A strategy is quite simply a plan of action and with LinkedIn, the old adage “you can tell a lot about a person by the company they keep” assumes a whole new meaning, so it really is a good idea to have a strategy in mind when connecting with people. How to develop a LinkedIn strategy? Your strategy should begin with the end in mind: do you want a new job, are you looking for new business, what is it you want from LinkedIn?
New Job
If you’re looking for a new job, then once you have your profile set up (including professional looking headshot please, not holiday snaps) and have asked for recommendations, then you need to look at building up connections that will:
- validate your profile i.e. show that you actually worked there. If your previous managers are prepared to connect, then that gives a good impression. If they recommend you, then even better.
- develop a good network of people in the field of expertise you are in
- be either at the business/company you want to work at next, or lead you to connections at that organisation
I would also suggest that you follow the companies that interest you. Hopefully, they will post jobs and updates for you to follow.
Your strategy will therefore involve:
- searching for people you know at the places you have worked at. Connect with them and ask for recommendations.
- following the companies that you would be interested in working for if they have a company profile
- look and see if anyone working at the companies are in your circle of connections and connect with them
- if they are not in your circle, take a look at the groups that they are members of and consider joining those groups
- also, take a look at the skills, qualifications, jobs and connections that the employees have on their profile. Are there skills you need to develop or qualifications that seem to be in demand at the company? Is there a common connection such as recruitment agent that you could connect with?
These are just some simple ideas to develop your network, but remember quality over quantity. I was asked to connect by someone who couldn’t even spell their organisations name correctly (it wasn’t even a typo!). Did I personally know him? No. Would that person be able to and anything to my network? I didn’t think so. Did I connect with him? What do you think!
New business
As a business owner, you need to employ slightly different strategies, remembering that ultimately in business, people buy from people:
- make sure your personal profile is complete. If you have a website, blog, Facebook page and/or Twitter page, make sure that they are on your profile.
- connect with past and present employees. Give recommendations to those who deserve it.
- seek recommendations from previous clients
- make sure your company is on LinkedIn
- connect with those who follow your company
- add company updates
- connect with business owners in the same field
- connect with business owners in the same location.
- join groups related to your field of expertise and post on them. The same applies to groups based in a specific location e.g. the County Enterprise Boards in Ireland
- answer questions on LinkedIn and try to build up your online reputation
- instead of trying to restrict your employees use of LinkedIn, let them embrace it. What they say about the company speaks volumes to potential employees.
- if you have any vacancies, post them on your company profile. People interested in your company many well apply, in which case, you have saved a lot of money on advertising, and you can check out the people who have applied. If you have connections in common, you can find out more about them than a reference would tell you.
Whether you are on LinkedIn as a person or for your business, always remember: keep it professional.