22 Tips To Build A Network In California From Scratch
San Francisco is probably the best place to meet people in the entrepreneurship and tech scene. For 5 months, I backpacked between Los Angeles and San Francisco to learn about the good practices and the California mindset in startups. Networking was my full-time job! In the end, I met 80+ entrepreneurs, VC investors, and mentors.
Each of my 5 previous articles was an answer to the question “What’s the California DNA in startups?”. This last one is an answer to “how did I get these answers?” 😉 During my experience, I received several messages from people wondering how to get connections in SF, so here are my learnings and tips.
I’ll focus on 2 main parts, based on my personal experience:
- Places to go to get the first connections
- My learnings on managing interactions with people
- My learnings on networking in California
I will mainly focus on San Francisco since it is, to me, the best place to go when you’re looking for connections and meetings in the startup and tech field (and LA for entertainment, NYC for finance). SF is considered as a small and interconnected area, where everyone knows each other. A core principle in the Bay Area is sharing your knowledge, and people are happy to help you!
Let’s go for 22 bullet points that go with 22 tips 😊
1. My tips to make the first connections
The most difficult part is the beginning: make your first connections. Then it gets really easier because you’re introduced. This was the question I was asked the most. To me, there are 7 ways:
1. Use Eventbrite and Meetup to attend networking events
Networking events are the most efficient way to immerse yourself in the ecosystem and meet people when you start from scratch. To find these events, Eventbrite and Meetup are apps that gather most of the entrepreneurship and tech events (free and paid ones). It’s especially useful for in-person networking events. I went to Pitch Night events, drinks, lunch, or breakfast and I met Tesla’s employees, startup founders, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, from all booming tech sectors. Online pitching or talk sessions can also be useful to get contacts.
👉 I made 40% of my meetings thanks to networking events found on these platforms.
2. Use Linkedin (and filters)!
Linkedin is a huge waste of time (because of a lack of answers) but is useful when you start from scratch, especially when you’re not in the US yet. Be familiar with filters (or with Sales Navigator) to find interesting profiles. I recommend sending an invite and a message explaining precisely what you expect from meeting someone rather than who you are.
👉 I made 5% of my meetings thanks to Linkedin.
3. Go to co-working spaces
Personally, I worked in WeWork co-working spaces, both in SF and LA. In addition to having the opportunity to work in beautiful spaces with a view (picture below), co-working spaces are full of entrepreneurs and startuppers. Lunch is a great opportunity to talk to them. WeWork also organizes breakfasts or food tests that get everyone off their computers for 2 minutes: take the opportunity to talk to people!
Other co-working spaces in SF are Hivery, Foundry Square III, Embarcadero Center, Parisoma.
👉 I made 5% of my meetings thanks to co-working spaces (it wasn’t my priority).
4. Be visible on social media to get inbound
Sharing your experience on social media can catch people’s attention. I had several interesting meetings thanks to people who contacted me. I posted the key takeaways of my meetings on my Linkedin profile and shared my Medium articles on Twitter, Facebook, etc.
👉 I made 10% of my meetings thanks to people who reached out to me.
5. Go to Big Tech Events
Tech events are opportunities to get information on new trends, to meet entrepreneurs, and to attend VC tips sessions (and talk to investors). It’s not as easy to meet people in this kind of big event as in networking events. Most of the people there aren’t from the US.
The most famous one for startups is probably the CES in Las Vegas. Another option is going to Demo-Days organized by accelerators like YC, Plug & Play, etc (which I didn’t because of Covid).
👉 I made 10% of my meetings participating in the MWC in LA for hardware and the IoT World at Santa Clara.
6. Ask for introductions:
Introductions are not a way to make first contacts (because it requires you already know people), but they are certainly the way to speed up meetings. Californians are really likely to introduce you. That’s the “Well, how can I help you?”, usually at the end of a conversation. I have 3 recommendations regarding introductions:
- Have a clear idea of the profile you’d like to be introduced to:
What kind of profiles (experience, sector, expertise, current business…) are you looking for and what do you expect from him/her (specific issues you want to address)? These 2 elements are key to be introduced. Personally, I was sometimes too large in explaining who I was looking for… which resulted in no introduction because your contact doesn’t think of anyone in particular. - Send a mail directly after your meeting:
After a meeting, send a “thank you” where you write again who you are and what you’re looking for. It will make the job easier for people who can forward your mail to their network instead of writing it themselves. Again, specify the type of profiles you would like to meet. The longer you wait to follow up, the more likely you are to get… no answer 🙂 reactivity is valued! - Dare to ask for introductions by yourself!
Introductions are the way it works, so go for it! I was personally shy about doing it because I thought it was “opportunistic”. It’s not in the Bay Area. If your contacts don’t offer to introduce you to their network, ask them. I recommend doing this verbally at the end of the meeting, rather than in an email you send out later like “By the way, I was wondering if you could introduce me…”.
👉 I made 30% of my meetings thanks to introductions.
7. Other places
I have not been to these places but they have been recommended to me. In case of hopelessness, it might be useful:
- There are the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center, Chambers of Commerce (of France, Spain), the German Business Association etc in which you can go to ask for information or attend events.
- The General Assembly and Cupa Cafe are apparently cafes where entrepreneurs are used to going.
- For French people, there are events organized by FrenchFounders or L’Apéro.
2. My learnings on managing an interaction
As I moved from one appointment to another, I learned about managing an interaction. So here is my list of takeaways:
8. Always tell people what you expect from them, before anything:
Whether it’s by sending a message on Linkedin or over coffee, people need to know within the first 2 minutes the purpose of the meeting and why it’s valuable to you. This will help your interlocutors to formulate their speech in a way that is useful for you! That’s something I didn’t at the beginning and I realized it was destabilizing.
9. Be as precise as possible:
What are the 3 questions you must ask, or the 2/3 key things you want to have insights on? Having this in mind helped me steer the interview in a specific direction and get clear outputs! By the way, these 3 questions were all I prepared before the interviews, along with a quick check of the Linkedin profile (for entrepreneurs) and Pitchbook/website for VCs. Having a long, structured list of questions (as I did at the beginning) is useless. Go deeper into a topic based on your enthusiasm!
10. Go to events alone!
Many people go to tech events alone and that’s the best way to meet people. In my first article on networking, I mentioned how easily people come to you to talk.
11. Take a notebook for in-person meetings!
I missed too many names or data because I didn’t have written support at the beginning. I think a computer puts too much distance and makes the conversation too formal.
12. Have a CRM on Notion to manage the relations:
I had a “Networking management” table on Notion on which I qualified each relationship with the channel we used to talk (mails/WhatsApp/LinkedIn/Instagram), how resourceful they were, how likely they were to answer me again, and the next steps.
13. Share news with your network:
Share interesting articles, events, and books with the people you meet. This is how it works: share as much information as possible. Also, make introductions between people you meet who have common interests. This will help you maintain your network.
3. My learnings on networking in California:
Here are my tips for adapting to the Silicon Valley way of networking, since I also learned about cultural gaps in California:
14. Be sharp sharp sharp!
Californians don’t have the time and being straight to the point is a rule. Forget about the usual 5 minutes presentation about your prior experiences at the beginning of a meeting. You have probably both checked Linkedin. All you need is a personal tagline: a sentence in which you explain who you are, why you are in the US, and what you are looking for! 🇺🇸
15. Talk to everyone! EVERYONE.
I met people through conversations on a bus, in a bar, at a barbecue. By the way, even going to events on Couchsurfing with the goal of making friends will lead you to meet tech people since, in San Francisco, everyone (almost everyone) works in tech and startups!
16. Be on time.
Californians are on time! I never waited for a call or at a cafe. ⏰
17. Send a “thank you” mail quickly after a meeting.
It will show you’re reactive and be appreciated. It’s useful to remind the next steps.
18. Ask stupid questions: Californians don’t judge!
You don’t need to pretend you know perfectly the US VC and startup ecosystem (as I wanted to do) to meet people! Since I was transparent about the fact that I was new to VC and California, I was able to ask any question I wanted, even “stupid” or “basic” questions. This is how I got the most relevant information.
19. Offer your help!!!
The first tip I was given by Marie Frochen and Donna Bletzinger in my first week in SF was: at the end of a conversation, always ask how you can help your contact. It must be a win-win collaboration. It turned out that I was more useful to American people than I thought because I had knowledge about the French and European ecosystems. I was also useful to make introductions between people I met.
20. Tee-shirt is the rule, not suits! 🌴
21. Be nice 🙂
The mood is very relaxed in SF and LA. Positivity and optimism are valued and people are smiling and friendly (in LA, you call the waiter “bro”). If you’re looking for connections rather than a short-lived meeting, I think the priority is building a fit.
Personally, I always tried to create conversations rather than interviews (meaning giving your opinion too) and personalize them, asking about their personal input on different topics. By the way, I think engaging in a critical thinking conversation makes people tell you much more than if you ask for descriptive things you could find answers on the internet.
22. And again… ask for introductions, as mentioned in my first part 😉
The end
Building a network from scratch in California was much easier than I expected, especially in San Francisco. I’m convinced that the rule is simply to be open-minded all day long and opportunities come to you! I was surprised by the way people are willing to help you and share with you everything they have learned. I met some people I’m sure to keep in touch with in the coming months!
This experience was definitely really valuable for me, I will continue to be inspired by the way Californians are proactive, optimistic, and “go for it”. I loved SF and hope to go back next year :) In the meantime, all my articles are available here.
Thanks for following me during my adventure,
Mathilde
