2011 was quite a year for LinkedIn. In March, they surpassed 100 million members and are now growing at a rate of one million users each and every week. In May, they were the first social media site to go public, starting off at /share and going as high as 2 before settling in around . As of this writing, shares are trading in the 70's. Congrats to Reid Hoffman, Jeff Weiner, and the rest of the LinkedIn team for one whale of a year.
You may be saying, Big deal. Good for them, but what does that have to do with me? I am just one of 135+ million members. Well, it is a big deal because both of these bits of information should keep them in the game longer and allow them to continue to grow and improve the platform. The longevity of LinkedIn is critical to all of us who are investing our time and effort and growing our networks on the site.
With those thoughts in mind, I decided I would be like the thousands of experts in the world who put together a year-end "best of" list for their area of expertise. Not only am I going to share the best new LinkedIn features of 2011, but in typical Wayne fashion I will also give you my thoughts on how you can best use them to grow your business along.
So, ladies and gentlemen (drum roll, please), here are the\ best new features released by LinkedIn for 2011.
Company Status Updates
This feature is just one of many great enhancements to the functionality of the company page (previously called the company profile). If you haven't begun formulating a strategy for using this feature, you are missing the boat - what could be a really big boat.
It is similar to the individual Status Updates, which I consider to be the number one way to stay in front of your connections with great information. However, instead of communicating with your connections, the company Status Update enables companies to communicate with followers.
Strategy Tip:
Add a company page, decide who is going to be your voice for your company Status Updates, encourage followers, and share your best stuff with those followers. If you don't think people who follow you for the sake of listening to your knowledge and expertise will ultimately consider you and your company in their buying decision as well as recommend you to their friends, you just don't get how business in the new online world works. They do and they will.
Alumni
This feature is a major enhancement to what used to be called Classmates, and it is very popular because people enjoy doing business with and want to help people who attended the same school they attended.
With the Alumni feature, you can now more easily search by all schools you have attended and years attended. However, searching is not limited to the years you attended the school. You can discover where alumni work, what they do, where they live, and other miscellaneous profile information.
Strategy Tip:
List all schools you have attended on your profile, including high school and any industry specialty schools, access the Alumni feature, and then get out your old college sweatshirt and hat and start networking.
Skills
This feature was added to make it easier to find individuals who have specific skills. LinkedIn added a Skills page to the overall site and now allows you to add a Skills section to your profile, where you can list up to 50 specific skills you possess.
I haven't found the Skills page itself to be particularly helpful as of yet. However, including Skills in your profile will help you in the LinkedIn search rankings for the keywords you include and will highlight those skills on your profile. Both of these are great reasons to do this.
Strategy Tip:
Add the Skills section to your profile, and include words that describe the skills you have amassed over the years as well as the words that are most critical to you on a going-forward basis. These words are not just the general functions you do, like finance, but specific details, such as budgeting, cash flow analysis, tax preparation, or even specific software you know how to use. Keep in mind you are trying to come up with the words someone will use when searching the LinkedIn database to find a person just like you.
In addition, check out the Skills section on LinkedIn and do a couple skills searches to see if you can gather any information that might lead you to other skills you may want to consider including.
Additional Student Profile Sections
LinkedIn really came through for those of you younger people who were screaming for a way to differentiate yourselves when you are just getting out of college. In the past you may have thought the standard profile sections seemed perfect for your parents but not for you.
You can now add the following optional sections to your profile: Projects, Honors & Awards, Organizations, Test Scores, and Courses. These sections make it much easier to differentiate yourself from your competition by telling your unique story.
Strategy Tip:
Add all the special sections to your profile that you think will help break you apart from the rest of the pack. Include not only the facts of the situation, but add an interesting personal story or specific example that ties into the entry and demonstrates strong job-related skills if possible.
For example, if your Courses section includes a study abroad experience, share a story about the leadership role you took on the trip and how you succeeded in your role. This will help the reader understand what special skills you will bring to the workplace.
Volunteer Experience & Causes
In addition to our business story, most of us want to share with the world what matters most to us on a personal level. This new LinkedIn section not only helps you tell your story, but it helps your favorite organizations gain additional exposure.
In addition to listing the general causes you support (financial literacy, education, etc.), you can include a detailed explanation of each organization's mission and your personal involvement with them. Thanks, LinkedIn, for helping us help others.
Strategy Tip:
Significant volunteer efforts show the reader of your profile that you care about things outside of business and you work hard even when you are not at your workplace. Most people value these personal traits, and sharing this information in your profile may set you apart from your competitors and result in increased business and referrals.
Before meeting with someone for the first time, check out this section of their profile. It may give you some good conversation starters to get the meeting rolling. If a businessperson has taken the time to include this information, they are probably dying to have you inquire about the organization and their involvement. This is a home run.
When doing my research for this article, I learned the next two features were actually announced in late 2010. However, I am including them in this list because they are extremely powerful, and I would not want you to miss them.
Company Products & Services
Who wants to have a free online display of your products and services, accessible by millions of people, with real people (including photos of their smiling faces) recommending your stuff, video supporting the details, sharing capabilities, multiple variations of the landing page based on your audience's profile, a full set of website analytics, and a link right to the place where they can buy your stuff?
Did I mention this is all free?
Well, welcome to the new and improved world of the LinkedIn company pages, including a Products & Services tab. This section is still in its infancy and we are all learning as we go here, but don't let that stop you from getting started. What are you waiting for?
Strategy Tip:
Add a company page, add some products and services, get recommendations, and learn like the rest of us. Oh, yeah, and don't forget to encourage followers. After all, they have given you permission to share with them. Gaining followers on LinkedIn is now a very important strategy for your company. Get busy, and start encouraging people to follow your company.
Share
When the clickable word "Share" popped up all over the LinkedIn website late last year, I and many others didn't really realize we were just handed a very efficient way to "share" our expertise even when we didn't start the conversation or write the content.
Many of us are working hard to establish ourselves as thought leaders in our industry and with the customers we serve. This has gotten so much easier with all these online tools available to us. Even the smallest businesses can join the game.
Simply put, the Share function on LinkedIn allows you to share content, discussions, products and services (and who knows what else will be added in the future) with all the constituencies that matter to you. This includes not only your first-level LinkedIn connections but your Twitter followers, any of your LinkedIn groups, and even people who are not on LinkedIn.
Strategy Tip:
Get used to this. Sharing is here to stay, and functions like this on LinkedIn and other social media sites are the way our audiences (who have given us permission to do this) will look forward to hearing from us. That is not to say it will replace traditional advertising, but who knows.
So, what is the tip? See what others are reading, looking at, referring to, and talking about. If it applies to some of your audience, get sharing. They will appreciate your doing so.
Also, if you and your company have developed, written or published any great information, be sure to post that in your individual and/or company updates. You just don't know how many of your connections and followers will then share it with their network, and on and on it goes. This is how you spell viral, isn't it?
LinkedIn Hits a Home Run With Great New Features in 2011
Wayne Breitbarth was once a skeptic and now is an outspoken proponent of LinkedIn, "LinkedIn Guru" Wayne Breitbarth is passionate about helping business professionals--from entry level to CEO--learn how to combine their previous experience and relationships with this innovative tool in order to more successfully brand and market themselves and their businesses.
Wayne's diverse professional background uniquely positions him to assist not only individuals but corporate entities as well. With thirty years' experience in the areas of operations, finance, management, consulting, and business ownership, he is able to "put it all together" for his corporate and individual clients.
In addition to his consulting work, Wayne is a dynamic speaker. His practical yet entertaining presentations have inspired audiences both locally, at many of Milwaukee's most prominent companies and organizations, and nationally, at conventions, industry association events, and corporate training sessions.
You can download a free chapter from his book "The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success" Kick-start your Business, Brand and Job Search" along with other free LinkedIn resources and weekly tips at: http://www.powerformula.net.
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