Networking Strategies That Get You Remembered - and Referred
Episode 33
Ever leave a networking event feeling busy—but not remembered?
In today’s always-on, hyper-connected world, showing up isn’t enough if people can’t recall who you are or what you do.
In Episode 33 of The People Success Circle, I break down networking strategies that get you remembered—not just noticed. We talk about why visibility alone doesn’t lead to referrals, how trust is built before you ever have a conversation, and what actually helps people remember you in both in-person and online spaces.
Listen in or read on for practical insights and simple shifts you can apply right away to build stronger, more meaningful connections.
In this episode of The People Success Circle, I break down what it really takes to network in a way that leads to trust, referrals, and real opportunities. Here’s what we cover:
Why networking strategies that get you remembered matter more than simply showing up or collecting contacts
What networking in a hyper-connected world looks like—and why visibility alone isn’t enough
How relationship-based networking creates stronger referrals, partnerships, and long-term opportunities
The role of modern networking strategies, including why in-person and virtual networking must work together
How to use a thoughtful LinkedIn networking strategy to support referrals before and after conversations happen
Practical ways to get referrals through networking without being salesy or self-promotional
🎧 Tune in or keep reading to walk away with practical insights you can apply immediately—for yourself or the people you lead.
🔗 Helpful Links
🌐 Mindy’s website for business consulting: https://www.limerockcareerco.com
🎧 Listen to the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts
Episode 33: Watch or Listen
Key Takeaways From Episode 33
Networking in a Hyper-Connected World Requires Visibility and Intention
We live in a noisy, always-on environment where people form impressions before they ever meet us. In this networking in a hyper-connected world, hard work alone isn’t enough to get noticed. Being intentional about how and where you show up—both online and in person—is what allows the right people to find and remember you.
Modern Networking Strategies Go Beyond In-Person Events
Modern networking strategies aren’t about choosing between virtual or in-person connections—they require both. Face-to-face interactions build trust faster, but your online presence reinforces credibility long after the event ends. The strongest networks are built when these two approaches work together consistently.
Relationship-Based Networking Is What Leads to Referrals
Relationship-based networking focuses on trust, familiarity, and long-term connection—not quick wins. People refer, hire, and partner with those they know and trust. When relationships come first, referrals follow naturally, without forced follow-ups or salesy conversations.
Your LinkedIn Networking Strategy Works While You Sleep
A thoughtful LinkedIn networking strategy acts as your online billboard. People look you up quickly, often within minutes of hearing your name. An active, relevant profile—and consistent engagement—helps others understand what you do and why you matter, making it easier to be remembered and referred.
How to Get Referrals Through Networking—Without Being Salesy
The most effective networking strategies that get you remembered focus on clarity and consistency, not self-promotion. When you show up regularly, communicate your value clearly, and nurture relationships over time, referrals become a natural outcome rather than an awkward ask.
🎧 Want the full story, examples, and action steps?
Listen to the full episode of The People Success Circle for more insights on building a thriving culture that drives results.
Read the full transcript
Mindy East:
Welcome back.
I want to start this week’s episode by telling you a networking story.
A few weeks ago, my friend Carrie reached out and asked if I wanted to attend a networking event with her. She hadn’t been before, and neither had I, and we like to go together when something is completely new to both of us. So we looked at it and agreed this would be something we should check out.
So we both registered, and the night came. When I got there, I walked up to the registration table, and the person there said, “I have been waiting for you to get here.”
I was pretty surprised. I didn’t know this woman, nor anyone at the event other than my friend Carrie. She said, “We always look our guests up on LinkedIn before the event so we know a little bit about them. And we noticed that you are a speaker, and that you speak at events like this.”
I said, “Yeah, that’s right. I do.”
And she said, “Well, before you leave tonight, we want to introduce you to our director of programming so that she can get you on the schedule to speak in 2026.”
Mind you, I did not know anyone. I was completely flabbergasted that they had looked me up, that they had liked what they saw on LinkedIn, and made a special note to connect me with their programming director.
Now, this is not something that happens everywhere I go. I have to be honest—I was pretty blown away. But it showed me that being present on LinkedIn and being known leads to opportunities.
Now, if you’ve heard me talk before, you know that I get the majority of leads for my business through networking.
In fact, this year alone, 96% of my business has come through networking referrals. And that’s pretty amazing. People ask me all the time how I do it. And that is actually why I created my most requested keynote, Networking in a Hyperconnected World. It’s also why I created Networking School.
Because when people ask me how I am so successful with networking, I have this spark in me that wants others to learn, too. Frankly, it’s so much easier than spending money on marketing dollars or stressing over social media posts and wondering what to post next.
Networking is the most effective way to grow your business. So this episode is all about teaching you just that.
The truth is, we live in a modern networking paradox. We are more connected through cell phones and the internet than we have ever been in history—yet we are also more disconnected.
We have so many things competing for our attention every single day. It is so hard to capture someone’s attention in order for them to remember us.
We live in a world where hard work alone is not enough to get us noticed. The noise is constant, and attention is actually rare.
With billions of people online, trust is harder and harder to earn, and less qualified people are getting opportunities that we all want. This paradox has put us in a position where we’ve got to figure out how to stand out in a hyper-connected world.
Let’s look at some stats that support this.
We know that over 5 billion people use the internet every single day.
And we also know that the average person receives over 121 notifications every single day. Where do those notifications come from? Your texts, your email, your personal email, your team’s Slack, Instagram, LinkedIn—you name it.
We are getting notified over 121 times a day. Think about that when it comes to attention. Whenever I’m doing my keynote and I share that statistic about 121 emails and notifications daily, I see people nod everywhere in the audience. They relate. I bet you can relate too—because it’s overwhelming.
And we know that people form impressions online before they ever meet us. Trust is built or broken within seconds of someone seeing us online.
So I mentioned my keynote is called Networking in a Hyper-Connected World. But what do I even mean when I say “hyper-connected”?
A hyper-connected world is one where people, devices, and platforms are linked through an always-on digital network, shaping how we work, communicate, and build trust.
It’s so rare for us to be able to turn it off. We all try—“I’m going to be less online,” “I’m going to look at social media less,” “I’m going to put boundaries around my phone”—but it’s hard. It’s not easy to turn off our digital world.
And here lies the challenge. The challenge isn’t connection—it’s being remembered.
We need to connect with people in a way where they remember us.
People need to know you in order to trust you, buy from you, refer you, partner with you, hire you, collaborate with you, nominate you, and support you. All of these things can only happen when people know you.
And you don’t have to be the loudest person in the room. You just need to be remembered. I thoroughly believe that anyone can learn to network authentically. It’s not about being someone that you’re not.
Simply put: people need to know you. People need to know that you exist, and they need to trust what they see.
Visibility is not optional—it’s essential.
So let’s talk about the formula for modern day networking.
I firmly believe we have an obligation to network in two ways: in-person networking and virtual networking. Both are equally important.
First of all, in-person networking is here to stay. We learned that through COVID and after COVID—we need human interaction. We need to meet people face-to-face. We need proximity in order for people to truly connect with us and have conversations that are memorable.
People remember you when they see you and connect with you as a person, not just someone online. People hire people. People work with people.
So as much as I believe that virtual networking is important, we can’t hide behind our laptops. We need to schedule time to get out into the community to become known.
Meeting people face-to-face can strengthen relationships faster, which means you will get faster networking results.
But virtual networking is also here to stay.
I hear people say over and over again that they don’t have a LinkedIn profile, or they built it a long time ago, it’s not updated, or they just don’t like being online. They prefer to meet people face-to-face—and I get it.
However, it is almost impossible to be a strong networker in this day and age when you do not also have a strong online presence.
Within two minutes of someone hearing your name—whether it be for a job referral or a business referral—they are looking you up online. And whether you like it or not, something will appear.
I challenge you to Google yourself, because if someone puts in your name, you should know what they’re going to find. Take time after this podcast to Google yourself and see what people are finding.
Zoom is just another way to have a meeting. LinkedIn is just a virtual handshake. And direct messages are the new introduction.
Whether you’re job seeking or building your business, visibility online is extremely important.
Invisibility does not mean constant self-promotion.
A lot of people think, “If I’m visible online, that means I’m bragging or being a showboat.” That’s not the case. It means you’re showing up in meaningful ways so that others can connect the dots between what you do and why they should care.
Showing up virtually means having an up-to-date and relevant LinkedIn account—not one that’s dated and archaic. Your profile is an online billboard for you so people can get to know you just by looking at it.
LinkedIn is the largest networking platform in the world. We have over a billion users globally on LinkedIn, and 230 million of those are in the U.S. Whether you’re looking for B2B customers or B2C, LinkedIn is a perfect place to showcase what you do.
And your profile continues to work while you sleep. People look at LinkedIn in the evenings, on weekends, across time zones. It’s there for the long run.
One thing I’ve learned about LinkedIn that I think everyone should know is this: the vast majority of people create a profile, but then they just lurk.
The statistic is that 99.6% of users on LinkedIn do not post content. Only 0.4% of people who use LinkedIn actually post.
So when we talk about visibility and making sure that you are known, you need to not just have a profile—you need to use it. If you want to be known and remembered, you’ve got to use it too.
I have another quick story for you with regards to networking and LinkedIn specifically.
Back in 1991, I was an intern at Walt Disney World in the college program. I met friends from all over the world, and we lost touch after the internship because we didn’t have the internet back then. We didn’t have cell phones. We didn’t have email. The only way to stay in touch was to call our parents’ phone or write letters. So I lost touch with a lot of great friends.
Fast forward to 2004, and I get a message from a friend from Disney—her name is Jill. Jill messaged me on LinkedIn in a DM and said, “I don’t know if you remember me, but we were on the college program and I saw your name online in the Walt Disney World College Program Alumni Group.”
Keep in mind, there are thousands of people in this group—and I had never posted inside the group. But Jill found me and sent me a DM.
Fast forward again, and I have gotten so much business from Jill. I’ve helped her company, her company has referred me to another company, and I’ve gotten career clients out of it too.
Someone I met in the early nineties found me on LinkedIn because I’m active—because I have a strong presence there. I was able to rekindle a friendship and get so much business. In fact, one of my longest standing HR consulting clients has come from a referral from Jill.
I tell you that because if you are quiet online and you only rely on in-person networking, you can be missing out on so much business and so much career opportunity.
LinkedIn is good for business to business, business to consumer, and job seekers.
For business to business, 80% of B2B social media leads come from LinkedIn, not the other platforms. We also know there’s a three times higher lead conversion rate from LinkedIn versus other platforms.
LinkedIn has more decision makers and buyers than the other platforms. It’s a place to build your authority through thought leadership, and it’s ideal for that relationship-first style of networking. It’s the most powerful online platform for both lead generation and sales enablement.
For B2C, 77% of users on LinkedIn value helpful, non-salesy content. This is your place to showcase who you are and how you work, and to have people get to know you as a person. It’s a place to educate and exercise your thought leadership.
LinkedIn is also a more trusted social media platform than the others. It builds credibility and brand loyalty, and it’s great for employer branding and being known as an employer of choice.
And lastly, there are some stats we can’t ignore about LinkedIn when it comes to job seekers.
85% of jobs are filled through networking, not job boards. If job seekers rely solely on online applications, they have a 2% chance of getting hired—which is crazy.
In today’s hyper-connected world, it’s like being a needle in a haystack. The way to stand out is through in-person and virtual networking, including on LinkedIn. That’s not just opening LinkedIn and applying for jobs—it’s using LinkedIn strategically to grow your network, engage, and be remembered.
So I ask you: what does your online billboard look like?
Does it look outdated? Is it irrelevant? Is it stagnant? Is it active? Is it inviting? Your profile works while you sleep, so make sure it says the right things.
Even if you’re scared to be online or you just don’t think it’s for you, I want to remind you: this is thought leadership without the overwhelm. You don’t need to go viral. That’s not the goal. The goal is visibility.
With visibility, you can tell stories, offer lessons or insights, show your company culture, and engage with people without ever leaving your office. The LinkedIn app is a great way to keep in touch and stay engaged.
Whether you’re growing a business or looking for a job, people research us first, and trust is built or broken before you ever talk to someone.
Now, as I start to end this podcast, I want to share some things with you about the compound effect of networking.
You need to build and nurture your network before it becomes a need. Sometimes business owners wait until sales are low or they’re launching a new initiative, and then they realize their network is dry because they didn’t nurture it.
This goes for job seekers too. I hear job seekers say they haven’t been networking in between jobs. They network when they’re looking for a job, and once they get the job, they stop networking—and then they have nothing to go on when they need that network again.
It’s important to build and nurture your network over time because the truth is: you can’t cram relationships. Networking is all about relationships.
The best connections grow over time. Start now, stay consistent, and you’ll see results.
So what happens when you don’t network and you don’t have a networking strategy?
You keep working really hard, but you stay invisible. You second guess how to follow up and how to talk to people because you haven’t built the relationship. Opportunities go to people who show up more often—online or in person.
But those who consistently network and nurture relationships walk into events feeling confident and prepared. They know what to say and when to say it because they know people. Their messages get replies online because they’re authentic and they’re known. And when people are known, networking becomes easier.
The old saying used to be, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” I honestly believe even that is outdated. It’s not who you know—it’s who knows you. And silence in a hyper-connected world is invisibility.
I encourage you to think about what I said in this podcast: modern networking is twofold. It’s virtual and it’s in person.
And I encourage you to check out Networking School, the membership I created to teach people how to be effective networkers and how to be remembered.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to share it with a friend, leave a review, and hit the subscribe button. Until next week.
And connect with me on LinkedIn. I’d love to get to know you more. I’m always excited to add more people to my network.
