Networking at a coffee shop in Scottsdale got me 3 referrals in one morning

I stopped bothering with formal meetups and just sat at a communal table at Press Coffee near Old Town. I started a casual conversation about the Phoenix housing market with the guy next to me, and he connected me to two real estate agents and a title company. Has anyone else had luck with informal spots like that over structured events?

3 comments

3 Comments

elliot451mo ago

My buddy did something similar at a brewery in Tempe. He was just chatting with some random guy about the Suns and ended up getting an introduction to a commercial leasing agent that landed him a solid warehouse space for his business.

patricia_green211mo ago

I read something just yesterday about how many business deals actually start in places like breweries and coffee shops. It was a study from a university out east that said informal networking still accounts for a huge chunk of B2B connections people make. Your buddy's story fits right in with that. People forget that a lot of opportunities come from just being out and talking about normal things like sports. It's not always about a fancy business card or a formal meeting. Sometimes a chat about the Suns can open a door you didn't even know was there.

carr.brooke1mo ago

Formal networking events exist for a reason, a random chat about the housing market is way more likely to get you a sales pitch than a real referral. You got lucky, but that's not a reliable strategy for most people.