With working from home becoming increasingly the norm, you may find it difficult to network remotely. Indeed, our social interactions have decreased dramatically since the global pandemic and we are increasingly trying to find new contacts and network remotely as a result.
So if your looking to pick up some tips on how to network remotely, read our article below so that you will have the chance to build your network up even from the comforts of your home.
What is networking?
Networking is about interacting with others to be able to rely on them for information or develop professional or social contacts. This is all the people you have met that you feel you can refer back to to for help, advice and offer something in return too. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a business transaction : your network is also your family and friends.
Having a network is now a vital part of your professional portfolio. Using it to improve your CV but also to obtain references and help in your professional life is considered part and parcel of being a professional that goes above and beyond.
Look for online events
Online events are now the norm. Finding specialised online events in your sector is especially important to network remotely. Often university departments will now host conferences and paper presentations. Similarly, leading organisations in your industry sometimes offer online workshops to develop new skills, where you will also meet new people. For example, a think tank working on policy in your industry might be hosting an online event where speakers take questions. If there is an open session to take questions make sure you have them prepared to stand out and potentially liaise with others.
You can also have virtual job fairs online. These job fairs consist of a series of presentations by employers, who could eventually let people ask questions. That is your time to seize on the opportunity of building your network.
Build your future network remotely
Just because you are stuck at home doesn’t mean you can’t bolster your contact book by doing some research in advance. Get an Excel or Google Sheet out, use a Client Follow Up template and start scouring the internet for experts, leaders, influencers, and content you can aggregate into a list. Having this on hand when the world reopens will be vital to having a head start on others when you find yourself asking “Who can help me with this?”.
It also helps to have a register of relevant organisations in your geographic circle so that you know who is where and where to find which organisation. It can also help to find a future job or attend events in some places.
Join alternative social media
Being stuck on Facebook and Instagram is usually only a way to reinforce your existing contacts or meet people in a non-professional environment. Similarly, LinkedIn may be oversaturated with people looking to network and posting very generalist corporate views when you want to have a more targeted community.
Some examples of alternative social media you could join to network include :
- Reddit : Reddit is now the internet’s number one forum in the traditional sense. It has numerous subeditors which allows you to categorise
- Discord : Discord is the new fad in social media, combining elements of old chat rooms from the internet’s yesterday, with audio and video functions and a categorisation of topics. Getting a Discord link to a close community full of fellow professionals sharing their secrets is incredibly value and especially popular with coders.
- Slack : Slack is a work office productivity app favourite but it can also take the form of a networking and social media app. Indeed, now it is being used increasingly by freelancers to collaborate on new projects and offer advice. Get into the right Slack chatroom and you will be making professional acquaintances in no time!
Use twitter hashtags to network remotely
Twitter hashtags are great way to see what people are talking about in a specific subject, and then subsequently know what the core debates are in your industry or sector are for you to engage in and find new people. Twitter may seem like the social media equivalent of a cesspit due to bad press but it has also a very interesting lists function where you can create your own feeds based on people who are tweeting about that subject.
Remember that many social media sites are what you make of them. The hashtag and follow functions, if effectively used, can be powerful professional tools rather than distractions.
Contact your old university acquaintances
If you haven’t already been doing this already, now is the time to start. Most people are lacking social interaction and would fancy a call. Your higher education experience wasn’t just about the grades, it was also a way to make a solid network last throughout the years. Make sure you exploit this and contact old classmates to see how they are doing and know they can count on you for advice.
Make sure you also revive some old university professor acquaintances to discuss your previous work. Look towards reigniting a working relationship with an old university department by asking if they need help with research or something else.