Last year at this time we warned you How Not To Make This A Holiday Party Everyone Will Remember. This year we’re encouraging you to make the entire month of December one that you will remember – not because you mortifyingly crooned “Memory” to your coworkers during impromptu karaoke, but because you networked liked a 2008 U.S. Presidential candidate at a small town Fourth of July parade. The only way to make sure that your January resolution to land a new job or to land some new clients comes to fruition is to start “partying” – albeit in a calculated manner – your fanny off right now. Let us explain.

Interior designers are notoriously harried the last two months of the year. If you’re working in the commercial field, every company wants to eat up their budgets for construction and furniture line items by December 31. If you’re working in the residential field, every homeowner wants to have his or her place looking immaculate to host (and to impress) family and friends at holiday gatherings. So between trying to please clients, shopping for presents, mailing greeting cards, and giving your own home some holiday cheer, the last thing you probably have energy for is going to parties. (Unless you’re in your 20s, in which case you’re always up for a party.)

But think about it. Every tome on how to work the room or how to make a good first impression tells you that the ideal situation is to associate a positive feeling or circumstance when you meet / see your target. And what jollier, warm-n-fuzzier place is there than a party (especially one where you aren’t picking up the tab)? So get crafty and make it a point to take advantage of these ready-made situations to promote either yourself or your firm now. If you do, 2008 will truly be great, giving you a better reason to celebrate. (We’ll stop rhyming now.)


New Leads

If you are looking to expand your client base, then you can’t wait for them to come to you – you must go to them. Where are they going to be this month? Out merrymaking.

Industrious Industry Events
The obvious choice, eh? Thanks to the Internet and humble little search engine called Google, you can easily find out when and where the local branches of the professional organizations that contain your target client base are going to be. Facility managers, homebuilders, retail developers, etc. – they’ve all got their own associations and their own holiday bashes. A note of caution: be sure to find out if each event is “by invitation only” or has an associated cost with it. It’s one thing to slip in and crash a simple cocktail party, but it’s another thing altogether to bully your way into where you are not welcomed and risk hacking people off and embarrassing yourself.

Alma Maters Matter
Been avoiding your alumni associations so that you don’t have to give them a donation because you’re still paying off those student loans? Get over it. These events are a goldmine of contacts because you’ve already got a diploma, a fight song, and (possibly) a secret handshake in common. These former classmates and Greek brothers/sisters – whether you remember them or not and whether you liked them or not – are fantastic candidates to be your future clients. Local mixers, basketball games, and (if you’re still in town) campus tree lighting ceremonies are all ripe for networking.

Everywhere You Look
If you think about it, what isn’t an opportunity to meet new people? For example: If you are altruistically volunteering at the soup kitchen in your city’s homeless shelter, take the time during breaks to find out what your fellow volunteers do for a living. Chances are that they could be some fairly important people who need your design services. Another example: If you are going to your child’s Christmas pageant, make it a point to engage the parents that you’ve never seen before in a little conversation. Maybe one of them happens to work for a multi-national company in need of your space planning services. You just never know.

Don’t Be A Scrooge
People appreciate those who are generous, so if an organization seeks out a raffle prize or silent auction item from you, consider donating something. Those supporting the local PTA, theater company, domestic abuse shelter, etc. are people who might want to do business with you. Whether you contribute your services or a product (even it it’s not related to the design industry), the act of giving will provide your firm with some well-deserved recognition and made you feel like an angel. Plus, the winner might just be your next big client.


New Horizons

If you are looking for employment, raise your personal profile by hitting the party circuit. We have proof that this works as PLiNTH & CHiNTZ Founder, Laura McDonald Stewart, found two different design jobs at Christmas parties. No kidding.

Get Organized
Especially if you are a newbie to the industry, professional design-related organizations are the easiest place to start your quest for contacts. You are guaranteed that everyone there has something to do with the industry; therefore, you won’t be able to swing a dead cat without hitting someone who could be of some benefit to your career. (Sorry for the graphic expression – it’s just so descriptive. It’s probably a Southern thing.)

Don’t Be Invisible
Go to everything that you can think of – not just design-related functions like showroom parties. (Refer to the “Everywhere You Look” section above for a couple of examples.) However, in order for this to be effective, you MUST 1) actually force yourself to talk to new people, 2) tell people what you do, and 3) self-promote. Even the bartender that you chat with while you’re waiting for your time-challenged relatives to show up for dinner at your local bistro might be the son of some high-powered interior designer who is looking to hire on. Weirder things happen.

CPR For The Soul
If you are one of those people who has been suffocating too long under a pile of work, this time of year is the ideal time to resurface and resuscitate those dying (or dead) relationships. Go to that book club party or first-Saturday-of-the-month pick-up basketball game that you’ve missed for the last 11 months. Chances are that, even if no one new has joined the group, a regular member has changed careers or struck up a friendship with someone who knows someone who knows someone, etc. We cannot emphasize it enough – it’s a small world. After all. (You knew that was coming.)


No Party Poopers Allowed

No matter what your networking goals are, keep it light and fun at these events, but have a plan to take advantage of your new (or rekindled) connections. Unless you are donating a giveaway prize and have been asked to bring promotional materials, don’t even think of bringing any company brochures with you. No one wants to walk around with those things while they are trying to balance a plate and glass. Talk about buzz kill.

Finally, instead of blanketing the room with your business cards, simply ask your contacts for theirs so that you can follow up immediately after the first of the year. When you do follow up, write a personal note, mentioning specifics from your conversation, expressing an interest in your speaking soon, and wishing them a Happy New Year. A week later, give them a ring or drop them an email to follow up even further. The goal, of course, is to get on calendars, get some face time, get new relationships started, and get some business. So get after it!

(FYI: If you’re not comfortable working a room, then refer to our article “Networking A-Go-Go” to learn some basic tips and get your juices flowing.)