 This weekend I’ve been having fun trying LinkedIn’s new group discussion functionality, and it’s really promising and seems to work well, significantly increasing the value of LinkedIn Groups.
In Tweeple, LinkedIn’s Twitter group, someone asked a great question about whether to have multiple accounts on Twitter, but the questions applies equally to any Web 2.0 venue, like LinkedIn. This has also come up in the Executive’s Guide to LinkedIn seminars, whether to risk putting your side real estate business in your LinkedIn Profile, for example. Here are some quick reflections on managing many sides of yourself online.
[…]
Executives of a certain, er, level of experience face an apparent dilemma when they consider using LinkedIn and other Web 2.0 tools: they already have well-developed networks and non-Web 2.0 processes for managing them. Why should they use LinkedIn or other Web 2.0 tools? Aren’t connections best maintained by high value face-to-face lunches, meetings or phone calls?
The answer is, increasingly, “Yes and no.” I encourage you to consider these tools to supplement your current communications with your network. You will maintain a stronger network if you can communicate specific, relevant information about what you are doing, and these tools can help. Here we will delve into some key Web 2.0 tools’ unique value for enhancing the value of networks by keeping in touch better.
[…]
 Yesterday I presented LinkedIn as an executive job search tool to a packed house at St. Chrysostom’s Employment Council (the the Career Transitions Network). It was interesting to focus LinkedIn on a new area of human endeavor, getting a new job.
We had a lively discussion, which I’ll recap briefly before providing links to additional information pertinent to our discussion.
[…]
Mashup of Social Networks and CRM Offers Glimpse of the Future: “Let Prospects Self-Report”
But Facebook Data Tickles Privacy Concerns—Will LinkedIn Seize the Day?
As a presenter at the Social Networking Conference, I was able to catch some excellent presentations, and one of the most eye-opening was Clara Shih’s “Enterprise Mashups: How Facebook Is Changing Sales and Marketing.” In a word, Clara and Facebook’s Todd Perry mashed up Facebook and Salesforce.com via AppExchange so that a prospect’s profile in Salesforce now includes select Facebook profile information in a separate pane (see illustration, right), providing a much richer “360° view” of the person to Salesforce users. The result is elegant, powerful and pregnant with social and business issues that I’ll explore briefly here.
[…]
Have you found yourself looking at your LinkedIn network and recognizing too few people? Here’s how to sort it out
Many executives have allowed their LinkedIn networks to grow by reactively accepting invitations from former colleagues, club members, people they met networking, etc. One day, when something compels them to look at “their” networks, they are dismayed to see that it’s not a pretty picture. They don’t recognize some of the names. Others aren’t really what they think of as “trusted.” They might get requests from their connections to connect them with someone else in their network whom they barely know. They don’t know what to do, and they wonder whether they should just throw it all away and start over. This is a very predictable and normal circumstance, and here I offer a step-by-step guide to reclaiming your network.
[…]
People who invest considerable time into building large LinkedIn networks regularly ask how they can send group communications to their networks. This is a regular topic in LinkedIn Answers and on external blogs and message boards. Here we will discuss the motivation behind the impulse to send group emails, namely the desire to use the “digital multiplier,” and solutions that do *not* involve spamming.
[…]
As you grow your linkedIn network, you will notice that LinkedIn “Network Updates” tend to grow geometrically. Moreover, there are many moving parts, so how do you manage this information to your satisfaction? Here I’ll outline a few strategies for channelling the information, so you receive it and keep it to maximize your effectiveness.
[…]
Have you ever come across LinkedIn profiles of people that have something fascinating or potentially useful in the future? The problem is, you don’t know the person enough to send him/her an invitation to connect, and you don’t want to interrupt your workflow to send him/her a message. LinkedIn doesn’t have a built-in function to “save” or “flag” profiles for future reference.
Ah, but there’s a wonderful hack I’ve used for months that’s very easy, effective and free. My thanks to Jack Jackson, who posted this question on LinkedIn Answers today, making me realize that my workaround could be helpful to many other people. Read on for the step-by-step rundown.
[…]
When I talk to executives about “Groups” in LinkedIn, many react with either suspicion or a “why do I care” look. But, like so many elements of LinkedIn and other social networks, Groups have subtleties that, once you appreciate them, enable you to mitigate risk while connecting with more people. LinkedIn Groups are a powerful way that LinkedIn lets you “have your cake and eat it, too.” Here I will attempt to demystify the main elements and suggest ways that you could use Groups better.
[…]
LinkedIn Recommendations are a way for you to segment your connections into an even smaller and more specific group. A Recommendation is a far stronger tie than a connection. You can also think of them as a way to reward your strongest connections. Carefully consider the people for whom you write Recommendations.
Here I will outline how you can combine the art and science of writing Recommendations to create credible, memorable ones. Just as important, when you ask someone to write a Recommendation for you, send them here first.. they will probably be grateful, and you will get a more lucid Recommendation.
[…]
|
|
