We have been attending a lot of networking events in the last few months here in Las Vegas and have been meeting a lot of great people. Because we are new to the scene, we have come to realize that there are a few different types of networking events that businesses can attend.

1. Breakfast Meeting
The breakfast meetings are great because it has a focus on qualified referrals. They are also very organized. Picture a meeting room at a restaurant with a circle of tables. They are very similar to BNI (Business Networking International) but a little bit cheaper. Generally these meetings are $10 per week and you get a breakfast and a chance to present your 60 second presentation. You also get to ask for referrals. You still have to commit to a group after a few visits but it is great because only 1 person from each industry is allowed in the group. It is also their philosophy to not only receive referrals but to give them as well. It can be a great gig if you are willing to commit once a week. From that type of consistency, you will be able to build strong lasting relationships with other professionals like yourself.

2. After Dark/Mixer
These are a totally different ball game then the organized Breakfast Meetings. These are good if you are nervous about presenting in front of everyone and do not want to commit to a weekly meeting.  They are also good if you like the more relaxed social scene. Generally these events are held at a bar or lounge of some type.  One thing I didn’t like about these events is it seemed as though a majority of the people I have come across are trying to close a hard sale instead of making a connection with us.  I like these social events because they are relaxed but because they are only held monthly or quarterly–it is hard to get referrals from people you have only met once.  So the key to these are to make sure to contact all of the people you meet and try to connect with them within the next week or so, that way you are fresh on their mind and visa versa. You never know who you will meet at these events. A cool thing you can do when emailing the people you have met is to send them a video business card so they remember who you are and what you specialize in. Yes, that was my shameless plug 🙂  A great organization to check out is Network LV.

3. Event
These can be similar to the after dark events. Not as organized as the breakfast meetings but can still be effective if you put the time into them. The chamber of commerce puts on a lot of networking events to connect their members. We have recently joined the Las Vegas Metro Chamber of Commerce and have enjoyed it so far. We have only been to 2 events but are making some great connections. One thing that I have noticed about the chamber events as opposed to the after dark events is the mind set of the professionals. What I mean is that they were not trying to close a hard sell, at least at the ones we have been to. It seemed like the people at the chamber events were veterans and have been networking for a long time and just understood the game.

In closing, We have enjoyed all of the networking events that we have attended in the last few months. They are all different in their own right but all can have a great group of people in them. We will continue to attend these events so if you ever attend one here in Las Vegas, let us know. We would love to meet you and exchange a card to connect later. Always bring LOTS of business cards because it seems to be the thing at these events. Although we’ve learned that just handing out a card is not as effective as following up and making a connection.

Happy Networking Everyone.