Querying your Invites on LinkedIn

I will only link with people I have met.

As I meet so many people I don’t always remember where and when I have met them so I send this;

“Thank you for inviting me to link in to your network.

Please forgive me and my memory; remind me where we have met.

You may say "Will Kintish' are you losing it?" Well maybe I am but again I ask for forgiveness as in my role I meet literally thousands of people annually!

I am being cautious as I want to be able to help, recommend and introduce all my level 1 contacts to anyone when asked. I know you will appreciate this would be difficult if we haven't actually met.

I do hope you understand the reason for my question.

Best Wishes

Will”

Refusing Invitations on LinkedIn

When I get an impersonal invitation from someone I know I have never met I either ignore it or flag it as spam to the people at HQ LinkedIn. However when I get a personal email from someone I know I have never met I send this;

“Thank you for your kind invitation to your network. Online or offline, networking is simply building relationships -the 3 key steps being 1. Know, 2. Like, 3. Trust. As we have not yet met I am afraid I am unable to accept your invitation and this is a rule I follow without exception.

When you become part of my network I want to be able to help, recommend and introduce all my level 1 contacts to anyone when asked. I know you will appreciate this would be difficult if we haven't actually met. I do hope you will understand my thinking here. You may think I am silly but this is an inflexible principle I have decided to adopt when using LinkedIn

Kintish Business Networking Skills Group

Why not consider joining this group as we plan to send you lots of free information including big discounts on training courses and products.

We plan to be running free web seminars and teleclasses on LinkedIn and 'ordinary' networking keep a look out for details.

www.linkedintraining.co.uk

Please check out our exciting new site.

I am collecting LinkedIn success tales for this website to encourage others to join. Please do tell me when you have some and I will link your profile and website to the story on this new site.

Wishing you every success

Best Wishes”

Sins of LinkedIn - Number 1 - Selling Directly

At the end of this series - the Number One Sin of linkedIn is to sell directly

No one is looking to be sold to directly on LinkedIn, they are hoping to build new relationships. That doesn’t mean there are no opportunities to sell.

It just means you’ll have more success communicating your messages indirectly. The one exception is with your status. It will be interesting to see if this changes with the new Twitter integration.

Take advantage of the opportunities to communicate your message indirectly. One way to do this is to change your title to a tagline. Your title tells people who you are, the tag line tells them how you can help them. Plus your tag line is visible in a mini profile when you answer questions, post discussions, or add news articles.

Starting conversation using the discussion boards is a great way to interact with fellow group members. Adding news articles allows you to share value through the content. Over time people will get to know you. If they like your content they’ll begin to like you and check out your profile.

Share tips and articles consistently over time and people will begin to develop trust.

Sins of LinkedIn - Number 2 - Ignoring Answers

One of the keys in social media/networking is to seek out opportunities to share or provide value to others. LinkedIn Answers is the perfect vehicle to do so. Each day thousands of new questions are asked. You need to find the questions that surround your industry or specialty and share your knowledge.

There are several benefits to answering questions. You’re building good will with the person who asked the question and potentially everyone else that reads your answer. You have the opportunity to demonstrate your expertise. Your answers are also linked to your profile this is then seen by profile visitors.

Go to LinkedIn Answers and search for questions related to what you do for a living. Then start answering questions. Be sure to include a link back to your site or blog in your answer. When you answer a question traffic to your blog should increases. Most categories also have a RSS feed. You can set up a RSS reader that will display the latest questions asked in the category. Use the Google RSS reader to check for new questions every morning.

Remember, everything you do or say on LinkedIn impacts on your brand.

Sins of LinkedIn - Number 3 - Failing to Join Enough Relevant Groups

You are allowed to join up to 50 groups on LinkedIn. This will give you access to thousands of potential new customers. Using these groups you can join discussion or post your own; you can also add news articles and relevant articles.

Groups are a great place to engage in conversations and cultivate new relationships. The key is to find as many groups as possible that are relevant to your business. Go to the Groups’ directory and search for relevant groups. These might be ones that are alumni, industry, location, networking, topical, etc. Be sure to think about the groups your prospects would belong to and join. Then you simply need to start engaging fellow group members through discussions and news articles.

Sins of LinkedIn - Number 4 - Ignoring Applications

Ignore LinkedIn’s applications at your peril. They are there to take your profile from two dimensions to three.

The basic LinkedIn profile is just a lot of text. Yes, it tells people all of the relevant information but I believe it’s always better to “Show, don’t tell”. Applications give you the opportunity to show what it is that you do.

You can post a PowerPoint or Keynote presentation, add a video, feed in your blog, add PDF files or Word documents, announce and RSVP Events, conduct Polls, share the books you’re reading (Amazon), and your Twitter feed. Adding any of these apps’ brings your profile to life, it adds an extra dimension.

You can communicate a message or information in whatever format you choose on LinkedIn. Start going through your resources to see what information will help you tell others what it is that you do and how you can help them.

If you don’t have a blog try WordPress, it’s easy to use. You can also try creating a presentation to share, just be sure to make it interesting by including more than just bullet points. Load up those brochures, white papers, and one-pagers.

Sins of LinkedIn - Number 5 - Not Asking for Recommendations

Recommendations are a clear indication that you do a good job and know what you are talking about. It’s crucial that you build then up. There’s no reason why anyone shouldn’t be able have 10 recommendations. Most people don’t get any recommendations because they sit back and wait for someone to take the initiative. You have to take the initiative.

When you begin working with a new client connect with them on LinkedIn. Once you’ve finished the project send them a recommendation request. Keep the request simple and mention the work you did for them and then state “I’m using LinkedIn to build my online brand. If you feel the work that I did on your behalf exceeded your expectations I would appreciate your taking a moment to write a brief recommendation.”

Making the most of your LinkedIn Profile

Are you an 'All-rounded' individual?

The beauty of LinkedIn is that you decide exactly what you want others to know about you. If you just show details of your work life people may get an impression of you which is ot what you'd like. People on Facebook seem to show all sorts of photographs, some of which could be there to hang them in the future, and tell their friends and/or everyone everything about their personal lives.

I suggest on LinkedIn you at least headline your interests, what organisations you belong to and what degrees, honours and qualifications you've acquired over your lifetime. You can add your book reading lists, tell people where you're travelliong to, show a short PowerPoint of some area of expertise etc. This is all based around your as a professional and shows what sort of a person you really are.