Most of us have heard of LinkedIn and have signed up to it, however how many of us understand what the Do’s and Don’ts are when it comes to LinkedIn. Using your LinkedIn page professionally and in the correct manner can lead to success and business opportunities.
Keep your profile up to date and complete.
LinkedIn is one of the best searchable database for business people. Using your personal profile the best you can so that others can find you is a must. Keep all information current and up to date, this could be key to getting found by others. Also complete as much of your profile as possible, this will increase your search ranking and give others a better impression (remember to keep it professional, qualifications, achievements, past experience etc.)
A LinkedIn message can be as important as an email
Do not treat a message on LinkedIn any different than you would a business email, people have got jobs, hire employees, gain clients, and made deals as a result of LinkedIn-based communications. Think carefully about your message or reply as you would do with an email.
Do not look like spam
The last thing you want is to look like spam, this can give you a bad reputation and lead to you loosing connections. A few tips to remember are:
– Do not post any marketing messages, job listings, job search queries, or connection-seeking messages on people’s answers.
– Do not automatically subscribe your connections to your newsletter
– Try to not send too many connection requests to people you don’t know
Be proactive about making new connections
If you are just starting off on LinkedIn find connections you know, LinkedIn will help you out by suggesting people. Remember you need to gradually build up your profile so don’t go too crazy with adding people you don’t know. You can all always use the ‘Get introduced through a connection’ option, once connected with people you know I’m sure they would be happy enough to suggest or introduce you to helpful, relevant contacts.
Schedule time
Try spend at least 15 minutes a day to work on your resume, during this time update and check online networking profiles and search job listings, update statuses, comment on posts etc.
Use Keywords
The use of keywords on your profile can be important to who you drive to your profile, learn from others, by looking at similar profiles to yours and then incorporate some of the keywords they use. When looking for a job use specific keywords to the industry you’re interested in. Leadership words and action words are good to use (Managed, designed, captain, team leader etc.)
Spread the word- be noticed
Regularly update your status on LinkedIn and other social media platforms, share articles and relevant news which will interest and catch the eye of people in your field.
Get involved with groups
Join relevant LinkedIn groups, get involved with discussions. Commenting and joining these groups can spark up opportunities and lead to new connections.
Overall social media can build connections with a wide spread of people, people you may have never of been able to reach without social media platforms. Building a presence on social media can lead to jobs, hire employees, gain clients, and make deals as a result. It’s not a question of whether we want to use social media or not, social media is now a major part of our lives.
Don’t forget to Follow Cobia on LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/company/cobia-ltd
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