Getting to Know LinkedIn
In this prologue, you learn about LinkedIn—the leading professional networking site on the Web:
Exploring what you can do with LinkedIn
Discovering what makes LinkedIn different
Understanding the key to LinkedIn success
LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com) is the world’s leading social networking site for business, with profiles of hundreds of millions of professionals around the world. LinkedIn is also rapidly expanding: Two new members join approximately every second. The site is extremely active with recruiters from recruiting firms as well as from major companies such as Microsoft, eBay, Sony, Walmart, and PepsiCo, which makes it a prime hunting ground for job seekers. Everyone from top CEOs to President Barack Obama has a LinkedIn profile. If you want to network for business on just one social networking site, LinkedIn is the site to choose.
Understanding What You Can Do with LinkedIn
Creating a professional profile and developing a solid network of connections on LinkedIn can help you meet many goals. For example, participation on LinkedIn can enable you to do the following:
• Find a job or recruit quality job candidates
• Brand yourself online with a professional presence that demonstrates your expertise
• Develop your business by creating a Company Page and connecting with potential clients and partners
LinkedIn History
LinkedIn was established in May 2003 when the five company founders invited 350 of their closest business contacts to join. By the end of that first year, LinkedIn had reached 81,000 members.
Discovering What Makes LinkedIn Different
It’s clear that today’s technology has forever changed the way people find a job, promote their businesses, foster strategic partnerships, and develop their professional networks. But technology is just the enabler. The fundamental concepts of professional networking remain the same both online and off. Building relationships through mutual connections and trust is the foundation of networking on LinkedIn, just as it is in the real world.
Focus on Strategy, Not Filling Out Forms
At first glance, LinkedIn appears deceptively simple. Its true power, however, comes from employing the strategic best practices of online networking, not on your ability to enter your professional data in a form.
Before getting started with LinkedIn, however, you need to understand its unwritten rules that distinguish it from other social networking sites. LinkedIn’s focus is on developing a mutually beneficial online business network. With LinkedIn, you can stay in touch with your existing contacts and connect with other professionals who share your goals and interests. LinkedIn is not the place to amass thousands of “followers,” engage in heavy sales tactics, or send spam-like communications. Keeping these rules in mind can help you develop a LinkedIn strategy that generates positive results in your professional career.
Understanding the Key to LinkedIn Success
The key to success on LinkedIn is to establish clear goals and ensure that all your actions on the site work to achieve those goals.
For example, if your goal is to find a job on LinkedIn, you want to create a strong profile with keywords that attract recruiters. You also want to develop a solid network of professional contacts in your industry—the type of people who might hire you or who might provide relevant job leads.
On the other hand, if your goal is to find business leads and develop your platform as an expert in your field, you could use a different approach. A strong profile and network of connections are still important, but you might also want to post informative status updates and participate in LinkedIn Groups to promote your expertise among LinkedIn’s millions of members.
My LinkedIn is designed to get you up and running on LinkedIn as quickly as possible. This book focuses on standard LinkedIn functionality. LinkedIn rolls out beta functionality and new features on a regular basis, so the features available to you might vary at any given time. For now, turn to Chapter 1, “Creating Your LinkedIn Account,” to get started with this powerful networking tool.