How to prepare for your first Polish Business Networking Event

Short guide to help you get the very best from your visit at Polish Business Event in the UK

But first, a little introduction. I set up PBLINK (Polish Business Link) in 2013 to support the Polish business community in Scotland but I soon realised the massive potential of diverse entrepreneurs across Britain and scaled the business from Scotland to London. Now PBLINK operates across the UK and Central Europe, bringing people together to build business relationships.

You will always find a good mix of business owners at PBLINK events. From self-employed polish builders to architects, kitchen fitters and web designers but also well-established entrepreneurs employing hundreds of people.

I have built PBLINK on a foundation of mutual respect and consideration. We work hard to build a welcoming atmosphere for everybody. It’s what makes our polish networking events so successful.

How to make the most of your Polish Business meeting and build business relationships

You are most welcome

Let’s start off as we mean to go on – 1^st time visitors are especially welcome: you don’t pay for attending. If you come because you were invited, please let us know by who.

Build relationships

Exploit the law of reciprocity to build rapport: 

• Try to include others in your conversations
• Don’t go in hard and fast, trying to sell as soon as you meet someone but do make sure to swap contact details (we used to always urge delegates to have a good supply of business cards ready for face-2-face meetings but in these pandemic times it is more appropriate to use LinkedIn’s Find Nearby feature or similar.)
• Think about what you can offer others – a little bit of free, expert advice perhaps?

All events are conducted in English, but some of our delegates might not be confident in their use of English. Be considerate. You can always ask a meeting host to help if communication is faltering.

Despite what we said earlier, Linkedin is not everyone’s first choice. Feel free to ask how you want to be connected.

Remember Cultural Differences between British, Polish and other diverse business communities. 

Pitch perfect

You will always be invited to give a 30-second pitch about your business, along with the other delegates. Prepare in advance and remember to include the essential information:  What is your name, what you do and who are you looking for?

Follow up

Follow up with your contacts and come to another event. You’ll meet those new contacts again and then make some more. 

Happy Networking!

Bartlomiej (Bart) Kowalczyk
Founder & Director
Polish Business Link
Let’s Chat