Let’s talk about women’s networking events—and why so many of us have a complicated relationship with them.
For years, I convinced myself I wasn’t a “networking person.” The thought of walking into a room full of strangers, making small talk, and pitching myself made my stomach turn. But here’s the truth I had to confront: as a woman in business, isolation was holding me back. The connections, the collaborations, the referrals—they weren’t going to magically appear while I hid behind my laptop.
So I made a decision. I would stop avoiding women’s networking events and start figuring out how to make them work for me.
This is what I learned.
The Lie We Tell Ourselves About Networking
There’s this pervasive myth that networking for women entrepreneurs has to look a certain way. Walk in confident. Work the room. Collect as many business cards as possible. Leave with a stack of “connections” that somehow translate into clients and collaborations.
That version of networking never resonated with me. And if it doesn’t resonate with you either, that’s fine, this is information you need.
The real question isn’t whether networking works. It’s whether the way we’ve been taught to network actually fits who we are and how we operate.
Spoiler: there’s more than one way to build business connections.
How I Discovered What Actually Works
There was one year I committed to attending every women’s networking event I could find. Luncheons. Workshops. Mixers. Vendor expos. All of it.
Why? Because I needed to understand the difference between them. I needed contrast to figure out what actually worked for me versus what was just noise.
Here’s what I discovered about myself: I love being in rooms with women in business where we’re working toward something together. Rolling up my sleeves, digging into strategy, collaborating with intention—that’s my sweet spot. Showing up just to chat and exchange elevator pitches? Not so much.
The magic happened when I started attending workshops instead of traditional mixers. I found my best partnerships in those spaces because there was already built-in alignment. Everyone had invested time and energy into showing up for a purpose. We were at similar stages in our businesses. The connection wasn’t forced—it was natural.
But this is deeply personal. Maybe intimate luncheons feel like home. Maybe those big, buzzy events actually energize rather than drain. Maybe it’s something else entirely.
The key is figuring out what sparks genuine excitement—not what supposedly “should” work.
Understanding the Intent Behind Each Type of Networking Event
Not all women’s networking events are designed with the same purpose in mind—and understanding what’s really happening behind the scenes can save a lot of wasted time, energy, and money. Before committing to any event, it helps to understand who the event is actually designed to serve.
Vendor Expos and Women’s Business Conferences
Those big, flashy vendor expos marketed to women in business? They look incredible on Instagram. The speaker lineups are impressive. The energy seems electric. But here’s what’s actually happening behind the curtain.
For the event organizers, the primary revenue streams are ticket sales and vendor booth fees. The speakers are the draw—they’re what sells those tickets and fills those seats. But the real business model relies on vendors paying anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars for booth space, hoping to get their products or services in front of attendees.
This isn’t inherently bad. Vendor expos can be valuable for brand visibility, especially for product-based businesses looking to get in front of a large audience quickly. According to the Center for Exhibition Industry Research, trade shows and expos remain one of the most effective ways for businesses to generate leads and build brand awareness.
But here’s the truth: these events aren’t typically designed for deep business connections. The sheer volume of attendees, the noise, the constant pitching—it’s not an environment built for meaningful relationship-building. If collaboration and genuine connection are the goal, this probably isn’t the most strategic investment.
Workshops and Masterminds
Workshops operate on an entirely different model—and for those who thrive on learning alongside others, this is where the magic happens.
The intent behind a workshop is skill-building and implementation. Attendees are there to learn something specific, which means everyone in the room has already self-selected based on interest and business stage. That built-in alignment makes organic connection so much easier.
Workshop hosts typically keep attendance smaller and more curated to ensure quality interaction and hands-on learning. Many platforms like Luma even allow potential attendees to see who else has registered, making it possible to assess whether the right business connections will be in the room before committing.
Masterminds take this a step further by creating ongoing, intimate groups focused on accountability, strategy, and peer support. These aren’t one-and-done events—they’re relationship incubators. For networking for women entrepreneurs who value depth over breadth, workshops and masterminds often deliver the highest return on investment.
Mixers and Happy Hours
Networking mixers and happy hours are designed for one thing: volume. The goal is to get as many people in a room as possible, facilitate introductions, and let connections happen organically over drinks and conversation.
For natural connectors who thrive in social settings, mixers can be goldmines. The casual atmosphere lowers the pressure, and the lack of formal structure allows conversations to flow naturally.
But for those who find small talk draining or struggle to break into conversations with strangers, mixers can feel like an exhausting exercise in forced interaction. There’s typically no guest list to preview, no way to know who will show up, and no structured opportunity to go deeper than surface-level chitchat.
Mixers work best as a supplement to other networking strategies—not as the primary method for building meaningful business connections.
Luncheons and Dinner Events
Luncheons and dinner events sit somewhere between mixers and workshops. They’re more intimate than a mixer but less structured than a workshop. The draw is often a featured speaker or panel discussion, with networking happening organically before, during, and after the meal.
The upside? Shared meals naturally foster conversation. The table format means connecting with a smaller group of people more deeply rather than working an entire room.
The downside? These events often come with a higher price tag to cover the cost of the venue and catering. That $100-$200 entry fee needs to be weighed against the potential return. If the guest list aligns with the right audience and the speaker topic is genuinely valuable, it can be worth it. If it’s just a nice lunch with no strategic alignment? That money might be better spent elsewhere.
Online Networking Events
The rise of virtual networking has opened doors that didn’t exist before—especially for women in business balancing caregiving responsibilities, geographic limitations, or packed schedules.
Online networking events range from structured virtual speed networking (platforms like Remo facilitate this) to casual Zoom coffee chats hosted by women’s business communities or solopreneurs (like on Eventbrite). The barrier to entry is lower, the time commitment is smaller, and the ability to connect with women across the globe is a genuine advantage.
The trade-off? Virtual connections can feel less “sticky” than in-person ones. It takes more intentional follow-up to turn an online introduction into a real relationship. But for those willing to put in that effort, virtual networking can be just as powerful as any in-person event.
Red Flags to Watch For at Women’s Networking Events
After attending more women’s networking events than I can count, patterns started emerging. Certain red flags now tell me an event probably isn’t worth my time or energy.
A non-curated guest list. If an event is purely about ticket sales—if the organizers have no idea who’s actually buying those tickets—that’s a gamble. I’ve shown up expecting established business owners and found myself surrounded by people who weren’t quite there yet. Knowing the audience matters. Knowing whether the right audience will even be in that room matters more.
No way to preview attendees. Large-scale events with open ticket sales rarely reveal who’s attending until the doors open. That’s a risk. Workshops and community-hosted events are different. Platforms like Luma often show the guest list before registration. Many women in business communities let members see exactly who’s planning to attend their events.
My advice? Check that list. If the ideal business connections aren’t there—and that’s the primary reason for going—it might not be the right event.
Misaligned investment. I once attended a luncheon that cost $150. The idea of enjoying a beautiful meal with ambitious women seemed worth it. And honestly, I made a great partnership there. But was that the best strategy? $150 is real money. That’s a solid ad budget. That’s an investment that could go many directions. Being honest about intentions—whether an event genuinely aligns with goals or just sounds nice—saves both money and disappointment.
Green Flags That Signal the Right Fit
Not everything is a warning sign. Some signals indicate a women’s networking event is worth the time:
The event has a clear purpose beyond just “networking.” Attendees can be previewed, and they align with similar business stages. The host or community has curated the guest list intentionally. The focus is on collaboration over competition, learning, or building—not just selling. And most importantly? The event sounds genuinely exciting, not obligatory.
What Happens When You Finally Find Your People
Three years in business. Countless events. More awkward conversations and dead-end follow-ups than anyone should have to endure.
But here’s where things stand now: I found my people.
Finding your people means networking stops feeling like a desperate scavenger hunt. The connections needed? They’re already built. They’re already real. Reaching out at any moment is possible because the relationships exist.
When the right business connections are in place, marketing strategy is already in place too. The partnerships, collaborations, and referral networks aren’t hypothetical anymore. They’re active. They’re working.
That means being choosier about where time and energy go. It means not saying yes to every event out of fear of missing out. The frantic energy of early networking days—running to every ==women’s networking event== trying to figure out what any of it even meant—that season doesn’t last forever.
That season serves a purpose. It teaches what works, what doesn’t, and most importantly, who the right people are. But once that foundation is built? Everything shifts. From hustling for connections to nurturing existing ones. From scrambling to find support to actually leaning on it. From chaos to real, intentional strategy.
And that is a great place to be.
The right people are out there. Women’s networking events aren’t one-size-fits-all, and they don’t have to feel like torture. When the forcing stops and the investment goes into connections that actually fit, everything clicks into place.
The chaos quiets down. The desperation fades. And in its place? A network that actually works. A foundation strong enough to build an entire business on.
That’s the goal. That’s what all of this is for. Damn Norman