One suggestion right off is to send a link to the blog post to the event organizers, hosts, sponsors, and anyone else who will give you their e-mail. Don't assume that just because you blog about an event people will find it - that's just not the way it works. But if you e-mail a link to the blog post within a day or two, you'll get a fairly high hit ratio by people who inform.
Most people only include one or two photos in a blog post and keep their posts short. I don't do it that way and will generally include all the decent images I capture at an event. Sometimes I'll write a great deal about the event and/or the people who were there and other times I just let the photos tell the story other than noting the date, place, name of the event and the organizers, hosts, and sponsors.
I try to keep my blogging light (at least I think it's light) and a bit humorous (again, in my opinion) and usually remember to thank the people who ran the event. If I know when and where the next event will be for the same group I'll often include that info, too.
Blogging about networking events isn't for everyone. If writing is a huge, time-consuming chore for you, I suggest you don't do it. You'll only get benefit from blogging about networking events if you can write the blog posts quickly.
I do try to include names and possibly business names of individual or small group shots in a blog post, but if I include shots of the crowd I don't get all compulsive about that. I don't always remember to do this but it's nice to have a shot or two of the place where the event was held - it's appreciated by the host(s) and sometimes can even get a link to your blog posted on the host business's blog or web site.
So blog on, networkers!
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 want to know about upcoming business networking events in the greater Wilmington Area [which means to me anywhere from Topsail Island, NC to North Myrtle Beach, SC], check out David Merrill's Networking Event Calendar . And if you know of or are planning a networking event you'd like included in the calendar, e-mail David at david.m.merrill@gmail.com
