Is the heart of leadership in the details?
November 13, 2010The scrunched up nose danger of the upsell or cross-sell
November 17, 2010It’s not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it’s what you do with it that matters
Social networks, like Linked In, are becoming a great way of building networks and can be our ‘window’ into who we are as business people, who we know and why people would want to do business with us.
If that is so, and Linked In could be an important source of networking and business for you, then consider this:
- If you have a complete and active Linked In profile, what impression does that give?
- If you have an incomplete and non-active Linked In profile, what impression does that give?
- If you have no Linked In profile, what impression does that give?
However, you might work hard to get the:
….badge and think that you are now done and that you have to just sit back and wait for the work and connections to roll in.
Nope. Sorry to disappoint.
I thought that a while ago but what I quickly realised was that, at that stage, the work is just starting.
To get the biggest return on investment from any social media you actually have to be social!
Doh! Seems simple and obvious, right? Took me ages to realise this.
But, soon I realised, in business it’s not the size of your contact book that counts, it’s the relationships that you have that are everything.
So, over the last few months, I’ve been trying to spend more time on Linked In answering questions, joining groups and getting involved in discussions, connecting with new people and starting conversations, updating my profile and ……..I’m still learning how to get the most of the network.
However, since I started to get more active on Linked In, here’s a few stories of what has happened as a result:
- One blog post that I have been able to bring to the attention of the right people has started a conversation with the Head of Customer Service at a major High Street Retailer about some consulting and training.
- Another blog post has allowed me to connect to another major brand with an offline networking conversation to follow
- Directly due to my presence and activity on Linked In, I have been approached to speak at the Customer Service Training Association.
- Finally, as a result of my activity on the forums and answers sections I have received direct enquiries for speaking and consulting.
I’m pretty pleased with what has happened so far but know that I have only scratched the surface of what the network can offer and I can offer it.
Are you on LinkedIn? What are you doing that is working for you? I’d be keen to learn from you.
My LinkedIn profile is here.
Thanks to Coletivo Mambembe for the image.
23 Comments
It’s not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it’s what you do with it that matters http://bit.ly/aYdPUL
This post really resonated with me. It’s really only over the last 12-18 months that I’ve spent more time on LinkedIn building my network etc. Yes, I’ve got my 100% complete profile, but I’m now realising actually that is just the starting point. There’s still lots to do to refine my profile, as well as the realisation that the profile is an organic document. It is not a closed document that i simply update once a year. It is a reflection of my thinking, what I’m doing at a particular moment in time, as well as being part of my overall online footprint, or as Antony Mayfield terms it in his recent book – Web shadow. What you get out of all these ‘social spaces’ is exactly what you put into them. The more you socialise and share the more you learn. I’m also finding that actually answering questions whether it’s on LI or any other forum you might be a part of, also helps you not only appreciate different points of view, but also helps to continually refine your own thinking.
I find the linked in discussion groups are quite helpful. Many use these as a virtual community to exchange ideas. Of course you also have to ready yourself for the number of people that presume it’s a direct sales channel, and not let that discourage you. It’s also helpful to pose and answer questions.
As a fellow blogger, I try to balance the time spent writing my own posts with time spent engaging on others’ posts, looking for discussion groups and conversations that resonate with me and looking for insights that might not come to me otherwise. As Guy notes in his comment, you get back what you put into these social media spaces.
From a simple business development standpoint, my colleagues and I find it helpful to see who is connected to who when we are checking out a prospective client, and to find the ‘six degrees of separation’ that connect us to those with whom we want to be more connected.
HI Guy, Marc,
Thanks for your perspectives. I guess I am only just realising the power of groups, discussions and answers on Linked In and other forums and that you get back what you put in and need to make a strategy for being more effective or contributing more.
Marc, I think that’s a great strategy for using LinkedIn to find out who is connected to who when meeting a new client or prospect. Straightforward and simple but hadn’t occurred to me before. Thank you for that.
Adrian
RT @adrianswinscoe: It's not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it's what you do with it that matters http://bit.ly/9V1Cye
Hi Adrian, this made me laugh:
“To get the biggest return on investment from any social media you actually have to be social!”
It so easy to get complacent about it and I know I do it all the time. The interesting thing is that with networks its not your strong links that count but rather the value of your weak links. The strong links tend to be just like you and hence have limited value. The weak links are very diverse and feel inclined to help — Human nature at work 🙂
Michael
Hi Michael,
I like that idea about the value of weak links. It’s a bit like the old saying that says your team is only as strong as its weakest link. I guess the same could be said of your network in some way too.
Adrian
Yes, even for a relative social media Luddite like me can see value in Linkedin. By being reasonably thoughtful about network building, a couple of glances a day over updates is bringing significant extra usefulness into my thinking and activities.
Hi Malcolm,
Thanks for your comment. You are right. It’s amazing how regular small bursts of activity or regular visits can produce great learning and insight.
Adrian
RT @adrianswinscoe: It's not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it's what you do with it that matters http://bit.ly/9V1Cye
RT @AndyW1509 RT @adrianswinscoe: It's not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it's what you do with it… http://bit.ly/9V1Cye
RT @adrianswinscoe: It's not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it's what you do with it that matters http://bit.ly/9V1Cye
Adrian,
Great job “creating traction” in the LinkedIN environment. I really see this as the business card replacement, with a lot more horsepower. The message: Don’t listen to me, see what others say!
Do you really need a 100% profile?
Bill
Hi Bill,
I think it is like a business card, a CV and personal professional webspace but what I like is that it is organic and you can develop it, use it to converse with people, ask Qs and offer answers. It’s also great as it allows (for the first time, I believe) the chance for us to take a peek in someone elses ‘black book’.
As for do we need a 100% profile…..I’m not sure but say that it just seems straightforward to finish it. Why wouldn’t you want to?
Adrian
Adrian,
I like the peek in the black book!
Bill
Bill,
Just came in a flash of writing. It’s a pretty cool analogy even if I do say so myself as it relates all of this back to stuff that our fathers and grandfathers talked to us about. But it’s now no longer so secret 🙂
Adrian
Hi Adrian, great post.
I have been on Linkedin, I guess, about 2 years now and have been reasonably active in Groups over the last year or two. In my line of work I meet a lot of people and consequently often seek to connect with them. I am constantly surprised by the number of people who don’t have a Linkedin Profile. I think that this is a serious ommision for them.
A lot of people think Linkedin is ‘Facebook’ for people at work – it is much more than that. As you said above, it’s your professional webspace. It’s your calling card and your CV.
I was unaware of Linkedin Answers, but I’m making an effort to take part and be more social in the groups I follow.
Hi Matthew,
Thank you for your comment. I was speaking to a group of financial services people last week about Linked In and how it can extend and develop their networking and that not having a profile can be a big gap in their networking in this modern day. But, you are right it’s what you do with that counts.
I also like the groups and forums too (I don’t spend enough time in them) but there is a lot of value there too.
Finally, one of the cool things that I just found out was how to embed a video into my profile using the Google docs app. V cool 🙂
Adrian
RT @adrianswinscoe: It's not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it's what you do with it that matters http://bit.ly/9V1Cye
RT @adrianswinscoe: It's not the size of your LinkedIn network that counts it's what you do with it that matters http://bit.ly/9V1Cye