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How To Host A Virtual Networking Event
How To Host A Virtual Networking Event
NETWORKING
With vast swaths of the globe under social distancing restrictions, networking may be
the furthest thing from your mind. But just because you can’t connect in person doesn’t
mean your business relationships have to languish.
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We regularly co-host networking dinner gatherings in New York City, which — for the
time being — are no longer an option. We’ve pivoted to organizing virtual networking
events instead. Here are some best practices that have worked for us to keep
connections active, even at a distance.
We hold these from 6-7:30 pm ET, but many different times are possible. You have to be
sensitive to time zones, but we’ve had success including people from around the world,
and even shared breakfast drinks with someone in Australia. We’ve discovered that it’s
often challenging and messy for people to eat while on video calls, so we bill our events
as “virtual cocktail parties.”
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Make logistics as easy as possible for your attendees. Once someone has agreed to
attend, send them a calendar invite with a link to the video app you’re using. Any
number of video services — such as Zoom, Google Hangouts, or Microsoft Teams — can
work. The key is that it has to be easy for people to attend even if they don’t regularly
use that service. Make sure to alert them if they need to download software in advance
or if the event requires a password.
A few days before your call, send out an email introducing your guests to each
other. You should include the names of the participants, a one-sentence description,
and a link to their LinkedIn profile. It’s helpful for attendees, especially introverts, to
know who will be there, and it humanizes the participants. You should also share
guidelines for what to expect. Your email can say something like, “We look forward to
seeing you at our virtual cocktail gathering. We’ll start right at 6 pm, so please join on
time. We’ll spend around 60-90 minutes together, with a mix of introductions and
structured conversation. We’ll be joined by the great people below. Bring your own
beverage!”
Ask each person to spend two minutes introducing themselves with a mix of
professional and personal information, such as a favorite hobby or passion. Model this
for people, so they get a sense of the appropriate length and tone. Then, as the host, you
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can choose a person and ask them to go next, rather than waiting for a volunteer. This
gets the ball rolling and provides an immediate sense of comfort to attendees who may
be wondering how things will unfold.
Any open-ended question that helps attendees share a little bit about themselves will
work. People may have some back and forth comments around the questions, which
helps build the rapport of an in-person cocktail party — but make sure to interrupt the
conversation as needed to bring it back to the main question until everyone has
answered. You want to give everyone their turn to share.
If there’s remaining time, there may be a natural flow of conversation, or you can pose
an additional question (or ask if anyone has a question they want to pose to the group).
Unlike an in-person cocktail party, this isn’t typically a conducive environment for one-
on-one interactions, but we keep our gatherings small to ensure everyone can
participate in a lively group conversation.
No matter how well the gathering is going, it’s a good idea to consider ending it after 90
minutes. People generally tire more easily from video meetings than in-person
gatherings. If everyone is having a great time, you can leave on a high note — and you or
someone else can always gather the group again.
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After the gathering, send a quick follow-up email with everyone CC’d, thanking them
for coming and encouraging them to connect with each other one-on-one, if they’d like.
Even when you can’t meet in person, that doesn’t mean business — or the need to build
relationships — stops. In fact, without the natural interactions that go along with in-
person work and events, it’s even more important to be proactive in your networking
efforts. By hosting your own virtual networking events, you’ll be able to enhance your
own network, as well as your reputation as a connector, despite being physically
separated.
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Alisa Cohn is an executive coach who specializes in work with Fortune 500 companies
and prominent startups, including Google, Microsoft, Foursquare, Venmo, and Etsy. You can
download her free list of questions to start conversation here. Learn more at alisacohn.com.
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