Because of Covid-19, many things have changed: the way of working, the way of going out with friends and the way of doing sport have changed.
With them there have also been substantial changes in the world of marketing, and whoever is part of it knows this well.
The firsts of all to be affected were the events: no event in place for a long time yet.
However, we at Microsoft always want the best for our partners and want to stay in touch with them especially in the most difficult moments. For this reason, we have created a new platform for totally virtual events. BeLux House in the Cloud will become your virtual partner networking moment.
The new platform, Thola, completely recreates an event virtually, from the rooms with the conferences to the people inside them. In our first digital partner networking event, on the 10th of September 2020, BeLux House in the Cloud, our partners will be able to choose an avatar and communicate and interact with other people present at the event.
We know, the rules of the game have changed and certainly networking with other people online is not the same as doing it face-to-face. For this reason, we have decided to give you a couple of tips on how to effectively network in digital events.
1.Tell the others you will take part to the event!
First of all, you must communicate to others that you will participate in the event and that they can find you there! If people don’t know that you are there too, it will be difficult for them to connect with you. Share your participation with people you already know they will go or even on social networks, to maybe get in touch with that person you always wanted but never had the opportunity!
2.Update your badge status
As Thola is based on Teams, update the color and status of your badge to show that you are willing to talk, give information or are already engaged with someone else. Plus, you will have the option to add some pre-qualification to your platform profile.
3.Share your ideas and thoughts
Don't be afraid to talk about your ideas and thoughts, it could create a very interesting conversation that could be joined by other people.
4.Ask to involve other people
If it can help you, ask the other user if they would like to include other people in the conversation: the more you are, the more ideas come out and it will be easier to be inspired.
5.Don’t be shy, in the end it’s easier!
You have nothing to fear! Usually at the events in place it is more difficult to get in touch with someone, here shyness is overcome! Take heart and ask to be able to chat with the person you want!
6.Stick to the essence. Create the connection
Digital networking time is limited, so you better come prepared with an elevator pitch and build the connection. No need to discuss the full details. Agree on the next steps and use the remaining time to build a new connection.
7.Follow up with your new connections
Sometimes when relationships are created online, we give them less importance. This time it is not like that. Try to give them due importance even after the event!
We hope our suggestions will be useful to you!
See you at the event and… enjoy it!
