USANA Social Media Tip #24: The Power of LinkedIn

LinkedIn might not be next in line to have a movie made about it (Facebook) and it likely won’t become an online megaphone for celebrities (Twitter), but it is still one of the more powerful and respected social sites today.

I’m the first to admit: When USANA devised its social media strategy nearly three years ago, we chose to focus on Facebook and Twitter (and blogging, of course). But we always knew LinkedIn offered value in ways the other sites didn’t.

For today’s USANA Social Media Tip, I’ll talk about a few of the attributes that distinguish LinkedIn (90 million members strong) from the others and perhaps it will encourage you to set up your own profile. By the way, please feel free to connect with USANA Health Sciences.

Get to Know LinkedIn
Personally, I’ve used LinkedIn for quite some time. I consider it akin to an online résumé, a place to list your employers, education, and other facts that you would include on a traditional résumé. Sure, networking opportunities appear to be inherent, especially if you’re job hunting. But I didn’t know exactly how prevalent the networking possibilities were until I did a little research and talked to Pete Zdanis, a USANA Associate and proficient LinkedIn user with about 3,500 connections.

“It’s more of a professional or career oriented type of forum,” he explains. “It’s policed very well, so there’s not a lot of spam, and it’s one more way to get your name out there, establish your branding and introduce people to who you are and what you do, which would include USANA.”

In doing a little research and after talking with Pete, two aspects of LinkedIn struck me as especially valuable for our business. First, LinkedIn Groups, in which like-minded people join and are able to talk about specific topics. And second, Recommendations, a feature in which your connections are able to write nice things about you personally or to commend you for work you’ve done.

LinkedIn Groups
These forums provide the perfect opportunity to connect with people who have common interests, such as health or nutrition. Take part in conversations and make yourself known as an authority on certain topics.

To find groups that might interest you, check out the LinkedIn Groups Directory. I belong to alumni groups, as well as a direct selling group and a couple of social media-specific groups. Each day I’m notified of new comments in the groups and I’m able to read what others are saying about topics that interest me or I’m free to respond with pertinent information that members of the group might find valuable.

Recommendations
I think of recommendations as similar to references on a traditional résumé. But instead of the prospective employer or client contacting each of the references you list, LinkedIn provides a space for them to read glowing words of praise right there on your profile. It’s an excellent way to instantly bolster credibility and build a sense of trust among prospective customers (and others within your industry).

To request a recommendation, visit the profile tab and click on recommendations. From there you can choose what you want to be recommended for, select who to ask, write a message, and send the request. You’re able to write a recommendation for someone from there as well. Big Note: Obviously, you’ll want to take care and be judicious about who you ask for a recommendation. Requesting a recommendation from someone you just met isn’t the best idea, nor is asking someone who isn’t familiar enough with your work to provide an honest evaluation.

Get Connected
Here are a few tips Pete offered for getting the most out of your LinkedIn experience:

• Include an appropriate photo. A head shot of you, not of your pets, your children, or an inanimate object. 80 x 80 pixels is best.
• Provide as much information as possible, including education, former employers, additional interests, contact information, and even your current city and state. “It’s amazing what will trigger a prospect to contact someone.” Obviously, continue to guard your privacy as you would on other social sites.
• In discussions, be personable and show respect. “Everyone likes recognition and respect. The more you show you’ll get in return many times over.”
• Acknowledge new connections with a personal message. And be sure to include proper contact information — including website — for your new connection to learn more about what you do.

Unlike Facebook, where the definition of “friend” is a bit loose, I’ve found connections on LinkedIn are most effective when you actually know the person (or at least are members of similar interest groups). In fact, such connections (i.e. legitimate ones) are encouraged by LinkedIn. In other words, take care with whom you connect to avoid building a network of irrelevant connections.

But That’s Not All…
LinkedIn contains many more valuable features. For even more tips, here is a superb list of 26 Tips to Enhance Your Experience on LinkedIn, written by Debbie Hemley for SocialMediaExaminer.com.

How About You?
Do you have experience with LinkedIn? If so, what have you found to be its most valuable features? Please share your thoughts in the comments.

How are you using social media? If there are topics you’d like discussed in these Social Media Tip posts, feel free to send them our way and we’ll do our best to incorporate them into future posts. Please visit our archive of social media tips.