One of our followers, Jack L., recently asked Madroit an interesting question: If your business relies heavily on networking and face-to-face connections, how can marketing support what happens after that first interaction?
Jack was thinking specifically about industrial sectors such as manufacturing, warehousing, distribution, and logistics, where business relationships still start with a lot of handshaking, industry events, and personal introductions.
The answer depends partly on where that first connection happens and how well the potential customer already knows you. Did they simply listen to your presentation at one of the many business events in Grand Rapids? Did you meet over dinner or talk between conference sessions? Or did you have a longer conversation about something their business actually needs?
In any case, what happens next matters. Here are five ways B2B marketing can help turn that first connection into something more.
1. Follow Up Quickly
This applies to everyone you connect with.
If you shake hands and have a conversation, collect their business card or contact information and follow up while the interaction is still fresh. Send information relevant to what you discussed and give them an easy way to continue the conversation.
If you’re speaking in front of a larger audience, you obviously can’t exchange contact information with everyone. Instead, build an easy next step into your presentation. Add a QR code or clear contact information so people can reach you through your website contact form, phone, email, WhatsApp, or whichever channel works best for your business.
Don’t make someone who just heard your presentation work to figure out how to contact you.
2. Help People Find the Right Information on Your Website
What you send someone to depends on how much they already know about you.
For a colder contact who simply wants to learn more about your company, your homepage may be the right place to start. If someone is already interested in a particular service or discussed a specific need with you, send them directly to the most relevant page. A QR code in your presentation can also lead straight to that page when it matches your final call to action.
Your website also needs to represent your business well. It should look modern, professional, and up to date, showing that your company is active today. It doesn’t have to be large. Even a simple one-page B2B website can give people the information they need and establish a credible online presence.
People are more likely to trust a business with a professional website and may hesitate when they can’t find a website at all. Especially after meeting you in person, your website should support the impression you made, not make them question it.
Madroit Marketing can help you design and develop a B2B website that fits your business, from a simple one-page site to a complex website with dedicated pages for different services and audiences.
3. Make Sure Your Company Can Be Found on Google and AI
This becomes especially important with colder contacts who may not be ready to contact you directly.
People research businesses immediately now. Someone sitting in the audience during your presentation may already be Googling your name or asking an AI tool about your company while you’re still talking.
What do they find?
Your company should be easy to find, and the results should support the expertise you’re presenting in person. This is where SEO helps, but it needs to be in place long before the networking event. SEO requires consistent work so your business is visible when someone decides to look you up.
4. Keep Your Social Media Profiles Active
Social media serves a similar purpose, especially for colder contacts who want to form their own opinion about you before taking the next step.
For B2B companies, people may check your personal LinkedIn profile as well as your company’s LinkedIn page. Depending on the business, they may also look at Facebook or Instagram.
You don’t need to post every day, but your profiles should look alive. Aim for at least 100 followers as a starting point and post at least once a month.
If someone looks you up while you’re giving a presentation, your online presence becomes part of the impression you’re making in the room. An active professional profile can reinforce your expertise. An abandoned page can do the opposite.
5. Give Colder Contacts Another Reason to Connect
For newer or colder contacts, jumping directly into a sales conversation may be too much. An upcoming webinar, presentation, or another relevant event gives you a natural way to continue the relationship.
Make sure the people you meet know about it and have an easy way to register. They get another opportunity to hear from you and learn more about your expertise without committing to a sales conversation.
This step makes less sense for someone who is already close to discussing an actual deal. If you’re already talking about their needs, scope, or next steps, don’t send them backward in the funnel with a generic webinar invitation. Continue the business conversation you’ve already started.
Give Your Networking the Right Backup
When your digital presence backs up what you say in person, closing the next deal becomes much easier. A professional website, active social media, strong visibility on search engines and AI, and fast follow-ups help potential customers see that your business is exactly what you presented it to be.
It also changes how you walk into that next meeting. When you know people can look you up at any moment and find something that represents your business well, you can speak about what you do with more confidence.
Madroit can build that digital backup for you. From website development and SEO to social media and a complete marketing strategy, we’ll make sure your online presence supports every handshake and conversation.
Ready to make your B2B marketing work harder after the handshake? Then let’s talk!
