1)    Fully develop your profile. Include your work history, industry, photo, references, and even the books you’re reading. All of this validates who you are when prospects view your profile on Linkedin. Also, when you’re going through your settings, remember to make your profile available for the public viewing, so prospects who aren’t on Linkedin can see your Linkedin profile when they search your name on google.
2)    Use Linkedin’s email sync feature to invite your contacts to connect with you. The more 1st degree connections you have on Linkedin, the stronger your overall network becomes. Also, more connections means more social validation and trust.
3)    Join industry relevant groups.  Doing this not only gives you the ability to invite group members to be connections, but also the opportunity to engage the group. Whenever you respond to others’ posts or post your own discussion, others take notice. Many will view your profile and if they see you can be of use to their company, they’ll send you an invite to connect. You can also peruse group member profiles and connect there too.
4)    Update your profile status regularly. Also integrate your blog, Twitter, etc. with your Linkedin account. Everytime you post to your status, your connections can see this on their own Linkedin homepage, so the more you post, the more visible you will be.
5)    Scroll through your own Linkedin home page and make comments on your connection’s updates. Strive to make friends and deepen relationships on Linkedin. This ultimately leads to great partnerships, sales, etc.
Engaging with others is how you will truly realize business from social media, whether it be Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, or any other platform. Remember, relationships take time: Visit your Linkedin page at least several times a week and set goals for each visit. Perhaps you want to increase your connections, join new groups, weed out stale groups or connections, or engage more with connections you already have. Also, don’t forget to give yourself time limits to complete your goals, otherwise all of your time can be consumed on Linkedin.
Contact Jonathan Poston at [email protected] with any questions.
100% right