Networking Cards? Who Knew!

I'm sure the networking card is something many people in the corporate world are familiar with, but it was news to me until now. I recently joined the National Association of Professional Women, a huge networking organization for hard-workin' ladies, to increase my networking opportunities and receive mentoring from women who have already achieved a high level of success.

At my first NAPW event I discovered the best alternative to a business card, the networking card.

When you are brand new to an industry, fresh out of college or a career changer, it's hard to commit to a business card because things seem to be changing every few months. I may be an assistant this month and an entry-level editor six months down the line. But a contact I make today, may be even more valuable to me in the future, and I want the first impression I give them to have staying power.

If my job title or company phone number changes, then that business card is useless, and the contact is lost. So rather than pigeon-hole myself into a tight box, I kept it broad and simple. Instead of focusing on details that might change, I chose to highlight the things that stay relatively constant such as my personal contact information, key social networking sites, and a recent image of my face.

Last night I spent a few hours creating my first networking card on VistaPrint. I wanted something that would say "I am a professional". I needed the card to let people know where to reach me, or research more about me, and wanted them to be able to match my face with my name.

The front of my card has a small headshot, and it's the same one I use for all of my social media sites. This is a very simple way of branding myself, so that no matter where someone goes to look me up, they see the same smiling face. Next I included my professional email address and cell phone number, so if I relocate or change jobs, there's still a phone number where I can be reached directly.

In this modern job market, social media sites are likely to be one of the first places a potential employer visits to learn more about you. So I added the URL's for my Linkedin profile, my professional Facebook Page, and my Twitter account. Here they can see my work history, see the kinds of things I chat about, and get a feel for the the kinds of connections I'm making. (Just be careful, and make sure that you're a responsible social media user, no drunken pics, no rants about how stupid your current boss is, that kind of thing will come back to bite you.)

Finally on the back of my card I put a short invitation to visit this blog, along with the URL.

With just one small photo, a few URL's, an email and a phone number, the people that I meet have a clear and accurate picture of who I am, what I do, and how I can best serve them. The only challenge left is initiating the conversations that will land my card in their hands, and that will inspire them to learn more about me.

More on that next time, for now I'll just sit in the lobby staring at my mailbox, waiting for my little box of cards to arrive. Is that too nerdy?

~Michelle In Turn