5 Reasons Why you Must be on LinkedIn

If you don’t already have a LinkedIn profile and are responsible for generating revenues, get one now! It’s free and very easy.  I believe it is a necessity for any business professional.

1. It legitimizes you. People now often go to LinkedIn to see your public profile while they are on the phone with you to see learn quickly if you are “real”, that you are truly a player in the industry, and to see if you have mutual friends that they can later check for a reference. It is similar to having your resume online.

2. It legitimizes your business. You can set up a corporate profile in Linked In too. This way they can look up and confirm that your organization is real (and you can position your organization appropriately for your contact base!

3. It allows you to research a prospect. You can check out a person’s public profile and see if you have anything in common to personalize the call. Maybe you have mutual friends or contacts. Maybe you both went to the same college or have similar interests.

4. Connections, connections, connections. They used to say “location, location, location”. Now, it’s invaluable to utilize your connections to grow your business. You can connect with business associates, acquaintances and use it to network with prospect or new organizations through people you know. Recently a contact of mine wanted to get into a particular department in Bank of America. I happened to go to college with a key person in that department in the Boston location. I was more than happy to make the connection so they could help each other grow their business. A win-win for everyone.

5. It’s a “forward Address book”. How many times have you thought of someone that you lost touch with years ago and wanted to reach them to say hello or share a business idea with them? If they were a LinkedIn contact of yours, you’d simply click on their profile and could quickly send them an email to their current address and you’d be back in touch. It’s that simple.

I’d recommend you COMPLETE your LinkedIn profile. You should make sure you include:

1. Several of your past jobs (the farther you go back the more people from your past will find you),

2. Your education. Past classmates are likely to reconnect and support fellow alum.

3. Your website (not only does this help you get more traffic to your site, it further legitimizes your company

4. Your photo. People are more naturally inclined to do business, or network, with someone who seems human. Also, if you do decide to meet a new contact for coffee, you will already know who you are looking for!

5. Upload your email contacts to set up your first contact list. It is a simple step that can help you get the ball rolling. Note- At first, only link with people you honestly know so you don’t spam prospects. Later, as you get established on LinkedIn, you can network with people in groups etc by sending relevant and personalized invitations to connect.

6. Join groups. Groups are a great way to get to know people with similar background, industries, and geographic locations. I’ve had some great networking experiences reaching out to groups of college alumni and parents of my kids schools.

7. I’d also put a link to your LinkedIn profile into your signature line on all your email accounts. People are likely to click it and to ask you to connect with them, further expanding your network.

~ by Shannon Group on April 21, 2009.