Five Ways To Effectively Grow Your PR Network

1. Introduce Yourself

You’re not always going to have someone to introduce you, so introduce yourself. Give yourself the credit you deserve, because you warrant a voice in the room just as much as anyone else. Whether it’s introducing yourself directly or using a group discussion to segway yourself into an audience, initiate the connection with people who can help you accomplish your goals.

2. Be Selective

This keeps your network directly relevant to your interests and less overwhelming for your long-term benefit. It can also become awkward if you are approached by the person asking for you to identify yourself, or if a third-party inquires upon your connection thinking you have some sort of relationship already formed. However, growing your network is also a benefit, so if they were worth introducing yourself, they are worth adding to your network!

3. Make The Meets Matter

Growing your network is great, but choose quality over quantity. Being selective benefits your long-term connections. Break ground with executives and professionals and know how you want to sell yourself in advance. Confidence is key and respectfully taking that first step will help you stand out and seem more focused.

4. Use Virtual Events To Your Advantage

Following the pandemic, events have become almost exclusively virtual, allowing for a low maintenance environment in general. You feel more at ease in the comfort of your own home, there’s less social formality so you can get straight to the point of your interests, and you are able to make your connection and build without the pressure of the societal climate of opinion.

5. Reach Out And Stay Active

There are three levels of interaction I keep with the connections I have made. The first is low-level; I interact with their posts and congratulate them on their achievements, but have little private interaction. The second, and most common, form of connection I have with people in my network, is to keep up with their public activity as well as reaching out directly about twice a year. Personally, I tend to reach out around the holidays and at the end of the academic year, because most people are looking forward to some form of stress release and tend to be in better, more social spirits.