If I had a penny for every time someone told me “I’m on LinkedIn but I don’t really know how to use it to use it”, I would be a rich man. There are literally millions of people with many more millions of connections yet few people have actually been able to use it to generate an economic gain.
So for the record, being a member of LinkedIn can make you money! That’s an easy statement to make. I can even point to client’s that I have that are the result of being on LinkedIn. What’s not so easy is to document a clear way that anyone or everyone can use LinkedIn to make money.
You have to first understand that LinkedIn is nothing more than a tool, much like a chamber of commerce is simply a tool to help you network. For some people membership in a chamber is economically beneficial. For other it’s a waste of time and money.
It’s how you use the tool that determines the winners and losers.
About a year ago I decided to get serious about trying to make LinkedIn work for me. I’ve studied it, blogged about it, and even written a book about it. I’m still trying to figure it out. I’m not sure that I can put the final piece of the puzzle in place for you, but I can help you get started.
Over a series of posts I will try to lay out a foundation for using LinkedIn to generate business. This is simply a platform in which you will need to adapt to your business and your self to find success. LinkedIn is personal in that what works for one person may not work for another.
I don’t have all of the answers (if I did it would cost you $100 to read this), but we can at least start with what are some potential uses of LinkedIn:
- Enhance and Expand your current networking
- You can use it to establish credibility
- It can connect your online brand and offline brand
- You can catalog your testimonials
- It gives your audience (prospects, clients, and peers) a place to interact with you.
- Research potential partners or clients
- Connect into sales or partnership opportunities
- Find a new job or new employee
- Be found
- Share knowledge and expertise
- Introduce connections
- Recommend worthy individuals
I’m sure there are many other ways to use LinkedIn and you can add them by comment or email them to me and I will add them to the list. In future articles we’ll dig a little deeper. Until
Sean Nelson is the author of the Linked Intuition blog and helps business professionals, the Self-Employed and small businesses understand how to effectively use LinkedIn to expand their networking and grow their business. www.LinkedIntuition.com
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