Presented byMichael Meanor

How to make the most of your account.

AGENDA

What is Linked In?

Linked in Terminology

What to do beyond getting Linked in

10 Things You Can Do To Improve Your Profile

(by Guy Kawasaki)

Questions & Answers

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PROFESSIONAL ONLINE NETWORKING

Business And HomeComputer services

Martin Grove

Construction

Crystal Springs

Chiropractics

Realty World

Martinelli Properties

Another Company

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FACEBOOK vs. LINKED IN

FACEBOOK:  Social networking site, mainly for personal use, able to post pictures, write on “walls”, and chat.

LINKED IN:  Professional networking site, mainly for professional use, can post resumes, can look for job connections in your field.Don’t let this all fool you however, many people have both Facebook and Linked In

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What is a connection?

Connections are people you invite, or people who have invited you. They in turn are connected to other people, and those people to still more.

TERMINOLOGY

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What is an Introduction?An introduction is a request that you make to one of your direct connections to be introduced to one of their immediate connections or one of their connections' connections. You can be introduced to almost anyone who is a 2nd or 3rd degree connection in your network, as long as they have not turned off this option in their account.

TERMINOLOGY

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What is an Introduction?

It's then up to that person to decide whether to forward your request on or decline.

That's it. It's a very simple and very effective process if you use it right.

On the upper right of the profile is a link that will say "Get introduced through a connection." That link will take you to a page where you can compose a message to both the ultimate recipient and to the person who will sending along the introduction (i.e. one

of your direct connections).

Let's say you see the profile of someone you'd like to contact.

Using this feature is very simple.

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What is my network?

Your network is the group of users you can contact through your connections, and those users who are more than four degrees away from you but are willing to be contacted without referral. You can only contact people who are linked to you through a short chain of users (up to four degrees away from you), or users accepting contact without referral

TERMINOLOGY

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What is a request?

A request is a request for contact sent by one user to another, describing a possible project or opportunity.

TERMINOLOGY

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What is a profile?

Your profile is your “public face” — it's what other users see when they find you through a search.

TERMINOLOGY

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What is an endorsement?

An endorsement is a short comment, written by one connection for another, about work the two shared in a particular position. The endorsement is visible to all users who can see the endorsee’s profile.

TERMINOLOGY

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What is an expired invitation?

When an invitation has not been accepted or declined after a long period of time, that invitation expires.

You can always send a new invitation to that friend or colleague from your invitation page.

Linked In will send a single reminder to your invitee just before the invitation expires, letting them know.

TERMINOLOGY

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Your Home PageThe dashboard to your professional world.

Your LinkedIn homepage provides you with an overview with what’s going on in your network with Network Updates and the latest news, jobs, and answers.

Use your homepage to:◦ View your latest messages and get network updates from

colleagues and connections ◦ Read the latest news about your company, competitors,

and industry and discuss it with colleagues ◦ Browse the latest jobs, questions, and answers that match

your interests

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Inbox

The inbox is the control panel for all of your LinkedIn user interactions, including messages, introductions, and connection requests. 

Quickly assess the items in your inbox that need action.

If you already know what you need to do, simply hover over the “take action” button to immediately reply or archive it.

Clicking on the subject takes you to your inbox to review and address the message.

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News

Use the power of your network to see and discuss the most important news that matters for your company. Your customized news feed is just for you and your colleagues—no one else sees it.

There are four clickable tabs to news:◦ Most Discussed: the articles that are the most popular among

people in your company.◦ Company: the articles about the company you work for. ◦ Other Companies: the articles about the companies that are

similar to yours. ◦ Industry: the articles about the industry that you work in.

Clicking on the article opens it in a new window so you can easily return to LinkedIn after you’re done reading. There is a ‘discuss’ link next to each article allowing you to comment and engage in a discussion about the article with other members of your organization.

To open the full LinkedIn news page which allows you to share the article with other connections, recommend the article to your network, etc., click on the “News” heading at the top of the module.

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Network Updates

Sorted in chronological order, your Network Updates feed displays the latest activity of your connections. You’ll find things such as their current status, groups recently joined, questions asked and answered, and who your network has recently connected to.

What is status?Your status message allows you to display professional updates to your network. By displaying things such as what you’re currently working on, and where you’re planning on traveling to, etc., you invite your network to help you with advice and recommendations. You can set your status message by clicking “what are you working on?” on the left column on your home page.

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What can your LinkedIn Network do for you?

Get introduced to the people you needWhen you need to reach a professional, LinkedIn will tell you who can introduce you to the person you need.

Find professionals your friends can vouch forDon’t just search the web for people. Search the people your friends know and can recommend.

Keep up with friends and colleaguesLinkedIn makes it easy to hear news about their careers, projects and professional lives.

Don’t miss professional opportunitiesWith LinkedIn, you hear about opportunities in your network, even if your friends don’t tell you about them.

Build your relationshipsWhen a connection asks you to make an introduction, you build that relationship.

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InMail

InMails are private messages that let you send business and career opportunities directly to any LinkedIn user.

Reach any LinkedIn user

InMail allows you to contact or be directly contacted by 2nd or 3rd degree contacts as well as LinkedIn users who are not in your network.

InMail protects every user’s privacy

If a recipient is not in the sender’s network, the sender will not see the recipient’s name or contact information until the InMail has been accepted.

InMail is a paid feature.

10 THINGS YOU CAN DO TO MAKE YOUR PROFILE STRONGER

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? DON'T CUT AND PASTE

YOUR RESUME

LinkedIn hooks you into a network, not just a human resources department.

You wouldn't hand out your resume before introducing yourself, so don't do it here.

Instead, describe your experience and abilities as you would to someone you just met.

Also, write for the screen, in short blocks of copy with visual or textual signposts.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? BORROW FROM THE BEST

MARKETERS

Light up your Profile with your voice.

Use specific adjectives, colorful verbs, active construction ('managed project team,' not 'responsible for project team management').

Act naturally: don't write in the third person unless that formality suits your brand.

Picture yourself at a conference or client meeting.

How do you introduce yourself?

That's your authentic voice, so use it.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? WRITE A PERSONAL

TAGLINE

That line of text under your name is the first thing people see in your Profile.

It follows your name in search hit lists.

It's your brand. (Note: your e-mail address is not a brand!)

Your company's brand might be so strong that it and your title are sufficient.

However,you might need to refine your professional personality into a more eye-catching phrase that describes who you are at a glance.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger?

PUT YOUR ELEVATOR PITCH TO WORK

Go back to your conference introduction.

That 30-second description, the essence of who you are and what you do, is a personal elevator pitch.

Use it in the Summary section to engage readers.

You've got 5-10 seconds to capture their attention.

The more meaningful your summary is, the more time you'll get from readers.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? POINT OUT YOUR SKILLS

Think of the Specialties field as your personal search engine optimizer.

It is an avenue to refine the ways people find and remember you.

This searchable section is where that list of industry buzzwords from your resume belongs.

This is also the place to display particular abilities and interests, the personal values you bring to your professional performance, or even a note of humor or passion.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? EXPLAIN YOUR

EXPERIENCE

Help the reader grasp the key points.

Briefly say what the company does and what you did or do for them.

Picture yourself at that conference again.

After you've introduced yourself, how do you describe what you do, what your company does?

Use those clear, succinct phrases here and break them into visually digestible chunks.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? DISTINGUISH YOURSELF FROM THE

CROWD

Use the 'Additional Information' section to round out your Profile with a few key interests.

Add websites that showcase your abilities or passions.

Then edit the default 'My Website' label to encourage click-throughs (you get Google page rankings for those, raising your visibility).

Maybe you belong to a trade association or an interest group; help other members find you by naming those groups.

If you're an award winner recognized by peers, customers or employers, add prestige without bragging by listing them here

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger?

ASK AND ANSWER QUESTIONS

Thoughtful questions and useful answers build your credibility.

The best ones give people a reason to look at your Profile.

Make a point of answering questions in your field to establish your expertise, raise your visibility, and most important, to build social capital with people in your network.

You may need answers to a question of your own down the road.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? IMPROVE YOUR GOOGLE

PAGE RANK

Pat your own back and others'.

Get recommendations from colleagues, clients, and employers who can speak credibly about your abilities or performance. (Think quality, not quantity.)

Ask them to focus on a specific skill or personality trait that drives their opinion of you.

Make meaningful comments when you recommend others.

Also, mix it up because variety makes your recommendations feel authentic.

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What can I do to make my Profile stronger? BUILD YOUR CONNECTIONS

Connections are one of the most important aspects of your brand.

The company you keep reflects the quality of your brand.

What happens when you view a Profile and see that you know someone in common?

That Profile's credibility increases.

The value of that commonality works both ways.

So identify connections that will add to your credibility and pursue those.

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A final note: As you add connections and recommendations, your Profile develops into a peer-reviewed picture of you and of your personal brand.

Make sure it's in focus, well composed and easy to find.

Edit your public Profile's URL to reflect your name or tagline.

Then you can put it to work by adding it to your blog, linking to it from your website, and including it in your e-mail signature

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Questions & Answers