July 10, 2017 / in LinkedIn / by Mic Johnson
Author: Mic Johnson, talking about LinkedIn etiquette.
LinkedIn launched as a platform in 2003. It’s older than Facebook (February 2004) and Twitter (March 2006).
Even though LinkedIn is 14 years old and boasts 500 million users worldwide, there are still plenty of users who could use a LinkedIn etiquette refresher.
One thing is certain: Extended lapses in LinkedIn etiquette lead to confusion and negatively reflect on you and your employer.
That’s just one of the reasons why we’ve been training companies on LinkedIn for the last 8 years.
With that in mind, here are a few LinkedIn etiquette tips to keep in mind as you continue to use the platform.
Don’t ever send the “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn” message ever again!
Not personalizing your invitation requests creates awkward and unnecessary confusion for the recipient. Tell the person why you’re interested in connecting and why they should consider connecting with you. Always be personal, human and authentic in your messaging.
This one really should go without saying, but unfortunately it happens. I’m guessing some of you reading this post have dealt with it yourself or have heard stories from people you know. There are plenty of dating sites/apps out there. LinkedIn isn’t one of them.
This falls under the “treat others as you’d like to be treated” mantra.
With few exceptions (annoying sales pitches, pushy recruiters, someone asking you out on a date, etc), if someone comments on something you’ve published or shared on LinkedIn, reply back.
Even if your reply is something as simple as “Thank you for the comment. I appreciate it.” And when someone sends you a message on LinkedIn, (yep, you guessed it), reply back.
You never know where simply engaging with other people will lead to. Let them know you’re paying attention. Let them know you care enough to reply back.
This is another one we’ve been preaching for years in our training sessions. If you have a profile on LinkedIn, do yourself and everyone else a favor and complete you profile.
-Upload a smiling, current headshot with a clean background.
-Write a LinkedIn Summary using “I” language that tells people who you are, what you do and how you can help.
-Complete the Experience section of your profile so people know what you’ve done in your career.
-Include relevant contact information and links to your website.
Those are just a few of the basics. Ultimately, your profile should be easy to read and be an accurate representation of who you are personally and professionally.
When was the last time you wrote a LinkedIn Recommendation?
If the answer is somewhere just short of NEVER, set a goal of writing a recommendation for someone in the next week.
Think about a person you’ve worked with, or referred business to, or who has helped you professionally, or someone you have great respect for.
When you have that person in mind, go to their profile, click on the three little dots to the right of their profile picture, and write a well thought out recommendation. Let me know how it felt and what you heard from the person you wrote the recommendation for.
Thank you for taking a little time out of your day to read this post. If your company, or a team within your company, could benefit from LinkedIn Training, give me a shout!
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