Networking - is it just a game of cards?

I went to a networking event yesterday and, shock, horror, I didn't give my business card to anyone and I only received one card.

I met up with a few people I know fairly well and had a variety of discussions. The first, we discussed which networks have proved worthwhile for business, which are great for social and which aren't either. That's networks - not events. Which people have we been able to follow up, discuss business with, find out about them, pass referrals on to and, maybe, get referrals in return?

The second discussion and the novelty business card was with someone I know and was about personal networking - see earlier post "Paying it forward" (Thanks Dan for the sweets).

The other long discussion I had was with someone I'd met recently, and we had agreed to keep in touch and meet up, probably in January. Instead, we had an initial discussion and will discuss further soon - we have contact details, don't need the business cards again.

So, are YOU just playing the card game? Or building valuable connections?



Find Sue on LinkedIn and at http://www.suecohen.co.uk/