Networking is natural to some people, while others need to learn techniques to become more successful at it. For those people who network easily, there appears to be a commonality among them. They have good eye contact and good listening skills.

To be a good listener, one needs to concentrate not only on what is being said, but also on both verbal and non-verbal communication techniques. Being a good listener is key to hearing all that is being said. At the same time, carefully observing body language can reveal a lot about what is not spoken. When you listen carefully and observe and translate body language correctly, you not only portray yourself as a professional, but increase your probability of building successful business relationships.

As a good listener, you still want to be engaged in the conversation. One way to do that is by asking “open-ended” questions. Asking “open-ended” questions invites a variety of responses, and may encourage people to provide important information about themselves and their businesses. For example: “Tell me about your business” or “What makes your products/services unique?” Such open-ended questions generate many different kinds of responses after providing useful information about the person and interesting facts about the company. These types of questions demonstrate your interest in the business and in the people who operate it.

An “open-ended” question suitable for networking events could be, “What kind of business referral works best for you and your business?” This could open the conversation, generate interest, and be the start of a new relationship. When you have demonstrated genuine interest and have started to build good rapport, you create the possibility of developing a good future business relationship. >> next page