5 No-Fail Ways to Introduce Yourself at a Networking Event

If you’re looking for a new job, starting or growing your business, or even just looking to expand your network within your current company, you will need to meet new people.

The challenge is in finding a comfortable way to introduce yourself to the people who matter when you're at a professional conference, association mixer, or a social event where other professionals will be. The key? To be brief, but also leave enough information that you pique the listener’s interest.

Here are 5 ways to introduce or “pitch” yourself:

Bond Over a Shared Experience

If you’re at a wedding, open with how you know the couple. If you’re at a conference, open with your affiliation to the organizer or your interest in the topic. If it’s a company mixer, mention your role, department or years at the company.

From this shared experience, you can share parts of your background that build from there. But you have already built rapport by starting with what you have in common. This is great for a career changer who may not want to associate himself with the role or company he currently has.

Tell a Client Story

Instead of just listing your title and company, talk about who you serve:

The more specific the better. You can also drill down to one specific story:

The client story is particularly useful if you’re a business owner and want to leave your listener with a clear idea of your value but without a sales pitch.

Give a Before and After

That anecdote of going from a laundry bag full of papers to a streamlined system is not just a client story, but also a before/after story. The before/after can be a client’s result but it can also be what you have brought to your role or department:

A before/after structure is accessible because it’s visual, and the conversational structure prevents too much business jargon from creeping in. Creating a before/after pitch also forces you to identify and specify the value you bring.

Focus on your Expertise

This is the most traditional pitch in that you summarize the arc of your career—industry specialty, years' experience, and/or role:

This is a dependable way of introducing yourself, and if you keep it concise, you’ll share a rich amount of information. One drawback is that many people use this pitch, so you risk getting forgotten, especially at a crowded event like a conference where introductions stack up.

To be more memorable, that same marketer could have made the pitch more specific...

Or the marketer could have tried to incorporate the before/after as well:

Get Personal

Most pitches rightly include professional history or accomplishments because people expect this.

But an introduction is really about the start of a relationship. The professional sharing could come after. You might try sharing something personal first—where you grew up, a cherished hobby, a side project you’re currently working on. If the personal nuggets engenders a genuine rapport and a chance to talk again later then it’s a good pitch to use.

You might combine it with the shared experience:

Ideally, you create, then mix and match all of these pitches. You decide which to use based on the situation. You experiment, and use the ones that resonate the best. You continually add—new client stories, new before/ after results, new ways to summarize your career, new personal tidbits to share.

Make sure your networking pitch evolves as your career, skills and interests evolve.

Caroline Ceniza-Levine is co-founder of SixFigureStart® career coaching. She has worked with professionals from American Express, Condé Nast, Gilt, Goldman Sachs, Google, McKinsey, and other leading firms. She’s also a stand-up comic. This column appears weekly.

Read more from Caroline Ceniza-Levine:

• 5 Career Questions that Will Make You More Successful in 2015
• How to Ace Your Next Phone Interview
• 3 Ways Women Can Get the Raises they Deserve
• 5 Ways You’re Sabotaging Yourself in Job Interviews
• 10 Ways to Speed Up Your Job Search