A Guide to LinkedIn

Why on earth do I need to do LinkedIn?

1. Google loves LinkedIn and a well-written profile, some recommendations and regular updates will improve your natural rankings.
2. You have probably got a draw stuffed full of business cards – simply file them all in one place online.
3. By updating your status regularly you are networking with your contacts without having to get up at 6am or shake hands with another accountant.
4. It is your little black book, your old boy network & your 60 seconds all rolled into one.
5. There are over 6 million users in the UK.
6. People are making money, getting jobs, starting businesses right here.

Key tips to get you started

• Your profile – Write a complete and compelling profile for your business self.
• Stand out – LinkedIn will tell you what you need to do i.e. add another job 15% and a photo is a must.
• Be yourself – write it in the first person and be relatively informal but professional.
• Use keywords –  both in the Summary and the Experience sections.
• Don’t be shy; say what you’re good at, what you enjoy and what you are looking for.
• Add your website address – where it says My Website, replace it with your company name.
• Add as many jobs as you see fit –  certainly enough to give users a flavour of how you got where you are today.
• Add hobbies & interest – people like doing business with people they can relate to.
• Make the first move – start making some connections. The easiest thing to do is to upload your email address book. If you have IMPORTED CONTACTS then scroll down to ADD MORE CONTACTS.
  Put your email details in and it will show you a list of all the people who are on LinkedIn (there will be a little blue logo). Next grab all those business cards and look them up. Yes it’s boring but it will pay off if these are all business people who either want your service or know someone who might.
  
  If you know you want to talk to John Mortimer at John Lewis, try putting his name in. If he’s there you will see how many contacts you have between you – you maybe pleasantly surprised and be just one step away from him. It is the rule of six degrees of separation.
  
  My network of 1030 contacts (18 months hard graft) gives me access to 7000 people that I can get a warm introduction to. So draw up a list of your 5 ideal clients, find them and then ask for an intro by hitting the Get Introduced through a connection button.

Now get networking!

When you get going you will get people suggested to you as LinkedIn sees your contacts. Say yes to people you know. Make it a habit that after a networking event or meeting that you automatically link with people you have met.

Find some people you have worked with and give them a recommendation. Not only is it a nice thing to do but people will reciprocate. You can also seek them out by going to their profile page and hitting REQUEST A RECOMMENDATION but I have never found it necessary.
I think if you become a good LinkedIn networker people will naturally gravitate to you and want to help.

I advise not going to them on the same days as it can look a bit cheesey “ I like John says Paul…and “I like Paul too” says John:
Right.

Stay active

Update your status as regularly as you can, aim for daily it is only a 2 minute job. Next to your photo you will see a speech bubble with Share an update. You type in here, hit share and everyone in your network will see it and get a chance to reply publicly or privately. Don’t constantly sell; think of it as a chat down the pub.

“But what shall I write; nobody will think that’s interesting”.

Rubbish. You are fascinated/fascinating in your chosen profession so tell the world.

Some ideas
Monday – Met Pete from Pete’s Windows, really productive conversation (with a link to his site).
Tuesday – Saw this in the Times and thought it was interesting (link to Times piece).
Wednesday – it always amazes me that over 20% of Britons fly with no holiday insurance.
Thursday – Really excited about our training workshop tomorrow (link to your site).
Friday – I’m looking for people who want to reduce costs on their utility bills.

Join GROUPS.

Find a group/s you want to be part of and engage with. Go to GROUPS and type in something relevant in the search bar at the top i.e. Goggle Adwords UK. A list will appear them simply look at the description and the number of members and if you like the sound of it request to join.

You will get an email back confirming that the Group Administrator has accepted you. You can then go and see the members’ profiles…. and their contacts…. and what they are talking about.

You can add link to your site or other peoples in the “attach a link” section. Copy and paste the URL (i.e. www.rtfacts.co.uk ) and a picture will show up and users will be able to click on it.

LinkedIn etiquette

• Don’t spam.
• Don’t say you know people when you don’t.
• Don’t just link to people to see their contacts.
• Use proper punctuation and grammar – this is not Facebook or Twitter.
• All pretty straightforward business etiquette really.
• That’s it, what’s keeping you? …and good luck.