This Quick Tip is the second in a series on "Working the Network" offering tips on how to benefit from networking opportunities and to see how Rod Stoll himself makes use of professional networks

Developing new leads and expanding one's circle of professional contacts is the reason most people attend business events. But after you've been referred to someone, how should you proceed? According to serial entrepreneur Rod Stoll, some ways of following up are better than others.

Warm the pathway. Cold calling is uncomfortable for people on both sides of the conversation. The key to following up referrals, according to Stoll, is to make the circumstances as warm as possible. A brief advance email, including the name of the person who referred you, can help to set expectations of future contact.

•  Qualify referrals. Some referrals are stronger than others. If you have been referred to someone you want to meet, try to determine whether the person who gave that name is a strong or weak referral by asking how they know the other party. If it's someone who is close to the person to whom you have been referred – a neighbor, a co-worker, an old college roommate, a social companion, or some other high-frequency relationship – it is a strong referral, which will help to open doors. A weak referral is the opposite, Stoll learned after several embarrassing calls in which the referring party wasn't recognized by the person being called. If it's a strong referral, you might even consider asking them to contact the person to whom you have been referred to make a brief introduction on your behalf.

•  Plan your comments. When you follow up on a referral, whether by phone or by email, script out your comments and keep them brief. For example: “Hello, my name is Rod Stoll, I'm a colleague of Joe Smith who gave me your name and suggested I connect with you.” Then briefly explain why you want to connect with them. If it's an email or an answering machine message, tell them that you'll call again tomorrow afternoon.

•  Target a face-to-face meeting. The goal of following up with a referral should be to arrange to meet with them face-to-face for long enough to establish a basis for future contact. Stoll suggests that one way is letting them know that you would very much enjoy having coffee with them to talk more deeply on the subject at their convenience sometime this week or next.

•  Be brief. One common mistake of beginning networkers is to follow up a referral with a long email, a rambling phone conversation, or a lengthy voice message. But that's a bad idea for several reasons, according to Stoll. In addition to being a burden on the recipient, an overly detailed message could preclude the point of having a face-to-face meeting or conversation with the person because it appears as though everything you wanted to tell them had already been said. Brevity is always appreciated.

This Quick Tip is one of a series on "Working the Network" offering tips on how to benefit from networking opportunities and to see how Rod Stoll himself makes use of professional networks.

Working the network series

Feature article: Getting the most from networking sometimes means giving the most

Quick tip: Networking at events

Quick tip: Following up on referrals

Quick tip: Capturing network intelligence

Quick tip: Classifying network contacts