Why should you wear your name tag all through business events? Why does it matter?
With Reid Mihalko from http://www.ReidAboutSex.com and Cathy Vartuli from http://www.TheIntimacyDojo.com.
Cathy: Why is it important to wearing your name tag when you’re at business events? This is Reid Mihalko from https://reidaboutsex.com/
Reid: Cathy Vartuli from the http://TheIntimacyDojo.com/. And when we got the green shirt on for Sex Geek Summer Camp, this is a business advice video for sex educators, sex-positive entrepreneurs, etc. So why it is important to wear your name tag, Cathy?
Cathy: It is important.
Reid: It is important. Why?
Cathy: Do you remember that tall goofy guy. What was his name? He had a great website.
Reid: The one without the name tag.
Cathy: Yeah. I really want to go to his site but I can’t remember him anymore.
Reid: Yeah. Too bad he wasn’t wearing his name tag.
Cathy: Or might be that someone wants to come up and talk to you and they’re embarrassed coz they’ve asked your name a few times.
Reid: I’m horrible with names. If you haven’t already figured this out internet. And so, name tags save my ass. The only thing that’s embarrassing is always I’m afraid because when you’re wearing it on a lanyard, you think I’m saying that in your boobs.
Cathy: So, part of the reason we go to business work meetings or events is to network and build connection with people. And I know for myself, there’s been many times when I’ve like met someone once and I can’t remember their name and they’re not wearing their name tag and I just don’t go up and talk to them. I go off for over and talk to somebody else. So, there’s a little bit less interaction. And then also I’m talking I can’t remember later or if we take photos together, if the name tag’s in there, I’ve got a nice…
Reid: Yeah. I’ve actually started having people like when we do pictures…
Cathy: Hold them up. Yeah.
Reid: We do one where you hold up your name tag so that I can then have your face and your name. But that’s me. I’m silly like that.
Cathy: Yeah. But it really does help and especially if you’re shy and introverted like I am. Anything that I can do to help people approach me is good and having a name tag helps them like, Hey Cathy! They feel suave and together they don’t feel awkward. Or they’re not trying to talk to you and if you say something really impressive, they can’t like, I’ve done this. Someone says I’ve been really cool and I’m like all of a sudden more, like wow, they got my attention. I look down at their name tag and go, Oh, I need to remember that. It anchors it for me. So, I really think it’s important, it’s important to do this throughout the business event. I see a lot of people, they’re wearing them great the first day and the last day they’re not wearing them or like the third day they stop. And wearing them helps people connect and remember you better and that is a so key. Giving them a business card, they go, oh, put them in their pocket. The name tag wherever you know, wherever it’s hanging is a way for them to associate your face, your words, your energy with who you are and your business. And I always like to put my website on it even if the event runner doesn’t, the person running the event just puts the name, I try to put my website below it to anchor that as well.
Reid: Another thing you might want to do, a little interesting. As somebody who goes to a lot of conferences and events, one is as a facilitator, you might want to consider having you know, little name tags even if it’s just handwritten ones as people come in coz a lot of people they’re kind of they’re silly but they’re playful. And you could also model that they write their name and then ask me about blank. So then it becomes kind of a mingling game. And the other hack that I’ve done and yeah, you can put your pronounce on those as well especially in the Sex Ed world you know. Knowing that you use he and his or she and her, they and them or ze and zey…
Cathy: Zir
Reid: Zir. That again like, you can use your name tags for good, never for evil. Other hacks, lanyard hacks.
Cathy: Both sides
Reid: Yeah. For a facilitator, if you have the funds to print badges that have names on both sides, you don’t have that annoying…it always flip to the wrong side folks. It always flip.
Cathy: It’s a roll.
Reid: So, what I will sometimes do is I’ll write my name on the other side or I’ll put my business cards on the other side that also have my…my name’s pretty, you can read it from a little bit far away. But again, you know, figure out your own ways of upgrading those systems so that you can take more advantage of the things that you mentioned.
Cathy: Yeah. And if you do have a lanyard with names on both sides, I put my business cards in between so they don’t block one side. Coz the more you can anchor with people because I’m not an extrovert like Reid is, people usually remember him the first time. He’s like this big, bouncy, fun guy. I’m quieter. I need people to get to know me more gradually like I have, I make an impression I think over time more. And the more you can do that, the more can use the time to introduce, you’re introduced to people and help them anchor who you are. The faster you’re gonna get known and the better impact you can have on your business in the world.
Reid: Hope this video is helpful. What are your some interesting name tag hacks you have to suggest?
Cathy: Yes.