1. Social Networks ~ What’s the Big Deal?
Agenda
Overview ~ LinkedIn
LinkedIn for Business
o 33 Ways to Effectively Use LinkedIn for Business
o Getting Down to Basics
Personal Branding
o Developing a Personal LinkedIn Profile
o 3 Big LinkedIn Mistakes
o Top LinkedIn Tips
o What makes a Bad LinkedIn Profile
o Building Your Network
Questions
Frank Alaniz ~ Missouri Workforce Regional Liaison ~ frank.alaniz@ded.mo.gov ~
www.linkedin.com/in/frankalaniz

2. Social Media
What’s the Big Deal?

3. Workforce
Liaison
Career Information
Coach Strategist
Developer

4. What is Social Media
Social media is a phenomenon that’s
turning everyone into a publisher and
distributor of media: from YouTube
videos to blog posts to Twitter messages
and even comments on the articles we
read around the web, we’re all becoming
content creators.
Paul McFedries
Technical Writer
Author

5. I still don’t understand!!!
• Think of regular media as a one-way street
where you can read a newspaper or listen to a
report on television, but you have very limited
ability to give your thoughts on the matter.
• Social media, on the other hand, is a two-way
street that gives you the ability to
communicate too.

6. Social Networking
• You may have heard about social
networking sites on the Web. If you view a
list of social networking Web sites you will
see links to more than 100,000 sites,
available from around the world and
catering to every taste. The sites range from
general, including the very popular Twitter,
LinkedIn and Facebook, to the particular,
focusing on different topics such as photo
sharing, wine, and music.

7. LinkedIn
• LinkedIn is a Web site designed to connect
business professionals and enable them to
share information, get answers, and promote
themselves and their businesses.
• LinkedIn is also a Personal Branding site
where you have the ability to connect with
industry professionals, companies, social
groups and recruiters.

8. How does this effect how we do Business?
The Power of Job Search Networking
• In almost every job search tip column and
book there is a section dedicated to
networking, taking us back to the age old
debated quip “it’s not what you know, it’s who
know.”
• Networking itself is not a revolutionary
concept, but how people are networking and
connecting is changing with next-generation
job sites that combine job search and
networking.

9. LinkedIn
• Using LinkedIn
– LinkedIn is a business-oriented social networking
site.
• Founded in 2003
• 100 plus million users
• 200 plus countries
• A new member joins every second

10. BUSINESS

11. LinkedIn Business
• LinkedIn is designed for business professionals
and business owners instead of for the general
public (i.e. Facebook). You establish yourself on
LinkedIn by creating a profile that summarizes
your professional and/or business
accomplishments.
• Without a profile you can’t link to anyone else in
LinkedIn, and no other LinkedIn users can learn
more about you.

12. 33 Ways to Use LinkedIn for Business
• Is your LinkedIn account mostly sitting idle?
You can do so much more with it than simply
look up contacts: find gigs, sell products,
expand your networks, grow your business
and gain free publicity.
~ Gigaom.com

13. Using LinkedIn Effectively
1. Fill out your profile completely to earn trust
2. Use Widgets to integrate other tools, such as
importing your blog entries or Twitter,
Facebook streams on your profile
3. Do Market Research and gain knowledge
with Polls

14. Suggestions 4 ~ 6
4. Share survey and poll results with your
contacts
5. Answer questions in Questions and Answers:
show expertise without a hint of self-
promotion.
6. Ask questions in Questions and Answers to
get a feel for what customers and prospects
want or think.

15. Suggestions 7 ~ 9
7. Publish your LinkedIn URL on all your
marketing collateral, including business
cards, email signature, email newsletters,
web sites and brochures, so prospects learn
more about you.
8. Grow your network by joining industry and
alumni groups related to your business.
9. Update your status examples of recent work.

16. Suggestions 10 ~ 12
10.Link your status updates with your other
social media accounts.
11.Combine your social media approach: when
someone asks a question in Twitter, respond
in detail on LinkedIn and link to it from
Twitter.
12.Use the search feature to find people by
company, industry and city.

17. Suggestions 13 ~ 15
13.Start and manage a group or fan page for
your product, brand or business.
14.Research your prospects before meeting or
contacting them.
15.Share useful articles and resources that will
be of interest to customers and prospects.

18. Suggestions 16 ~ 18
16.Don’t turn off your contacts: avoid hard-sell
tactics.
17.Write honest and valuable recommendations
for your contacts.
18.Request LinkedIn recommendation from
happy customers willing to provide
testimonials.

19. Suggestions 19 ~ 21
19.Post your presentations on your profile using
a presentation application.
20.Check connections’ locations before traveling
so you can meet with those in the city where
you’re heading.
21.Ask your first-level contacts for introductions
to their first-level contacts.

20. Suggestions 22 ~ 24
22.Interact with LinkedIn on a regular basis to
reach those who may not see you on other
social media sites.
23.Set up to receive LinkedIn messages in your
inbox so you can respond right away.
24.Link to articles and content posted
elsewhere, with a summary of why it’s
valuable to add to your credibility.

21. Suggestions 25 ~ 27
25.List your newsletter subscription information
and archives.
26.Find experts in your field and invite them as
a guest blogger on your blog or speaker at
your event.
27.Post discounts and package deals.

22. Suggestions 28 ~ 30
28.Import vCards and contacts from other
applications to find more connections.
29.Export your contacts into other applications.
30.Buy a LinkedIn direct ad that only your
target market will see.

23. Suggestions 31 ~ 33
31.Post job listings to find qualified talent.
32.Look for connections related to a job you
want.
33.Find vendors and contractors through
connections.
(Thanks to Frank Strong, Zale Tabakman, Robert Medak and Jon Tucker for their suggestions for this post.)

24. Getting Down to the Basics
• Profile updates
• Understanding relationships
• Connections
• Use LI to understand more about your
prospects
• What’s in it for them
• Use LI with Google Alerts for the
ultimate business tool
• Business Contacts

25. PERSONAL BRANDING

26. Your Network ~ Personal Branding

27. Building a Profile

28. Summary

29. Add Position

30. Education

31. Additional Information

32. Personal Information

33. Settings

34. Settings 2

35. Recommendations

36. Email Invitations

37. Direct Search Invite

38. People You May Know

39. Groups

40. Search Groups

41. My Groups

42. More

43. 3 Big LinkedIn Mistakes
• Failing to use all the space provided
– You’re guilty of this if your summary is comprised of just a few sentences, your work
history only includes titles, or you skipped sections like Interests or Specialties. These
are valuable pieces of data that not only educate readers on your career, but also serve
to boost your search-ability.
• Mistaking a Resume Summary for a LinkedIn
Summary
– The LinkedIn summary area was designed primarily to present a snapshot of your brand
and value proposition. However, many people mistake this area for the resume summary
of qualifications, and insert that same, long-winded paragraph in this section.
• Presenting Data Inconsistent with your Resume
– There’s no way around it – employers will be trolling the Web for information about you,
even if you’ve already sent your resume to them to review. The problem arises when
your job history, education, or achievements appear differently online than on paper
Careerealism.com

44. 5 Top LinkedIn Tips
1. Don’t get in Picture Trouble!
1. Many people choose not to use a picture on their LinkedIn
profiles. While some of you have your reasons, it's a mistake
for the typical user.
2. Write a Descriptive Professional Headline
1. When you edit your LinkedIn profile, you have "professional
headline" right beneath the name. The common mistake here
is to simply put your name and title.
3. Properly Label Websites Displaying Your Work or
Blog
1. LinkedIn offers you the ability to list the websites where your
work might be displayed. This is a great option if you keep a
personal website with a resume or a blog.

45. Top 5 Tips Con’t
4. Consider a Vanity URL:
1. When you edit your LinkedIn profile, go to the "public
profile" section to create your LinkedIn URL of choice.
5. Finish with a Strong, SEO – Friendly Summary
1. The "summary" section of your LinkedIn profile could be the
biggest missed opportunity for the majority of job seekers.
While this section has a 2,000 character limit, Alba suggests
packing as much about you and your abilities into it as
possible
2. Remember that you're in a crowded field of applicants. Put in
short "problem, action and results" stories that show how
you contended with challenges that helped your business
succeed.
PC Business World

46. What Makes Bad LinkedIn Profile
1. An incomplete profile
2. No profile photo, or one that doesn't show
your face
3. No website, blog, or Twitter links
4. Profiles that are kept private or choose not
to outline the person's name
5. No Connections and Recommendations
6. Obvious lack of interactivity on LinkedIn
7. No LinkedIn groups or use of LinkedIn
Applications
8. No Contact Settings or Personal
Information

47. Questions?