Make the Most out of LinkedIn in Minutes a Day

Make the Most out of LinkedIn in Minutes a Day

April 20, 2011 By Randy Schrum

Do you want to take advantage of the opportunities offered by LinkedIn but think you just don’t have the time? Think again. It only takes fifteen to twenty minutes a day to be an active member of the LinkedIn community and keep your name and business out there.

Before you begin, make sure that you fully leverage your LinkedIn profile by detailing all of your relevant experience and education. It’s worth spending the time to make sure that your profile fully reflects your achievements and expertise. You might even consider asking a trusted friend or colleague to give it a once-over to double check the spelling, grammar and wording.

A comprehensive profile makes it easier for others to find you and to discover connections related to your education and former employment. Be sure to take advantage of LinkedIn’s request an introduction feature. This will allow you to network with those outside of your list of contacts provided that you have a mutual contact. Again, the wider your network, the better your chances of finding these mutual contacts.

LinkedIn Groups are another valuable resource that will allow you to easily find others in your industry or area of interest and discuss topics of interest. These groups can be a wonderful way to establish your reputation and start building relationships with others in your field. You can find relevant groups by searching the groups directory. While you can join up to 50 groups, it’s better to limit your participation to a few, tightly focused groups to make the most of your limited time.

Once you’ve fully completed your profile and made a few connections using the email search feature and joined a couple of relevant groups, you can streamline your daily LinkedIn routine to just this list of daily tasks:

• Post a quick update. It’s not as crucial as it is on Facebook or Twitter, but remember that regular updates show that you are active on the site.
• Look for and respond to invitations to connect.
• After you’ve approved invitations to connect, scan the suggestions for potential new contacts.
• Read group updates and respond to topics of interest. Be generous in sharing your experience and expertise to help establish your reputation and build your network.
• Occasionally post new threads in your groups on a subject of mutual interest. Ask thoughtful questions that require more than a simple yes or no answer.
• Write recommendations for those that have helped you or you know to be outstanding and reliable. It’s an easy way to help out a friend or colleague and add value to LinkedIn and it also increases the chance that somebody will write a recommendation for you.

Remember that LinkedIn is a more formal and professional site. Don’t feel like you have to be “fake” or overly buttoned in to participate but do realize that the focus of the site is for professional networking and that the users are there strictly to expand their business and career opportunities, not to joke around or share details about their personal lives.

While it will take a bit of time in the beginning to set up your profile, find contacts and join group once that is done, you can get a lot out of LinkedIn just by spending a few minutes per day using it while having your cup of coffee.

So, how much time have you committed to generate business from LinkedIn?