If you hear this question, it's the sure tip-off they should have spent more time preparing.
“So tell me what your company does?”
When I get this question, I start thinking about what else I need to do that day. Why? Despite having LinkedIn, Company websites, databases available via public library, etc., it tells me that the person across the table has not even taken 5 minutes to do a simple search.
Our willingness to invest into the meeting has a direct correlation with how much we will get out of it. I cannot understate the value of preparation for each meeting.
The more research we do the more likely we’ll understand the type of connections they will have, how we can help our contacts, etc. It’s also the first indication to the person with whom we meet whether or not the meeting is being taken seriously and if it's truly for networking.
Always look beyond the work experience to their participation in professional associations, college/grad-school alumni, etc. – this gives another area for networking and indicates where they invest their time.
The reason we get more out of the networking meeting is because it allows us to zoom past most of the discovery about their background and move directly into issues about their business and how help can be offered to one another. Everyone will walk away from the meeting with a greater satisfaction and we've just become more memorable to that person.
Remember that this person will be likely networking/meeting with several people – so being memorable is important to get them to follow-up or forward leads, connections, etc.
Disclaimer: We've all had situations where the time set aside for full preparation gets eaten up by other priorities (Murphy's Law applied to networking). If I'm partially ready, I'll admit it upfront and ask them to walk through the areas of the business where I need a better understanding - this has worked well and starts the relationship on a tone of honesty. If I'm completely unprepared, I'll reschedule.
Good luck today!
Mark Richards