Get the Most Out of Your Networking with Exhibitors

JANINE FABER, MEd, RDN, LD SPRING SUMMIT COMMITTEE MEMBER

Mark your calendars for the Spring Summit Expo hour at 5:00 pm EST on Monday, March 6th!

One of the many benefits of NE DPG’s Spring Summit is networking. It is also one of the things our attendees love the most, including myself. While we often think of networking with other attendees and entrepreneurs, there is also a great benefit in networking with the Spring Summit exhibitors. As a Spring Summit Committee member for three years now, and the past Director of Sponsorship, here are my suggestions for the best ways to interact and engage with exhibitors: y Complete your Whova profile so exhibitors can know your niche and location. y Direct message exhibitor staff before, during, and/or after the Summit: introduce yourself, ask about their favorite part of their business, follow-up on ways you can partner, and stay in touch. y Interact with exhibitors’ representatives using the community board posts. y Attend live Sponsored Virtual Meetups provided by exhibitors. Be sure to interact with them by asking questions or sharing what you have learned. y Visit the virtual booths and browse their videos, pictures, products, handouts, and other content to learn more about their company. y Talk to exhibitors live during the Expo Hour on Monday, March 6th from 5 pm to 6 pm EST. y Chat with exhibitors through their booth chat box. Share what you like about their booth, products, and/or services. y Enter exhibit giveaways and promotions. y Participate in the Passport Contest to win prizes! Earn a stamp at each booth by liking the booth, chatting with the staff through the chat box, and entering their giveaway. When you earn at least 8 stamps, you will be eligible for the Spring Summit prizes!

As a bonus, you can earn up to 1.0 CPEUs for interacting with exhibitors, either live during the designated Expo Hour or on your own time during the Spring Summit.

Community Guidelines

The Whova platform provides us with a unique opportunity to network with other attendees via Community Boards, Virtual Meetups, and the like. Please review the following guidelines before participating in community engagement:

1 Be kind, courteous, and professional. No hate speech or bullying.

2 Respect everyone’s privacy.

3 Promotion is only allowed in the Member MarketPlace Community Board.

4 Whova’s community and engagement features are for socializing and networking, not advertising. Focus on getting to know your network rather than selling products or services.

5 Virtual Meetups may not be created for the express purpose of promoting a business or service, as the goal of such Meetups is to foster conversation and camaraderie. Promotional Meetups are limited to exhibitors only.

Exhibitors are ready to share their resources with you. They want to help support your business growth. Get the most out of your networking by meeting exhibitors and reconnecting after the Summit. Do any number of these things, and you’ll energize your business!

Janine Faber, MEd, RDN, LD, is a nutrition communications consultant focusing on media communications, health professional outreach, and community education. She is often out with her two young kids exploring during the day and enjoying family meals with her whole family at night. You can follow Janine on IG at janine.faber.nutrition.

PRO TIP: Exhibitor booth access works best from a mobile device, especially when trying to connect to live streams. If connecting to live streams from a desktop, Chrome is the preferred browser.

6 If you set up a Virtual Meetup, please attend and lead that Meetup so others joining in the experience will benefit from the networking opportunity.

7 Remember that discussions of pricing, fees, or reimbursement amounts must not appear in any postings.

8 Please be aware that NE DPG is a subsidiary of the Academy.

If you would like more details, please visit NE’s Online Discussions Netiquette and Terms of Use at https://bit.ly/3VPNiDO