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20.07.2018 Career & Money

How To Make The Best Out Of LinkedIn

By Isaac Sesi
Phot credit- Bamf mediaPhot credit- Bamf media
20.07.2018 LISTEN

1. Update your LinkedIn profile:
As obvious as this sounds, it will surprise you the number of people with crappy, half-baked LinkedIn profiles.

If you want people to take you seriously on LinkedIn, your profile needs to be great. Which means you have to put in the time and effort to update your LinkedIn profile. Here’s a checklist of things you should definitely do: https://sesi.tech/2uK6ubB

When I decided to get serious about LinkedIn, I updated all my job experiences and listed my achievements in those roles. I removed experiences which didn’t tie in with my overall goal.

See your LinkedIn profile as your online CV. And with LinkedIn, one good thing is that you are not limited to a few pages. You can be as detailed as you want. Instead of writing about your responsibilities, highlight your achievements instead. People recognize achievements and will build a positive image of you when they read them.

2. Build Leverage by offering value.
People start noticing you more when you offer value. One of the best ways to offer value is to share your unique perspective on areas you are great at through post updates and LinkedIn articles.

If you have a blog like me, that’s an added advantage. It makes it easy for you to create a personal brand for yourself. If you don’t have a blog, share links from other sites related to things are passionate about.

When you start posting, no one will notice you at first. But the key thing is to be consistent and not stop.

One thing I always tell people is to become an expert in doing something because that expertise gives them leverage that they can exchange for value.

If people see that you have something which benefits them, they are more willing to connect with you. With time, you begin to attract high profile people and grow your network. When I started posting regularly about entrepreneurship, I was able to grow my followers by over 2500 within 3 months without sending a single LinkedIn request. I also had a lot of very high profile people reaching out to me to partner in one way or another because I shared my expertise in a way which was practical and original.

3. Reach out to people
The best way to get help from people on LinkedIn is to reach out directly to them. Remember that it is better to build relationships rather than just asking for help. Find a common interest with which you can start a conversation.

And this is how one of the entrepreneurs we interviewed for The African Entrepreneur Podcast met the people who eventually became his investors and members of his company’s board.

He reached out to them directly on LinkedIn and consciously built a relationship with them. Before you reach out to someone, make sure to go through their LinkedIn profile and acquaint yourself with what they do. It’s better to actually follow them for a while before reaching out.

The kind of people I find most annoying on LinkedIn are those who connect with me on LinkedIn and then proceed to ask “So what do you do?” Dude! you are on my LinkedIn profile for Christ sake! Stop asking dumb questions!!

When you reach out to people, be polite and straight to the point. Don’t send a “Hello, good morning, how are you doing?” and end there waiting for a response.

4. Get Recommendations
LinkedIn recommendations are a good form of social proof. They stand as public proof of your professional reputation because they’re tied back to the profiles of those who give them.

LinkedIn recommendations also highlight your key strengths and skills. If you are looking for a job, it can help boost your chances of finding one because recruiters now check out your LinkedIn profile as part of their considerations in giving you the job.

The only way to get recommendations is to ask for them. If you’ve ever worked with anyone you think can speak highly of you, it’s a good idea to ask them for a recommendation.

In conclusion, if you are an entrepreneur or a professional in any field, you should be on LinkedIn and make good use of it because it is a gold mine which when mined properly, can catapult you to new heights.

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