LaSalle Network

You, Inc.

Think of yourself as a small business. Social networks, like LinkedIn, offer a perfect chance to market your small business, you, to millions of professionals world-wide with the click of a button. Currently, LinkedIn has over 40 million members in over 200 countries around the world, including executives and professionals from all Fortune 500 companies, with a new member joining every second. Thus, in order to capitalize on this extensive group of professionals, the first step is to create an impressive LinkedIn profile. Within your profile, be sure to utilize all sections, such as Summary, Specialties, Groups, and Applications to not only make your profile more complete, but establish yourself as someone worth hiring. Remember, your profile is often the first snapshot of your experience a hiring manager has, and similar to a resume, the dirt is in the details. Be sure all aspects of your profile are not only accurate and highlight your experience, but are grammatically correct and easy to understand. Many prospective connections are compelled to link in based on your profile content, and a well-crafted profile is the first step to creating beneficial professionals relationships through this specific social media outlet. So, you’ve developed an impressive profile and begun to obtain a diverse and broad contact base; don’t stop there! Think of your network as your very own sales and marketing department and let your connections work for you.

Hunt and Gather

When navigated effectively, LinkedIn is like having a rolodex full of contacts from diverse backgrounds, company sizes and industries right at your fingertips. Utilize LinkedIn to research different industries, market trends and positions in which you’re interested. Users can search for “People”, “Jobs”, “Answers” and “Companies” via the top tool bar on the home page. Use these tabs to uncover as much information as possible about the industries, companies and positions in which you’re interested. While searching, be sure to use the Modify Your Search or Advanced Search option to create a targeted search more likely to garner your desired results. Another helpful tool is LinkedIn’s “Ask a Question” feature, under the Answers tab, through which you can pose questions to your online community and spark dialogue amongst professionals. When using this tool, be sure to not only ask, but answer questions posted by other users; doing so will position you as an expert on certain topics and is likely to earn you more online clout, as well as more contacts. By using LinkedIn as a research tool to hunt and gather useful job search information, you will gain knowlege that will not only develop your professional expertise, but arm you with information helpful when interviewing with prospective employers.

I Scratch Your Back…

Social networking is a two-way street. In order for social networking sites, such as LinkedIn, to be most effective, information, ideas and opportunities must be exchanged constantly. When utilizing social media, it’s important to strike a balance between passing along helpful information to your network and taking it from them. Remember to scratch the backs of your connections, by recommending them, passing along job opportunities, presentations, and market research, and in return, they will scratch yours. In the social media world, the more you give, the more you are likely to receive. This symbiotic relationship will not only develop your professional expertise, but grow the career of your connections along with your own. Be a social media “giver”, not a “taker”,  and you will quickly find yourself with an extensive list of contacts to help you move one step closer to achieving your career goals.

Diversify Your Options

When connecting with professionals on LinkedIn, be sure to form relationships with individuals in multiple industries and positions. It’s important to cultivate a diverse network of professionals; you never know when and how these connections might lead to your next career opportunity. However, to make the process more manageable, limit your targeted industries and positions to a select few, at first. Once you have successfully made contact with a diverse group of professionals within those select industries and positions, move onto another industry and position that relates to your career goals.  In today’s job market, it’s all about who you know, and diversifying your network on LinkedIn will bring you one step closer to connecting with your next employer. jj