If you help the organizers and hosts of an event, especially at the beginning, you might find you get introduced more enthusiastically and also get known as someone who's a helper and willing to pitch in. If when you introduce yourself to the hosts or organizers who add a simple, "If there's any way I can help today/tonight just let me know." that's possibly all it takes.
Sometimes the need for help is so obvious you won't even need to ask. For example if there's a line of people trying to get in and only one frazzled person at a registration desk, that's a perfect oppportunity to help. You could (after asking) take some extra name tags and pens down the line to speed things up or whatever works. In this case, just the works "Let me help" will likely suffice.
There are probably more opportunities to help at the end of an event than at the beginning. If the meeting space needs to be rearranged after the event (moving and folding chairs and tables, for example, or helping showcased vendors move their display materials out), that's a perfect time to help and to get to know others. As with Tip #6, however, don't use the fact that you folded a few chairs give you an excuse to keep the hosts or organizers long after the scheduled event ending time if they are clearly ready to leave.
The bottom line is that being a person who helps others is a great tip for life and can only serve you well at networking events.
This post is one in a series on how to make the most of in-person networking events. If you're going to go (and I suggest you do if your business benefits from relationships), you might as have the most fun possible and give and receive the greatest benefits from the occasion.
If you know of a networking event in the greater Wilmington Area [which means to me anywhere from Topsail Island, NC to North Myrtle Beach, SC] that's open to visitors, drop me a note ahead of time and I'll try to post it.
If you know of a networking event in the greater Wilmington Area [which means to me anywhere from Topsail Island, NC to North Myrtle Beach, SC] that's open to visitors, drop me a note ahead of time and I'll try to post it.
