is All About Preparing Focusing Mingling Networking And Following Up

2022 is officially the year that in-person exhibitions and meetings have retaken their place in every industry after two years of the pandemic. Vision Expo West is at its peak in terms of continuing education courses and an exhibition hall where the latest trends and fashion in eyewear and the latest technologies that the eye care industry has to offer did attract visitors and eye care professionals from North America and every part of the world. For eye care professionals in Europe, Silmo in Paris is preparing to open its doors next week with the eyes of the world on every international exhibition taking place in every country, a lot is expected and a lot is being offered to bolster networking opportunities at a new level. The new level comprises online and in-person heightened experiences. Every person we followed or has followed us during the pandemic and wished we could meet is now a friend we will miss when we come back home. Experiences have new meanings that if learned and applied advance networking even more in the future.

Come prepared: do a little research on social media, learn if the persons you would like to meet are coming, have a knowledge of who is coming, who is excited and prepared to show new things, send a few messages, and find out about events you might want to attend.

Focus: expos and exhibitions demand a lot of energy from you, however, they pass so quickly. You will miss a lot more than what you will learn. For this reason, you must understand that you cannot have everything, however, if you focus, given the huge and diverse choices you should be able to get what you most need. So come prepared knowing what you do and focusing on what you need.

Mingling: not everyone is good at mingling, it is hard and sometimes complicated, however, with the immense attendance and the queues of events taking place during the exhibitions you should be able to demonstrate effective networking. The most rewarding and effective networking is listening more than talking, you won’t have to worry about what you have to say and you benefit from lots of interesting things others have to say. So if you find someone to listen to you are getting the best reward, moreover, if you are meeting with friends there are a lot of ways they can benefit too. You can introduce them to other people to help them grow their social network and get their products to more people.

Following up: If it’s only for meetings and business, one thing we’ve learned from remote working during the pandemic is that business meetings can occur online as in-person, however, having fun learning from each other in person and connecting with old and new connections during exhibitions will result in better online follow-up and give the right reason to stay connected.