The only way to know whether your networking efforts are working or not is to measure your results. You can’t just assume that things are going well because you feel good. You need some kind of hard data that tells you whether or not your hard work is paying off. Measuring results is also a good motivator that keeps you focused by showing the progress you’ve made.

Key Metrics

You can’t measure everything. Instead, take a few key metrics that are most important to you. Start by considering your goal. What indicators would show that you’re progressing toward this goal’s attainment? Work backward from that. You don’t need a complicated set of metrics, but you should at least have more than one indicator.

New Contacts

An easy way to measure results is to keep track of new contacts. You can easily see that, for instance, this week you’re not getting out and meeting people because the number of new contacts has dropped. This is a good metric for measuring how well a particular networking event went, but it doesn’t present a good long-term indication of whether or not these new contacts are benefiting you.

New Interactions

A more accurate way to measure long-term progress is to keep track of your future interactions with your new contacts. Instead of measuring how many business cards you collect, measure the communications, meetings, or other interactions you have with these contacts. This shows that the cards you’ve collected are creating some value.

Opportunities, Ventures, and Sales

The best metric is something that’s related directly to your long-term goal. If you’re selling something, sales figures provide a good metric. If you’re seeking funding for a non-profit, it’s easy to see how much money you’ve raised through networking activities.

Other goals aren’t as easy to measure, but you can take into account new ventures or new opportunities. You may measure the new projects that have come out of your contact list. Job prospects would be a good indicator if you’re looking for work. You can measure referrals if that’s the main purpose of your networking.

Favors Done for Others

A great way to measure progress is to look at the things you’ve done for your new contacts. You can set a goal of doing something for someone each day. It could be something as simple as providing them with helpful information or referring them to another contact that can help them. This is a great thing to measure because it shifts focus away from what others do for you, and instead focuses on what you do for them, which pays off eventually.

Adjusting Your Game Plan

Your metrics will tell you when it’s time to make changes to your game plan. If you’re not seeing the numbers you’d like to see, think about what you can do to bring those numbers up.