New Addiction for a Networking Junkie
Posted by Barbara Jones on February 4, 2008 – 3:43 pm -
Lorraine Ball As a confirmed networking junkie, I am always looking for my next fix. This month my new fix is LinkedIn. An
on-line social network, Linkedin is often described as FaceBook for professionals.With an emphasis on career history, educational background and association membership, Linkedin has millions of members, with thousands more joining each day.How does it work? Once you register (basic membership is free) you can invite people to Linkin (connect to you through the online tool). You can search the Linkedin data base for people you know or upload your email address book. Either way, anyone who accepts your invitation is considered a Level 1 connection.People in their contact circles are considered your Level 2 connections. This is where the real power of LinkedIn comes in. While you may have only 100 people in your circle, if each one of them knows 100 different people, you are only two steps away from 10,000 business professionals. To expand your reach, expand your connections. The more people to whom you connect directly, the larger your total circle grows.These same
connections exist in the off line world. Your friends know people you want to meet, and sooner or later they may get around to introducing you. With Linkedin you can accelerate the process by requesting invitations. You can search by skills, type of company, jobs held, geographic regions, and common interests. If you find someone who fits your search criteria, LinkedIn will tell you how you are connected, who you know in common, and you can request an invitation.
LinkedIn actually tracks connections 3 steps away. So assuming the 10,000 people in your tier 2 circles also know 100 people each, your outer circle can easily be upwards of 1 million people. Although the connections are not as tight in this outer circle, using LinkedIn you can find someone, who knows someone, who knows the person you want to meet.
I am on LinkedIn - Now What? Here are just a few of the ways you can use LinkedIn
- LinkedIN as a job hunting tool - If you are looking for a job try searching the LinkedIn data base. Heavily used by recruiters and hiring managers, many jobs are listed exclusively on LinkedIN. Not only will you see the job, but a list of people in your circle who can make a connection to the hiring manger.
- LinkedIn as a hiring tool - While not free, listing job openings on LinkedIn will produce responses from candidates who come complete with referrals, reducing some of the uncertainty of the hiring experience.
- Eliminate cold calls with LinkedIn - Having trouble getting in front of the hard to reach CEO or purchasing manager. Look for them on LinkedIn and see who you know in common. Then ask for an introduction.
- Expand your visibility and contacts by asking and answering questions. You can connect directly or indirectly with your circles by asking a question. For example, recently I sent a request to my contacts for a list of business professionals in Ft. Wayne. This one questions generated more than 40 contacts in that community. It might have taken months to reach out to connect with that many professionals using traditional mediums.
- Check your homepage for questions posed to your circles and answer a few from time to time. Always include a link to your website or blog. These postings are a great way to build traffic to your core site, or simply improve your standing in search engine rankings.
LinkedIN will never replace the face-to-face interaction, but it can give your traditional networking an extra buzz.
Tags: etiquette, Networking, online, social network
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