How to help people remember you

Article contributed by Kim Chamberlain.

Fran is at a business networking event. It’s the fifth event she’s been to this month, she has met a lot of new people and she’s beginning to lose track.
You are the eighth person she’s spoken to at this event. How do you get her to remember you?

Think back over all the networking events you’ve ever been to. Now think of three people you particularly remember. What is it about them that makes them stand out?

What can you do to help people remember you … and remember you for the right reasons? You probably don’t want to be remembered as the guy who fell over drunk at the pre-Christmas event!
Are any of the reasons you thought about above, ones you could employ yourself?

Tips and strategies

•  When at an event, always wear a name tag. If people both see and hear your name they are more likely to remember it. Carry a name tag around with you in case you aren’t given one at the event.
• Put your photo on your business card so people can recall you when they look at the card at a later date.
• Be noticed. For example, if there is a speaker at the event, ask a good quality question; be a volunteer if the speaker asks for one; approach the organiser and offer to give the Thank You speech to the speaker.
• Be charismatic. Don’t hide yourself away – make pleasant conversation with many people, including staff at the venue; if you are seated at a table where people don’t know each other, suggest that people introduce themselves.

Memory recall is aided by a number of factors, for example:

• A ‘first’. People often remember ‘firsts’ What can you do to make something a first for another person? For example be the first person to welcome them when they join your BNI group; say to someone you meet “I bet I’m the first person you’ve met who …”
• Repetition. Do something more than once. For example go to events regularly, so people see you ‘repeatedly’. The more they see you the more they will remember you. If you meet someone with whom you have a synergy, arrange to meet them for coffee, so it’s not a one-off.
• Association. People remember something if they associate it with something else. For example associate yourself with a particular colour, eg your branding colour; the colour of your business card; items you possess; clothing you wear. Associate your name with something else “My name is Paul Jenkins. I have the same initials as Peter Jackson… and the same physique.” Note – make sure that the ‘something else’ is something you would like to be associated with!
• Difference. People remember something that is different, unusual or stands out.
• Consider wearing something unusual – though still appropriate – as a way of standing out, eg a lapel pin signifying an organisation you belong to; an interesting tie; unusual earrings.
• Give people something as a genuine free gift. Many years ago someone I met at Rotary gave me a small penknife. It sticks in my mind as something different to do, I still have the knife, and I did use their services!
• Tell them something unusual about yourself, eg I have seven children; I once worked as a grave digger; I met the Dalai Lama….

Many people will say they are not good at remembering names or faces. The more you help them remember you, the better your network will become.