Networking Tips for LinkedIn
Dear WCF,
I work for a Fortune 500 company and joined LinkedIn about six months ago to increase my circle of industry contacts. Recently I attended a networking event and had a pleasant conversation with “Joe” who is in the same field. Joe is currently unemployed, about ten years older than I am, and looking for connections too. So when I got home I e-mailed him saying that it was nice to meet him and while I didn't have any contacts for him right now, I'd like to stay in touch via LinkedIn in case I run across any in the future. To my surprise he responded that he didn’t feel he knew me well enough to recommend me and refused my invitation. Was I out of line inviting him to link in? If someone joins your LinkedIn network are they automatically obligated to write a recommendation for you? Also – how many people should you try to link in with?
Yours,
New at Networking
Dear New,
I don’t know how long “Joe” has been networking but you are clearly better at it than he is!
You did everything you should have. Joe, on the other hand, seems to be confused about how LinkedIn works. If he had accepted your invitation, he would have been able to ask you about opportunities with your employer and perhaps, if you were willing, might have been able to use your contacts to network into an interview. In addition, he would have been under no obligation to write a recommendation for you. (No one has to write a recommendation for anyone – no matter how well they may or may not know the other person.) So Joe had everything to gain and nothing to lose by accepting your invitation. It seems to me you’re better off saving your energy, time, and helpful impulses for more worthy candidates.
Regarding your question about how many people you should include in your network, my view is the more people you’re connected to the better (as LinkedIn is quite possibly the most effective online networking and recruiting tool!) However, make sure your connections are people you really know, AND they know you too! Just adding names to your contact list for the sake of adding names is a waste of time. Just think of Joe!
Here are three tips to help you get the most out of using LinkedIn:
- When you meet someone at work, a networking event or conference, or even in a social situation who you’d like to keep in touch with, ask if you can include them in your LinkedIn network. If they’re agreeable, and anyone but a schmoe like Joe should be, make sure you write a personalized cover note describing the circumstances of your first meeting and thanking them for agreeing to be part of your network.
- Go through your contact list every two months or so and send a short note to everyone you haven’t seen or talked to within that time period. The body of the note might be a brief generic update on what you’ve been doing for the last few months. The greeting should always be personalized, and the closing should encourage a response in return. This will help build your personal relationship with your contacts while reminding them of your professional strengths and accomplishments.
- If you ask someone for a recommendation and they comply, remember to thank them! Writing a recommendation takes effort, and showing your gratitude and appreciation will encourage the giver to do even more. On the otherhand, not sending a note is at best thoughtless and at worse rude.
Keep in mind that professional relationships, like personal ones, need time to develop, and they are more productive and more profitable if they’re founded in altruism. When people help others because they expect something in return, they usually end up feeling cheated. But assisting others simply because you enjoy doing so has no down side and is always mutually beneficial. The least you’ll get for your efforts is a feeling of personal satisfaction. Anything more – a connection to a job, insights about a client company, an invitation to a special event, etc. – will then seem like a special bonus and provide an extra measure of satisfaction.
Yours,
Wendy
By: Wendy Lalli
1-14-2010
Wendy Lalli is a recognized authority on professional development. She wrote a professional management column called "Dear Lalli" and has had several columns featured in Inside Recruiter, an online publication serving human resource professionals in the pharmaceutical industry.
