Intense “Speed Leads” networking a hit with participants
July 7, 2007
 The intense networking at the Speed Leads after-hours event by BankUnited and Chamber South drew 54 participants. It was such fun, the event will be repeated July 31. |
BankUnited and Chamber South teamed up to offer a free evening of Speed Leads, and the event was so successful that it is being repeated in July.
“It’s a take on speed dating, where business professionals can have the opportunity to meet everyone in the room in a very fun and productive manner,” explained Carmen Garcia, BankUnited vice president and manager of the South Miami branch.
“Our guests sat down in two rows of chairs facing each other and had three minutes to interact and exchange business cards with the person across from them. At the end of three minutes, everyone moved to the next seat.”
The after-hours event drew a crowd of 54, who enjoyed appetizers to ease their hunger and lots of wine to ease their apprehension over participating in such an intense networking experience.
Garcia herself participated. “It was a great opportunity for my team and myself to meet everyone at the event,” she said. “I sat down with 25 other participants and exchanged business cards and briefly networked for the allotted time. It was a great way for me to identify certain prospects that I wanted to follow-up with later during the event. I was able to continue my networking in a more productive manner for the remainder of the evening and am now working on my business development with all those new leads.”
Garcia said the event was supposed to end at 7 p.m. “But we still had guests lingering past 8 p.m. Everyone had a positive experience.”
Natasha Quiza of The Vault, an advertising agency, made a lot of new friends. “At first I thought: This looks like a speed dating service!” she said. “But it was a great way to meet everyone in the room, and give them your three-minute pitch.”
Quiza said that for many people, “especially first-timers and those more timid in approaching people, this method makes it possible to break the ice with everyone and the true purpose of these networking function is preserved.”
Ramesh Nyberg of Coldwell Banker found a negative in being interrupted just as he was getting to know someone new, forced to move on to the next seat.
“It was a new experience, that’s for sure,” he said. “I think there are negatives and positives about it. The negative is that three minutes is just not enough time for two people to establish meaningful communication about your business. The positive is that it kind of forced people who might not be so outgoing to get their message out and be face to face with someone who might be able to help them down the line. Plus, there was time before and after to connect a little deeper with people. Overall, it’s a lot better than not networking at all!”
Sound interesting?
The event will be repeated Tuesday, July 31, starting at 5:30 p.m. at The Falls Branch of BankUnited, 8941 SW 136 St. Again, the bank will serve hors d’oeuvres and wine, and again, it will be free.
So practice your 30-second “elevator speech” and RSVP by calling Nicole at 305-661-1621 or online at www.chambersouth.com.
Whether or not you get new business, you certainly will make new friends!
