Part 5 finally arrives.  Sorry for the delay but client’s have to take preference over the blog.  Plus I’ve recently switched to a Mac and much of my time has been spent migrating to the new computer.

In part 4, Expand Your Reach on LinkedIn we covered building through direct connections and groups.  Today we talk about Building Credibility on LinkedIn.

When I lived in New Orleans a good friend of mine had an uncle named Joe.  Everyone in the neighborhood knew him and everybody loved him.  I don’t know anybody who would trust him as far as doing what he said he would.  Great guy, just not dependable.

For a business you want to be known and liked, but before the cash register start ringing you have to establish trust.  Trust might be strong enough to over come someone not liking you, but with enough options, this combination is not likely to be viable.

On LinkedIn you start your account off with none of the three.  As you start to connect on LinkedIn you’ll pop up on people’s radar.  Your activity is displayed on people’s home page so with enough participation you’ll start to get known.

To take the next step the most effective way to do so is to share value.  In a small network you may be able to establish this outside of LinkedIn.  But for those people that only know you through LinkedIn, they’ll make their decision based on how they judge your interaction and the value of the information you share.

Trust only occurs as people positively evaluate your interactions and content over time.  Trust can take a long time to build and disappear overnight.  So how do you use LinkedIn to take the steps from Known to trusted?  Here are some ways. (more…)

This is the third part in a series on the 3 Basic Keys of LinkedIn.  Part one covered “optimizing your profile” and part two looked at “building your networks”.  If you followed the tips and strategies you should now have a pretty good profile and be on the way to expanding your reach on LinkedIn.

Leveraging LinkedIn simply means that you are making it work for you.  You’re in control and taking the actions that support why you are on LinkedIn.  I’m here to make money so everything that I do is geared to communicating a message to my networks.

Over the last two years I’ve learned how to use the various social media/networking sites to develop new business for my Individual Health and Employee Benefits companies.  Last week alone I received 3 calls from prospects.  What’s interesting about that is that I’ve updated my profile and activity to focus more on the social media consulting that I’m doing.

My prior and continued activity has allowed people to get to know, like and trust me.  So, even though the focus isn’t 100% on health insurance it still drives results.  And I’m starting to see results from the social media/networking side as well, having received a call from a technology company to discuss their social media/networking strategy.  Four leads in a week with a potential of over $20,000 in revenue.

Social media/networking works if you leverage the tools available.  With that in mind, here are 5 Top Ways to Leverage LinkedIn: (more…)

In writing this blog I’ve discovered one of the secrets of blogging…People love lists.  So here we go with another list showing 13 Action Steps you can take on LinkedIn.  This is likely one of the last lists for a while so I hope you enjoy it and it provides some value.

1. Optimize Your Profile

When most people hear the word optimize they think of optimizing a website to be found in more relevant web searches.  This is much the same thing.  You want to optimize your profile so that you increase your chances of being found, and once found, are found credible.  You want a “Sticky Profile”.

You want to make sure that your profile is detailed with as much information so that your viewer isn’t left to wonder and fill in the gaps.  Your Photo, summary, past work experience are important.  Add applications to share information via presentations, white papers, or video.

The keywords you use in your profile will help you be found in more relevant earches based on your industry, product, or service.  Use a keyword search tool to see what terms people are searching and then populate your profile with these words.

Finally, your Title/Tag line could have an impact on your ability to consistently communicate your message.  I would recommend using the Tag Line to create a message.   You can use up to 140 characters.

2. Build Credibility

Without credibility you may be well known and well liked, but you won’t be in business long.  On LinkedIn if you want to develop potential opportunities you will have to be judged credible.  Credibility is built on how you interact, the information you share, and what other’s say about you.

You can take control by presenting a detailed profile, participating in Answers, securing recommendations, and providing value to your networks.  A blog is a great way to build awareness and build credibility.  My success on LinkedIn has in a large part been supported by my blog.

3. Grow Your Connections

The more connections you have the more likely you are to encounter “Unexpected Opportunities”.  There are those who argue that a large network, with people you don’t know or don’t know well, will have a negative effect.  While I respect that they can choose how they want to utilize LinkedIn, I couldn’t disagree more.  I’ve experienced the difference in opportunities that occurred after I switched to a more open networking philosophy.

If you’ve been limiting your connections and have not found more success, maybe it’s time to open things up. (more…)

I have 3 active groups on LinkedIn.  Two require me to approve members and the third automatically accepts members…that is until today.

I received a request from a person, B2B Discounts and Networking, to join my North Fulton Business Group.  This is something that I’m starting to see more and more of on LinkedIn.  Most of these have 0 connections.

On many social applications you can choose to have your presence based on your company name  or your real name.  LinkedIn is different.  LinkedIn is about business professionals connecting to other business professionals.  You’re interacting with people, not brands or companies.

Whoever is behind this profile just doesn’t get it.  There is an unwritten rule on LinkedIn that you are up front in how you present your self and that you don’t conduct direct marketing to fellow connections or group members.

That doesn’t mean you can’t market your self, your business, or your products.  It just means that in most cases you need to do it indirectly.

The number one way to market yourself on LinkedIn is by providing value.  Value might be a presentation or white paper, it might be a great answer to someone else’s question, it might be introducing two connections, or it might be sharing an interesting news article.

One place you can be a little more direct is with your status update.  I like to post mini success stories …”Sean just saved a client $xxx.xx on their health insurance”.  Or maybe “Sean is working on quotes for people that got a Health Insurance rate increase in May”.

The one thing you have an opportunity to do on LinkedIn is to communicate.  You may prefer to be more direct but you have to play by the house rules.

B2B doesn’t get it.  LinkedIn is about people not companies.  Sure you can look up a company but the most important piece on the company page is the people listed, and how you are connected to them.  If this person wants my business they are going to have to connect to me on a personal level.

Before someone will choose to work with you or buy your product there is a hierarchy of familiarity that must be satisfied:

1.  They have to know you – I know nothing about who B2B is

2.  They have to Like You – My current perception isn’t positive

3.  They have to Trust You – There’s not a person here to trust

This is about marketing plain and simple and that’s not what LinkedIn or social media is about.  It’s about giving to others and hopefully down the road you’ll gain.  If everyone is focusing on giving eventually you can’t help but to be on the receiving end.

I like that when I connect with someone I can see who they are and then choose whether or not I want to learn more by visiting their website or reviewing information they share through applications.  I would hate to see LinkedIn become more about companies than people.

What do you think?

Your goal on LinkedIn is to first “be found”, and second “be found credible”.  With that in mind, you want to do everything possible to enhance your profile.  This includes the content you place on your profile page and the ways that people find your profile.

Here are 9 ways to create an effective profile moving from the top of the profile page to the bottom.  These simple changes can make a difference in the effectiveness of your profile.

1. Replace your Title with a Tag Line

At the top of the profile page just under the member name most people include their title…project manager, insurance agent, president.  While I guess your title says something about you it likely doesn’t say anything about how you can help others.

My job is to help people find the best health insurance plan for them in terms of coverage and price.  It’s what I do that provides value.  My title is Insurance Broker.  It’s what I am but doesn’t necessarily catch anyone’s attention.   Each time I answer a questions, post a discussion question, or add a news article in a group a mini profile is displayed including usually my name and title/tag line.

Let’s take a look at using a title verses using a tag line.  Which is more likely to be noticed:

Sean Nelson
Insurance Broker

Or

Sean Nelson
Helping individuals and small businesses in Atlanta save up to 60% on their health insurance and employee benefits

Using a tag line is a great way to communicate a quick message to anyone viewing your profile.

2. Personalize Your Web URL’s

If you look at many profiles you will see that many people add a link to their website to their profile.  Most often you see this listed as My Company, My Website,  or My Blog.  You want to make sure if you list your websites that you personalize the name

To personalize your web URL’s click on the [ Edit ] link next to your websites.  On the drop down box for type of link there is an option for “Other”.  Choose this option and you will be able to add a customized name for each link.

3. Personalize your LinkedIn profile URL

The first thing to do is to update your profile URL.  The default URL consists of random numbers and letters.  Change this so that it incorporates your name.  There are many people with the same name so you may find that your name is not available.  Use your middle initial or some other variation. (more…)

In November I wrote a post about the ways you can use LinkedIn.  From that post I followed up with a post on 9 areas of using LinkedIn.  Part 10 was released last week.  Even though all 10 post are on the blog I still tend to get a couple of requests for links to the other articles.

Here are all 10 parts of the series.  LinkedIn has changed since this series started, but most of the articles should still be very relevant.  Enjoy.

LinkedIn Part 1: Can LinkedIn Work For You? - November 29th, 2008

LinkedIn Part 2: Enhancing Your Networking - December 14th, 2008

LinkedIn Part 3: Establishing Credibility - January 15th, 2009

LinkedIn Part 5: I Highly Recommend Recommendations - February 17th, 2009

LinkedIn Part 4: Connecting Your Offline and Online Brand - February 2nd, 2009

LinkedIn Part 6: A Stage to Engage Your Audience - March 3rd, 2009

LinkedIn Part 7: Research Potential Partners and Alliances - March 8th, 2009

LinkedIn Part 8: Find a New Job - March 10th, 2009

LinkedIn Part 9: Be found - April 20th, 2009

LinkedIn Part 10: Providing Value to Your Network - April 27th, 2009

I recently stumbled on to the following information in a summary and I had to laugh.  Here’s an excerpt from the Summary:

“I am an experienced insurance analyst, benefits specialist, and client advocate. My history in the medical field has provided me with a perspective that many insurance agents lack — I understand the challenges patients can face when they attempt to use their benefits without being educated about them. I am not just a salesman; I am an educator, an advocate, and an expert in my field.”

Fine so far.

Then I looked at the Experience:

Current Employer:  Independent Insurance Agent - December 2008 – Present ( 5 months)  Uh-Oh
Previous Job:  Insurance Specialist - July 2008 – December 2008 ( 6 months)   Hmmmm

That’s it.  Then the next listing is for Education with a college graduation date of 2008.

So let me get this straight.  This person claims to be an experienced insurance analyst and benefits specialists after 6 months.  And an expert in health insurance after 5 months.    

Everyone new to a job or an industry where sales is involved is trying to seem credible.  I get that, but the statements and facts don’t support each other.  When you’re building your profile on LinkedIn you want to make sure that 2 + 2 = 4.

If you don’t have the experience at least borrow it.  A better way to phrase the profile would have been to say “I’m part of an organization that has been helping clients with their health insurance and benefits related needs since 1984″.  It doesn’t make you an expert but it helps with the math.

My business is insurance whether it is helping folks in Georgia with their individual health insurance or small businesses with designing comprehensive benefits packages.  Maybe that’s why this stood out so much, and if the person had made similar claims managing databases I wouldn’t have noticed.  But somebody else would have.

Your LinkedIn profile is your brand and when you fudge the facts they can come back to bite you.  ”Fake it until you make it” may be a common refrain, but so is “it’s the first impression that counts”.

What do you think?  Am I being to harsh?

With that title I probably violated several things that I recommend doing (act professional, be careful of what you say and how you say it, etc.).  

I stumbled on a blog that was titled “The Stupid Things People Do on LinkedIn”.  The poster then proceeded to lash in to people that violated his perception of what LinkedIn should be and how people should behave on it.  My first thought was relax it’s not your site.  You’re just  another member.  The second was that did this person realize that their post was part of their online brand.

So there are two points to discuss.  The first is about your online brand.  The second is about unwritten protocols on LinkedIn that many people may not be aware of.

Your Online Brand
Remember this:  Everything you do on LinkedIn (and within the Social Web) either “adds to” or “subtracts from” your online brand.   This isn’t some college football board where you can denigrate and abuse fellow posters if you don’t like their view or comment.  There are no cute user names to hide behind.  On LinkedIn your comments are easily associated with the person behind them, YOU.

I don’t know the person behind the “stupid LinkedIn” post, but I already have an opinion of him.  Want to guess whether it’s positive or negative?  If this were a person that I was considering connecting to, partnering with, or engaging in their service, I would walk away.  There is enough negativity in the world without having to knowingly engage in it or with it.

This may not matter to him.  But it should to the average LI user.  When you ask or answer a question, post a discussion or news article in a group, add a blog to your profile, and how you respond to those who attempt to connect all contribute to your brand.  

Consider this.  You receive a connection invitation from John who works for an advertising agency.  You don’t know John so you mark the Invitation “I don’t know this user” (when you could have simply Archived It).  A couple of weeks later you connect to Bill who runs a graphics firm that you want to develop as a client.  You get an appointment and everything looks good.  Later John, who happens to engage Bill’s firm for his advertising agency notices that you are connected to Bill.  In their next conversation, John mentions that he saw that you and Bill were connected and mentions that you recently refused his connection invitation.  And rather than Archive it you marked it “I don’t know this user”.  Now his account has been restricted.  Bill thinks “that wasn’t a nice thing to do to John” and calls you to say they’ve decided to go in a different direction.

Is this an extreme story?  Yes.  Is it a possibility? Yes.  Your actions carry implications…some positive and some potentially negative.  Act in good faith and in a neighborly fashion and your brand will benefit.

The Unwritten Protocals
Over time acceptable practices evolve as do unacceptable ones.  As a member of LinkedIn you should adhere to the acceptable norms.  There aren’t to0 many and most are common sense, that often gets overlooked due to lack of time, imagination, or knowledge.  Here are some and I’m sure there are others that I have not thought of or encountered (violated) yet.

1.  Never send a canned invitation.  Always personalize the invitation.

2.  Don’t send out mass invitations.  It makes it difficult to personalize the email

3.  Don’t send out Mass Canned invitations…see #1 and #2

4.  When participating in answers or group discussions do not blatently sell.  How you phrase a sales pitch can be seen as spam or an interesting question or post.  Which of the two following statements is likely to be viewed as spam?

A.  Mortgage rates dropped to 4.5%, call me if you are looking to refinance; or
B.  With mortgage rates dropping to 4.5%, how do you determine if it’s a good idea to refinance your loan?

5.  Respond to all messages in your inbox.  If you don’t want to connect send a brief explanation as to why (see my post:  http://linkedintuition.com/blog/no-thanks-the-right-way ) .  Don’t feel comfortable providing a recommendation or passing on an introduction reply with why.

6.  Don’t ask for recommendations from people who don’t know you very well.  Recommendations should be appropriate and sincere.  It’s rude to ask when there’s no basis for one.

7.  Don’t expect everone to have the same approach that you do on LinkedIn.  Some are open networkers and some are closed networkers.  Each person decides what works best for them.  No one has a monopoly on the right way.

8.  If you do not want to connect, “Archive” the invitation.  Don’t select “I don’t know this user”.  Doing so gains you nothing and it can negatively impact another member.  Is it such an evil thing to want to connect to another that you do not know.  Isn’t that what networking is about.

Not everyone will agree with every point that I made.  Each person interacts with LinkedIn based on their expectations and beliefs and that’s a good thing.  What we should be able to agree on is that acting in a friendly and respectful manner will always do more good than harm.

What do you think?

Pop Quiz:  Who is more likely to be found on LinkedIn?

A.  Has 60 connections B.  Has 500 connections
A.  Never answers questions B.  Answers 3 questions each week
A.  Never gives recommendations B.  Provides recommendations
A.  Rarely updates Status B.  Updates status 3 times per week
A.  Has minimal info in profile B.  Detailed profile with photo
A.  Has not listed interests B.  List several non-work related interests
A.  No Applications B.  Has 4 applications on profile
A.  Belongs to 5 groups B.  Belongs to 50 groups

I could continue with the list but I think you get the point.

Think of your profile as an interactive billboard.  The billboard has been erected but you’re waiting for traffic to drive by it.  You can wait and hope that someone takes a wrong turn and sees you, or you can try to detour traffic past your billboard.

The majority of billboard owners simply wait for something to happen.  Everyone has told them how great LinkedIn is and it cost nothing to put up their billboard.  Periodically they link to other billboards hoping that something will happen.

When you first put up your billboard it’s on a lonely two way road out in the country.  Your goal should be to move it towards a busy traffic filled interstate.  That takes time and activity.  If you wait for it to happen it may never do so.  If you take control and determine that you will have traffic, it can be done with a little elbow grease.

Here are some ways you can drive traffic (really pull) to your billboard:

Design it Well:
Its words and pictures presented in a cohesive effort.  You need to make sure that when someone sees your billboard that it effectively tells your story.  Having a profile photo that supports what you do is important.  Doing keyword research on your industry and product or service, and then listing these wherever possible on your profile is a huge part of the equation.

Customizing your URL’s isn’t much but it matters.  The same goes for listing hobbies and interests.  You never know how or why someone will find your billboard, it just matters that many people do.

Try to update what you are doing at least three times a week.  I prefer business related updates, but I’ve seen some who post everyday like on Twitter.  PingFM is a good resource that will allow you to update micro-blogs at several sites.

Finally applications allow you to take your profile from two dimensional to three dimensional.

Your profile should be a work in progress.  Each time you update a piece of it your network is notified on their Home page that you have an updated profile.  This will drive traffic.

Answers:
Asking questions allows you to tap into the knowledge resources of other users.  Answering questions allows you to share knowledge.  Both are part of the credibility building process.  And both result at a minimum in a link to your profile.

Doing both will drive traffic to your billboard.  It’s not necessarily targeted traffic, but once again you never know where the next opportunity will come from.  Whenever I see an answer that captures my attention I always view the profile of the person providing the answer.  Sometimes that’s all, but in some cases it’s led to new connections or opportunities.

Try to answer 5 questions a week and commit to asking one question per week.  The caveat is that you have to provide value when answering a question and generate interest when asking a question.

Recommendations:
Recommendations given are a way to provide value to someone who has helped you or someone that you think highly of.  Recommendations received are a way for your network to provide value to you.  In both cases a link is created back to the giver and the receiver’s profile.  It’s another great way to be found.

Recommendations from clients go a step further.  It gets you a listing in the LinkedIn Service Providers directory.  This is probably one of the least utilized features of LinkedIn and that’s a shame.  Service Providers used to be one of the main LinkedIn sections but when the Companies section was launched it was moved within the new section.  The only reference you will see is a text link on the Companies home page.

Often I will be asked to help someone with their insurance in another state that I’m not licensed in.  I always search through the Service Providers directory to find a resource to help the person.

You should strive to have at least 10 recommendations and provide at least 15.  Once you hit those numbers keep it going.

Groups:
On a webinar last week one of the moderators mentioned that they thought the real value to be found on LinkedIn was within groups and not your direct network.  That’s a bold statement, but I think they may be on to something.

Within your personal network reaching out to 2nd and 3rd degree connections is cumbersome, unless you have a paying account and have access to InMail.  With groups the barriers to communicating with anyone are removed.

I have about 490 direct connections and close to 4.5 million total people in my network.  I can only easily contact those 1st degree connections.  Within my groups there are close to 250,000 members.  I can reach out and contact any at any time.

When I update my profile my 490 connections are notified of my action.  But with groups, when I participate in a discussion question or post a news article I can potentially reach 250,000 people.

If I choose my groups wisely then I have the ability to market to a specific target.  You can also create a group to develop a target group.  I do a lot of business in North Fulton County in Georgia.  About a year ago I started the North Fulton Business Group and the group has grown to close to 300 people.  With my group I have the ability to communicate with business professionals in a defined area.  That’s powerful.

Disclaimer: Starting a group is easy.  Getting member to join isn’t.  Use your connections and other groups to find your first 100 members.  After that it will start to grow on its own.  The larger your group grows the easier it will be to add new members.

You can be a member of up to 50 groups and you should focus on finding groups that are filled with your target customers or alliance partners.

Wrap Up
There has been an explosion in the number of people talking about social networking, but often the point is missed that what LinkedIn really provides is social marketing.  By actively participating in all of the features of LinkedIn you will help drive traffic to your billboard.  Visitors can choose to stop and read your billboard, and then can initiate contact, through connecting or engaging in your product or service.

In the movie Field of Dreams the unseen voice is heard to say “If you build it, they will come”.  On LinkedIn that’s not enough.  Listen close and you’ll hear “If you’re active, they will come.”

Most of us joined LinkedIn because we hoped that it would somehow impact our bottom line.  That at some point down the road we would be rewarded with some economic return.  I’ve been fortunate in that it has generated business for me.  Just as important, it has helped me provide value to those that I have connected to.

Straight line benefits include developing new partners or alliances and developing new client’s.  Crooked line benefits include introducing connections, writing recommendations, and simply helping others.

Two weeks ago I received a request from Tom Mickell to join my North Fulton Business Group on LinkedIn.  This is a group for people that live, work or network in North Fulton County, Georgia.  I am pretty strict about only letting local folks in.  Tom lives in Detroit, so I promptly sent him a thanks but no-thanks email, but added if he felt there was a compelling reason he should be able to join the group to let me know.

Tom replied that his company was planing to open an office in Alpharetta and he was looking to hire someone in the area.  He had just joined LinkedIn and found the group.  I’m open to anyone hiring in Alpharetta so I approved his membership, made some suggestions on improving his profile and connecting locally, and sent him a copy of my LinkedIn eBook.  I also let him know that if he was going to be in town that the North Fulton Business Expo was coming up.  Plus I let him know about the upcoming chamber meetings.

Thom made the trip down and attended the Expo and a chamber alliance meeting.  While in town looking to hire a sales person he was introduced to Ross Coleman, a fellow chamber member and a great guy.  Ross, as he likes to say, is in transition looking for the next opportunity.  Ross and Tom hooked up and at a minimum Ross was able to sit down with Thom and talk about the opportunity.

When Tom and I finally met in person and I learned he talked to Ross, I was able to add my endorsement of Ross as a person and valuable asset to any organization.  I don’t know if Ross will end up working for Tom’s company.  I do know that a simple offer to help a new LinkedIn member, may in the end help an old friend.

We all want to personally benefit from LinkedIn, but often it’s the crooked line benefits to others in my network that make it a good day.  Find ways to help your network and you will prosper.

How about you, have you noticed any crooked line benefits to your network?