networking is a beautiful thing. it’s how we connect with others and build mutually beneficial relationships that often lead us to worlds unknown. for many of us, networking was introduced as something that took place at an in-person event of some sort. however, with the ongoing pandemic, the amount of in-person professional activities accessible to us has declined and networking has adapted to meet the needs of the world we’re in now. people are applying for jobs, interviewing for jobs, and accepting job offers right from their electronic devices. our ability to effectively network in digital spaces can catapult us into our next great opportunity. here are some tips i’ve picked up over the years that i think will help you network more effectively, digitally. 

5). be intentional. 

before you reach out to anyone, ask yourself why you’re reaching out to this specific person. what are they doing that you hope to do one day? is this the best person to assist you with whatever it is you’re looking for? what do you have in common with the person you’re hoping to connect with? did you go to the same school? are you from the same city? what do you want from them? 

asking yourself questions like these will keep you honest about your why, and ultimately ground your approach which is important because when it comes to networking, one size doesn’t always fit all. people can tell when you’ve copied and pasted a general message and in some instances, this can dater people from responding to you at all. 

4). be succinct. 

no need to be fake deep. say what you mean and mean what you say. fast. 

now, don’t get me wrong. a little witty, cheeky commentary can be good when leveraged correctly. but a general good rule of thumb is to get straight to the point. assume they don’t have a lot of time to read your message because they probably don’t. the longer your message, the longer it’ll take them to read it. the longer it takes them to read it, the longer it’ll take for them to get back to you… if they get back to you at all. 

3). be accurate. 

a personal pet peeve of mine is when people reach out to me and they present something as fact that i know for a fact is in fact, not fact. the internet is at your disposal. use it to your advantage and fact check yourself before spewing out information that is not true. 

2). be grammatically correct. 

before you send it off, look it over. before you send it off, look it over. before you send it off, loooook it oooovveeerrr. nobody wants to read a message riddled with mistakes that could’ve been avoided. forreal. 

1). be hungry, never thirsty. 

not everyone you try to network with will be responsive. that’s ok. personally, i like to give people about 2 weeks to respond before i decide whether or not i want to send a follow-up message. sometimes i follow up. sometimes i don’t.  if i send a follow-up and i still don’t hear back, i keep it moving and to the best of my ability, i don’t take it personal. you want your drive and determination to shine through in all of your messaging, of course. but don’t clutter up people’s inbox in the process.