I’m On LinkedIn - Now What???

LinkedIn Jobs - want to work at LinkedIn?

You can learn a lot about a company by the jobs posted… whether on their own website or on a job board.  Here are some open jobs at LinkedIn that I find interesting… what does this tell you about what direction LinkedIn is headed?

By the way, LinkedIn, I know someone who would be PERFECT for either Product Manager opening… shoot me an email and I’ll make a recommendation.

The first three, to me, are the most interesting….

The other really intersting thing is the last column in the image - look at how recent those job postings are!

Cool.

Posted in LinkedIn for Job Seekers, Using LinkedIn | No Comments »

Create a LinkedIn Profile in Minutes?

I just saw a link to this page from the LinkedIn twitter feed: Create a complete profile in minutes.  It says you can upload your resume and have your LinkedIn Profile up with just four clicks.

I like the idea of simplicity, however, I still argue that your LinkedIn Profile SHOULD NOT LOOK LIKE your resume.

It really shouldn’t.

Posted in LinkedIn Profiles, Using LinkedIn | No Comments »

LinkedIn Book at a Presentation

Back in February my publisher booked a presentation for me in Silicon Valley and snapped this picture. I think we had about 80 people in this very small room - props to the 20 or so who were standing during the entire presentation (something I hate to do).

Posted in Book Experience, LinkedIn Book | No Comments »

LinkedIn Gets a New Boss

Yesterday LinkedIn announced its new President, Jeff Weiner.  You can read all about it on TechCrunch’s post: Changing Of The Guard: Jeff Weiner Takes CEO Spot At LinkedIn.

I don’t really know Reid (although we’ve exchanged a couple of messages, and he said he’s aware of my book and DVD).  I don’t know Dan Nye at all - he was the CEO until last December - but I wasn’t crazy about the direction of the company back then (easy for me to complain about).

Actually, my biggest beef was how they did the LinkedIn API stuff, and only opened LinkedIn Applications up to a handful of companies… I would have loved it if they would have been more open to communication with people like me (as the author of the LinkedIn book) or people like me (as the owner of JibberJobbe.com, which I think would be a great LinkedIn application) or me (again, as the owner of JibberJobber.com, who wants a tighter interface for stuff like importing contacts, etc.).

On the other hand, I totally respect their position on taking this slow so they don’t get all the crap and spam and vulnerabilities that come - things that Facebook applications and iPhone applications have led to.

I’m guessing that Jeff Weiner’s background and experience at Yahoo, and his experience as “Executive in Residence” (EIR) at two major VC firms will really have an impact on the direction that LinkedIn is headed - in terms of social, functional, etc.

It’s also interesting to read in that TechCrunch article that LinkedIn is still saying they are going to go public (as opposed to try for an acquisition), and focus on three revenue streams:

• Premium Subscriptions -I have some thoughts on how they could easily multiply the number of subscriptions they are currently getting, and
• Corporate Solutions - no comment there, not sure what their corporate solutions are, although it seemed for a while like they were trying to offer some internal corporate directory or intranet stuff, and
• Advertising - I actually have been playing around with the advertising - granted, I’m at a very, very low budget, but I’m not impressed… however, I think they can really optimize the ad revenue from institutional ad buyers as well as making it easier and more effective for individuals like me to actually spend a few bucks each month (a few * (a percentage of their 42M signups)) can add up quickly.

I’m hopeful to see what LinkedIn, and Jeff Weiner, do this next year!

Posted in LinkedIn News | 2 Comments »

I’m on LinkedIn — Now What???

The title of my book: I’m on LinkedIn — Now What??? I’ve been told it’s a great title… because it asks the same question you have asked… probably millions of people have asked… NOW WHAT???

(it’s such a great title I find there are seminars across the country with the same title)

I was on a call today with one of the founders of BlitzTime - a service that mixes speed dating + speed networking + phone calls (very cool stuff), and he said the title of my book (at least, that very question), is what their company is working to solve.

Now that you are on LinkedIn, what do you do?  When you find that perfect contact on LinkedIn, what do you do?

YOU PICK UP THE PHONE!

You take the relationship to THE NEXT LEVEL!

Have you taken the relationship to the next level with anyone in your network (in LinkedIn or not) lately?

Have you emailed, called, had lunch with, or sent mail to anyone in your network?

It’s about nurturing relationships, right?

Today would be a good day to nurture a relationship with someone… I dare you to!

Having problems with LinkedIn?  Then get my LinkedIn DVD! It’s called LinkedIn for Job Seekers, but it’s not just for job seekers - anyone who is trying to make heads or tails of LinkedIn will get value from this DVD.  You can read some great testimonials from this Amazon page.

Posted in Amazon, LinkedIn for Job Seekers, Using LinkedIn | 1 Comment »

LinkedIn Polls - getting your question out

Last week I wrote about using LinkedIn Polls.  Super cool opportunity to communicate with your network… today I want to show you what the communication options are.  Here is what you see when you create a poll:

The option defaults to where the arrow is pointing… allowing you to pay for distribution.  I forgot I’m a premium subscriber (I think I am, anyway), so I chose the free option, just my 1st degree connections.  Also, in visibility, I think it’s a MUST DO to check that box, so others can see it.

Right after I posted the LinkedIn Poll I went to Twitter and put the URL up to my followers… which I’m sure is the reason I got a few votes in the first couple of minutes.

I wouldn’t rely just on letting my 1st Degree Connections see it on their network update area… if I want responses I would definitely share this out in various mediums…

Posted in Using LinkedIn | No Comments »

Linkedin Polls - an experiment

I have done one LinkedIn Poll before last week but decided to do another one… in the process I figured there was plenty to blog about (especially since the first step was very frustrating).

FIrst, the question.  You only get 75 characters, which is really pathetic.  Here’s what I wanted to write… the third is what I ended up writing because of the space limitation:

It’s really frustrating since I feel I can’t really convey my real message… there is a huge difference between the first question, with only 282 characters, and the last one, with only 73 characters.  Alas, that is what I was stuck with.

Luckily I could customize the responses … while they are also limited, I was glad to add some bit of clarity there.  I wish I could have allowed respondants to choose mutliple answers, instead of only one answer.  Here are the options I put (you can see the first two could easily be combined with any of the last three):

Have you used LinkedIn Polls yet?  I think this could be a terrific complement to a LinkedIn Answers strategy… if you can get through the frustrations.  More on how to get the LinkedIn Poll distributed next week.

Posted in Using LinkedIn | No Comments »

LinkedIn for Companies?

I am regularly asked about LinkedIn strategies for companies… not small companies… big companies.

Here’s an EXCELLENT article by Andrew Atalla called Social Media - Why It’s Ok Not To Have A Social Media Strategy.  If you are curious about LinkedIn for companies, you must read this article.

As I read the article I was introduced to something that apparently all the rest of the world has seen, but I’ve never heard of… the Tiger Woods walks on water video.  Read the article for some background, and then check out this video.  While predictable, it is a terrific response from EA, and the last lines on the screen are brilliant.

Posted in Using LinkedIn | 3 Comments »

Social Networking and Old People

This post from Perfect Labor Storm 2.0 cracked me up… we’ve heard that the fastest growing demographic on Facebook is the over 30 crowd… check out this story to see who Ira taught at a workshop… how old they were, and how the old people laid down the smack on the young naysayers… what a hoot!

Posted in Using LinkedIn | No Comments »

If your LinkedIn Profile Picture Looks Like A Mug Shot…

then change it!

I was on a call with a professional image consultant a few weeks ago and we happened across someone’s LinkedIn Profile - immediately she said “whoa, that guy needs to change his picture!”

It didn’t really jump out at me, but to her it was clearly not a good picture for him.

How about yours?

I tell people they don’t have to pay and get it done professionally, but standing with a half (or no) smile in front of a white or beige wall…. well…. might as well hold up the sign :p

Worried about your LinkedIn Profile?  You should be - most LinkedIn Profiles I see are weak.  That’s why we spend over 20 minutes on the LinkedIn for Job Seekers DVD critiquing 5 professional’s LinkedIn Profiles.  If you aren’t a job seeker don’t worry, consider this the best, least expensive training available for you to get your LinkedIn thang in order.Click on the image, or LinkedIn for Job Seekers, to see what this DVD includes!

Posted in Using LinkedIn | 3 Comments »