How To Set Networking Goals To Make The Right Connections

Going to an event and meeting new people is great, but how often have you left without real results? You talked to many attendees, exchanging business cards or LinkedIn profiles, but didn’t gain anything meaningful. The problem isn’t the event or the people. Without a clear goal, it’s easy to talk to everyone but connect with no one.

A networking goal is a clear idea of what you want to achieve at an event. It gives your conversations purpose and helps you find the right people to talk to. Here’s why setting goals is important:

• You know who to talk to instead of hoping to meet someone valuable by chance.
• You save time by focusing only on relevant connections.
• You make it easier for others to help you because they understand your needs.
• You get measurable results like finding a client or partner or getting helpful advice.

Step 1: Define what you want to achieve

Ask yourself: What is my main reason for attending this event?

Examples:

• Find a freelance designer for a new project.
• Meet potential clients for your consulting service.
• Get feedback on a startup idea.
• Connect with experts in your industry.

Step 2: Be specific about who you want to meet

Think about the type of people who can help you reach your goal.

Examples:

• Tech startup founders.
• Marketing managers in e-commerce.
• Investors in early-stage startups.

Step 3: Set a number or metric to measure success

Set a goal you can measure to know if your networking was successful.

Examples:

• Talk to at least five potential clients.
• Schedule two meetings.
• Join at least one group discussion about the topic you’re interested in.

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Not all goals are helpful. A good networking goal is clear, specific, and focused on what you want to achieve. It also makes it easier for others to understand how they can help you. A bad goal is too general or unclear, which makes it hard to know what to do next and often leads to conversations without real value.

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Bad goal: “Meet new people.”

Why it doesn’t work: It’s too general. You’ll talk to random people without knowing what to focus on.

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Good goal: “Find two founders who’ve recently launched a B2B product and ask how they got their first clients.”

Why it works: It’s clear and specific. It helps you start helpful conversations and learn something directly relevant to your business.

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Bad goal: “Grow my network.”

Why it doesn’t work: It’s unclear what you actually want. You might collect contacts but not build valuable relationships.

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Good goal: “Connect with five marketing professionals in e-commerce to exchange tips and explore possible partnerships.”

Why it works: You know exactly who you’re looking for, what you want to discuss, and how the connection could be useful.

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Bad goal: “Connect with investors.”

Why it doesn’t work: It’s too general. What kind of investors? What do you want to talk about?

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Good goal: “Talk to three early-stage investors to get feedback on my app and learn what they look for in founders.”

Why it works: It’s clear who you want to meet, what you want to talk about, and how many people you want to connect with.

Setting goals is great, but tracking and reaching them is even better. That’s where Taptiq helps.

• Add your networking goal to your profile so others know what you’re looking for.
• Use filters to find attendees by industry or role. 
• Create a list of people you want to meet and connect via messages or schedule 1:1 meetings.
• Try Speed Networking if you want to meet many people quickly. It’s great for getting a wide range of connections during the event.
• Leave private notes that only you can see after each conversation. It helps you remember who you talked to and what you discussed.
• Follow up easily after the event. You can quickly find past conversations and continue building the connection.

Setting clear networking goals helps you make the most of every event. You know who to talk to, save time, and have more meaningful conversations. Instead of collecting random contacts, you build real connections that lead to results, like finding clients, partners, or advice that helps you succeed. Focus on quality, not quantity. A few valuable conversations are always better than dozens of ones you usually forget.