Summertime is usually a downtime for business but you shouldn’t stop networking. Take advantage of this quiet period to be creative and network in a different way by reactivating your contacts.

Since there are less events and people have more free time, use this opportunity to invite people for a social happy hour or join groups that you never joined before. It’s a good time to explore new opportunities to meet new people in new environments for new leads.

One of my favorite places to invite people for a summer cocktail when I was in New York was the Terrace at the Metropolitan Museum. With its great view and ambiance, it’s a great place to reactivate your connections. If you play golf, tennis or run in the park, invite people to join you. If you attend free concerts in Central Park invite a group of people and introduce them to each other. Have your own party or plan outdoor events or organize “Me Time” at the spa. These are some of the creative ways to take advantage of the relaxed pace of summer and connect / reconnect with your old contacts, prospects or clients.

Very often social meetings will lead to business contacts because everyone, for once, won’t try to sell anything. Remember that everything doesn’t have to be about you or your business and it’s more important to be memorable and give the right impression. When you invite people unexpectedly and don’t try to sell them anything but instead, ask them how you can help them, the return on your networking time will be ten times more efficient.

A good networker is a good listener, so LISTEN and take mental notes to find out how you can help others (then write your notes down to use them later to follow-up). Do they need a specific contact or resource? Is their birthday or their kids’ birthday coming up, take not of the date. What if somebody mentions that his birthday is in two weeks, and two weeks later he receives a birthday card from you, this is one of the various opportunities to follow up. They’ll be impressed you’ll be number one on their list when they need your service or have a referral for you.

In addition to attending events and parties, summertime is a great period to track and check up on what happened since the beginning of the year. How many events you attended, how many business cards you collected, how many follow-up meetings you scheduled, and how many new clients you got from your networking efforts.

Take this opportunity to organize and update your database, formally enter your contacts on softwares like Act or Outlook, and set up a concrete follow-up system. Send a note card to say “hello” or “happy summer” or to invite them for a drink or to your party. Send postcard mailings with a marketing message, run a special offer or send a coupon or a special discount. Re-activate your contacts in one way or another but do it now! September it will be too late, everybody will be busy again and you’ll go back to your routine.

Need help to reconnect with your contacts and or set-up your follow-up system? Just give me two hours, and I will reveal 10 simple ways to reactivate your contacts so you can get tons of new clients by September.
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