You don’t need to speak to everyone at a networking event. But a little preparation can help you meet the people you’d most like to speak to and make better use of your time.
Who are the right people?
That depends on why you’re attending. You might want to find potential clients, meet people you can learn from or build relationships with others working in your industry.
If you’re looking to sell a product or service, you need to speak to someone who can make a buying decision or influence it. Before you start attending events, get a clear idea of who those people are in the organisations you’re targeting. Job titles can help, but they don’t always tell you who makes the decisions.
Knowing who you want to meet will also help you judge whether an event is worth the time and money involved.
Who is going?
If you have access to a delegate list before the event, identify up to five people you’d particularly like to speak to. This gives you a focus, but don’t treat it as a checklist you have to complete.
If there’s no delegate list, look for posts on LinkedIn announcing attendance. Search for the event name or its hashtag. This won’t give you a complete list, but it’s a useful starting point.
You can also contact the organiser. Explain who you’re hoping to meet and ask whether the event is likely to attract those people. For a smaller event, you could ask whether a particular person is attending and whether an introduction might be possible. They may not be able to share attendees’ details, but they might be happy to help you connect on the day.
Reach out before the event
Walking up to a stranger can feel daunting. Contacting them beforehand gives you a starting point and may make it easier to arrange a conversation.
If you have a shared contact, ask whether they would be happy to introduce you. Otherwise, send a brief message explaining why you’d like to meet. For example:
“Hello Sarah, I see you’re attending [event]. I’d be interested to hear how you’re approaching [specific issue] in your business. Would you have ten minutes for a chat during the coffee break?”
Keep the request small and the reason clear. If they don’t reply, you can still introduce yourself at the event, but don’t assume they’ve seen your message or agreed to meet.
What have you got to say or ask?
You need a little more than “Hello, my name is… and I work for…”
Think about why you want to speak to them, what might interest them and what you’d like to happen next. You don’t need a rehearsed pitch, but you do need a starting point.
A little research will help. You might have seen something they’ve written, heard them speak or noticed a development in their business.
For example:
“I noticed your recent LinkedIn post about [topic]. Your point about [specific issue] caught my attention. How are you tackling that in practice?”
Then give them time to answer. Being interested in what they have to say will get you further than trying to squeeze everything about your business into the first two minutes.
A useful outcome might simply be learning something or agreeing to continue the conversation another day.
How do you approach them?
An introduction from the organiser or a shared contact is often the easiest route, so ask if someone can help.
If the person is on their own, keep it simple:
“Hello, I’m Emma. Have you got a moment for a quick introduction?”
If they’re in a group, look for an open space and a natural pause in the conversation. A simple “Would you mind if I joined you?” is enough. Introduce yourself briefly, then listen and join the conversation before trying to steer it towards your own topic.
If two people are deep in conversation, give them some space and try again later. Don’t spend the whole event following someone around or waiting for them to become available. Speak to other people too. Someone you hadn’t planned to meet may turn out to be a very useful connection.
And if you do get a conversation, be mindful of their time. If there’s more to discuss, suggest a follow-up rather than trying to cover everything there and then.
Follow up
Having put that effort into meeting someone, don’t forget to follow up.
Before the conversation ends, agree a next step where possible. That could be sending an article, making an introduction or arranging a longer conversation.
Afterwards, make a quick note of what you discussed and anything you promised to do. Follow up while the conversation is still fresh, refer to something specific and do what you said you would.
You don’t have to meet all five people on your list for the event to have been worthwhile. Two or three good conversations, followed up properly, can be a very good result.