I have admitted to you that I am a LinkedIn addict. I see it more as an opportunity than a problem, though I encounter hesitant people regularly who ask: Why should I spend the time? How has it been successful?
The philosophy of networking, be it web-based or face-to-face, is to get out there in the world and make meaningful connections. And for a business developer like me, I need to convince my connections that I’m likable, reliable and that I offer a service of value.
LinkedIn is my own personal database or customer relationship manager (CRM). Just like any organization, I use ‘my database’ to manage my prospects, clients, and referral sources—though on a much more individualized level.
LinkedIn is ideal for professionals who want their personal reputation to impact business growth. It’s all about who I know, and who they know. Since you asked, as of today, I have 314 LI connections (and growing), and they provide access to a network of 2,604,400+ professionals. This is not including the LI Group members that I can contact directly.
I use LinkedIn to stay on my prospects’ radar, during the time when we’re not networking face-to-face.
- When you use LinkedIn, I want you to come across people you want to connect with, and I want you to notice that you are separated by 2 degrees, ME. This increases my value.
- I also what you to see that we share similar connections, and thus, I must be good people.
- I want you to see my profile and recommendations and have confidence in my abilities and reliability.
- I want you to notice that I’m attending credible events.
- I want you to think that my status updates and blog posts are clever and that they provide value to you.
- Finally, I want you to question your marketing strategy and think: “let me call JoAnne for advice.”
LinkedIn helps me maintain my connections, get to know each of them better, facilitates conversations and helps me interact 1:1. It has become an invaluable tool in my career.
Please reply with your LinkedIn success perspective so I can share our stories with my hesitant friends.
NOTE: Who owns the LinkedIn profile, the company or the individual? That’s debatable; LinkedIn’s User Agreement states that the individual owns it and it’s nontransferable. Thus it’s important that your social media policy clearly outline parameters for LinkedIn business use; I also suggest that you develop a systematic procedure for transferring contacts made on behalf of the company to the company database. Please feel welcome to weigh in on this as well.
I am a LinkedIn (and Facebook) junkie. I am also a relentless pusher—peer pressuring anyone I meet to use as much as I do. I use LinkedIn like your marketing or sales team uses their CRM (Customer Relationship Manager). For me it is a Relationship Manager, and was instrumental as a job search tool, an information resource, a communication platform, and now as a business development platform. In this posting, I'll share how I used LinkedIn in my recent job search. A later posting will share how I use LinkedIn now, as business development manager for Transmyt. Last December, I was somewhat-expectedly laid off, just like millions of others. I was sad, then mad, and subsequently glad—all in the same day. (The situation and timing was bad, but I always knew that the job was not a fit for me.) I drove straight home, optimistic and determined! To start, I set up my LinkedIn profile effectively like an online version of my resume. I uploaded a profile photo that was somewhat professional, highlighted my experience, sought and received recommendations from past employers, and clearly summarized my objective. Next, I began connecting like a mad-woman. I sent connect invitations to school friends and instructors, internship mentors, past employers and colleagues, clients and vendors. I skimmed 2nd degree connections to see if there were contacts there that I missed. I imported my email contacts from Yahoo to see who was "In" and I regularly browsed the "people you may know" suggestions that LinkedIn provided. My profile is currently 100% complete and I have 213 connections and growing. Next, I accessed all the usual suspects—job boards, big and small, local and national. Each interesting job posting ultimately drove me back to LinkedIn. Do I know anyone at this company who could put my resume in the right hands, or even better, offer a recommendation? LinkedIn offers a way to establish a meaningful connection with the hiring manager. "Recruiters are starting to use LinkedIn as the main place for sourcing candidates because it's free and the top professionals are on there," offers Dan Schawbel on Mashable. Dan's article offers 7 Secrets to Getting Your Next Job Using Social Media. If you've ever posted a position yourself, you know that "employers are spammed with hundreds of resumes from unqualified applicants when they post on big boards," offers Susan M. Heathfield on the Human Resources Guide. Each time I communicated with a potential employer, I provided a link to my profile. The basic LinkedIn account lets you monitor (to a limited extent) who has viewed your profile in a given period of time, so you can tell if your outreach efforts have worked (which is exciting in a somewhat voyeuristic way). "So, did it work," you ask? Here's the story: I was networking this summer and met someone who was responsive to my situation—a "connector" as Malcolm Gladwell would put it. He wanted to introduce me to someone whom he thought may have a relevant opportunity—an opportunity that was not posted on any job board. I suggested that we connect on LinkedIn, which I promptly initiated the very next day. He then introduced me to Jeremy Mays via a phone call, followed by the "Forward this profile to a connection" function in LinkedIn. And, here I am, Business Development Manager for Transmyt Marketing. In the coming days, I plan to modify and change the tone in my profile to better serve my business development efforts. I'll also begin to draft a follow-up blog posting, which will share details on how I've been using LinkedIn for business development. Please feel welcome to comment or question, and connect with me on LinkedIn.
Many web-savvy professionals are using Web 2.0 technologies to re-connect and strengthen their network. But, whether used for personal or professional purposes, readers’ time is valuable, and publishers should strive to be relevant and interesting, and post with intent.
Many of my Facebook friends update me when they are off to the grocery store (which would be relevant if they were a personal chef, or a consultant to shoppers). With blogs, and social networking sites like Linkedin, Facebook, and Twitter, you're building your social reputation, so you want to consider the purpose of your posts prior to hitting the SEND button.
As a general goal, you want to engage your audience and initiate conversations. Fortunately, your posts don’t necessarily need to be strictly business-oriented. Remember, people tend to do business with (or recommend) people they find likable. So, if your online posts make reference to your hobbies or interests, this can still positively impact your social reputation. However, ‘tweeting’ about the everyday details of your life can make you appear boring (which would be relevant if you are Harvey Pekar, author of American Splendor). In most cases, you can’t build an engaged following by posting the mundane.
When used strategically, social networking can help to nurture your relationships and leverage these relationships for business intelligence and business development. These technologies also provide a venue to demonstrate your value and build awareness about your brand, as well as contribute to your SEO efforts. Use your online posts to add value to your relationships by posting purposefully.