Squeezing value out of LinkedIn

This month's DWC Indicator article is by Jason Alba, author of I’m on LinkedIn – Now What??? and CEO of www.JibberJobber.com, advocates personal career management through the use of online tools and blogs. This article originally ran in the Downtown Women's Club February Dish e-newsletter. (click here to register for free).

Recently I’ve been contacted by a number of people who feel they just aren’t getting what they want out of LinkedIn. Some recognize that they aren’t putting any effort in, and others feel like they are putting too much effort in.

I’d like to share three actionable ideas that you can implement today (or over the next month), with the idea that you’ll really get value out of your account and time on LinkedIn. Of course, many of these actionable ideas transfer over to other social network environments, including DWC+ (formerly DWC Faces).

Before we start, though, it’s important to recognize that LinkedIn is just a tool, with a specific purpose. Understanding what you can get out of LinkedIn, and what you should put into LinkedIn, is really important so you can manage your expectations. That’s for another article, though. Let’s get started on your actionable items!

• First, flesh out your profile. How does your profile look right now? Imagine if I’m a hiring manager, recruiter, or a business person looking for a partner or vendor. When I come to your profile am I going to find most of the information I’m looking for? I’m not looking for details about your product, I’m looking for details about you, to determine if I want to have a business relationship with you.
• Second, give recommendations to your connections. Don’t hand them out like they are candy, rather, put some thought into them and only give them out if you are qualified to recommend your contacts. This is an excellent way to touch one of your contacts in a flattering way, and nurture that relationship. Your recommendation should be specific, and add value to their professional profile. One of the coolest things about giving a recommendation is, it’s a great, harmless way to ask for a recommendation!
• Third, use Answers as another way to touch your contacts. Answers has been around for about a year now, and is one of the best things about LinkedIn. When you ask a question you can invite up to 200 of your contacts to get the question via e-mail, while others may see it on their front page when they login. Finding questions that you can answer is a great way to “contribute to the conversation” as well as meet new people on LinkedIn that you may not have met otherwise – people that you might have something in common with. Make sure your questions (and answers) are not promotional, rather, they are about information gathering.

LinkedIn, as a tool, is great to help you “find others” and “be found by others.” You want to ensure that when you are found, you leave a great first impression. As you learn how to use LinkedIn to complement your networking strategy you should find value in new relationships, strengthened friendships, and maybe even some business opportunities!

Jason Alba, author of I’m on LinkedIn – Now What??? and CEO of JibberJobber.com, advocates personal career management through the use of online tools and blogs. Read Jason’s blog at http://www.jibberjobber.com/blog/.

Posted by Nancy Loderick

Comments

[Nancy Loderick]

I particularly like the LinkedIn Question & Answer section. Several months ago, I needed advice on what laptop to purchase. I posed the question on LinkedIn, and within a half hour, received several very helpful and very thorough responses. I've become online friends with several who responded and now consider them my virtual tech support team. Any hour of the day or night, they seem to be online and willing to help me with my technical questions.

[Robin Ogden]

Great points - I have found that LinkedIn is a great tool and has worked even better for me now that I've got a more complete profile - as you noted. It really is worth taking the time to build your profile page with complete information. Often times I come across a profile page of someone who is listed with only information about what they are looking for and I just move on. I think if they don't believe that providing more information about themselves is worth it, then no need to put much effort into dragging it out of them.

Thanks for your inputs.

Robin Ogden
http://www.firedupcareers.com

[Andrea Novakowski]

I've been meaning to spend time on my LinkedIn account for a year now and just haven't felt the inspiration to move it to the top of the list. Jason makes great points that are easy to manage. I bet that with a little upfront work, I can make a big difference in my LinkedIn results. I'm inspired!

Thanks for posting this article