Actual article date: Jul 9, 2015

Many would agree that Business Matching has evolved to become an important element in our conference and exhibition events today. These networking solutions have been built to help these events achieve what they were meant to from the very beginning — connect and bring like-minded people together. The question is, do the users know how to the best out of these platforms that have been provided to them?

Being in the Business Matching industry has given us insight to what are some of the best practices one can have while using a Business Matching tool to maximise the networking value they get out of any event. Here are 3 simple steps.

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1. Focus on quality, not quantity

Ever so often, we would spot a handful of users who would mass send meeting requests to almost every other event participant, and would subsequently email the Concierge to why have none of them responded. The answer is simple — your meeting requests have not been sent to relevant connections. Some may think that this is the best way to secure as many meetings as they can for the event, as some requests are bound to be accepted out of the lot. But think about the time that would be wasted for both parties when you realize that there is little networking value in the meeting. That time could have been spent gathering insights from a talk or mingling with the right people at the F&B area.

So when sending out your meeting requests, do try to keep them focused to what your networking needs are and to see if they can be mutually beneficial before sending your request. Make use of the profile information to understand what the company’s interests are, and if you have time, go the further step to do some research on what they offer. This would go a long way into securing relevant connections for you at the event, and will also give you a clearer idea of what you can discuss with them during the meeting itself.

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2. Spruce up your profile

Your profile is the only thing that other parties would see, so do make sure that it captures the right attention! First thing would be to check if all the existing information on your profile is correct. Sometimes due to a large attendee database, tiny mistakes can be found here and there which can be corrected and saved quickly.

Also, most of the time the only information that would be automatically seen on your profile would be minimal and sparse. It is up to you to fill up portions like Personal Introduction and Company Description to let others know more about you, your company and where your business interests lie. Do keep your write up within the text limit as well! With this bite sized information added on to your profile, relevant people who see this would naturally be keen to meet you and find out more.

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3. The Concierge is there to help!

We understand that for most of you, you can hardly find the time to scroll through list of event participants, and much less figure out how to use the platform. If a Concierge service happens to be provided along with the Business Matching platform, then you’re in luck! The Concierge would be like your business matching secretary for the event itself and you can consider half the job done, but only if you know how to use the service in the right way.

Firstly, help them to help you by giving them as much information as you can on who you would like to network with. There are thousands of other users on the platform at each event, so you can’t expect them to know what company you are from and what your networking interests are. Subjects like industry, position, country and even the company’s name would be extremely helpful for your Concierge to help find suitable recommendations out of an exhaustive attendee list. Try to be as specific as you can! Do mention if you are unable to meet during any time slots during the event to ensure that all meetings arranged on your behalf will be well suited to your schedule.

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