July 8, 2014 / in General Information, LinkedIn / by Mic Johnson
Post Author: Mic Johnson
If you’re like most people on LinkedIn, one area you can improve on is increasing the number of quality connections you have. The good news is that if you follow the 5 simple steps I’ve outlined below for just 15 minutes a week, you will quickly grow your LinkedIn connections and develop a robust network you can be proud of!
The benefits of developing and nurturing a quality network can’t be overstated. Your network may help you if you’re in sales and want to leverage trusted relationships to get a foot in the door. It may help you find your next career. It may help you find a vendor to help you or your company. If you or your company start blogging, it also provides an audience to share your content with.
Growing your LinkedIn network with quality connections can do nothing but help you and your career. Completing these simple steps will make that a reality sooner rather than later.
Go to your Outlook, Google or other electronic calendar and create a recurring weekly, 15 minute calendar appointment that says “Add LinkedIn Connections”. Schedule it on a day and time you will commit to each week. 
“People You May Know” appears in the upper right hand side of your LinkedIn home page.
Once you click on “See More”, LinkedIn will pull up a never-ending list of people that you may know.
IMPORTANT: You want to focus on connecting to people that you know, trust, respect, have worked with, can vouch for, etc. It isn’t a numbers game. You want your LinkedIn network to be comprised of trusted relationships…not just a bunch of people you don’t know.
The reason for this is if you hit the “Connect” button, LinkedIn will automatically send the default (and highly impersonal) “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn” message. Instead, select the button that has a pencil inside of a square and personalize your connection request.
(NOTE: If you don’t know some of the people showing up in “People You May Know” simply hover over the rectangle and an “x” will appear in the upper right hand corner. Click the “x” to delete that connection request suggestion from LinkedIn.)
Once you’ve clicked on the button with a pencil inside of a square, the image below will appear. Delete the default LinkedIn message and instead type in a personal message such as:
“Hi Tim. It’s good to see you on LinkedIn. I’m working on growing my network and was hoping we could connect. Let me know if I can ever help you in any way. I hope all is well with you and the family. Have a great day!”
Also get into the habit of removing your last name in the default message to make it less formal. Then hit “Send Invitation” and move on to the next one!
Do this for just 15 minutes a week and watch how quickly your LinkedIn network grows!
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They are outstanding in assisting our bank with our blog.
We have been treated like gold from the Blue Gurus. They are responsive, sincere, and always willing to help.
Julia Warmer
Digital Media Manager at Stockman Bank
Hi!
Your 5 tips are extremely helpful. I added the 15 minutes to my recurring calendar:)
I love the passion and excitement for what you do. It is refreshing to see when someone is truly passionate about making a difference— it’s why I love what we do!
Thank you for sharing the tips!
Thank you for taking the time to read and comment, Shauntae. I really appreciate it. And I’m glad you added the 15 minutes to your calendar each week! And thanks for your comments about my passion and excitement. I’m glad that comes across in my writing. Thanks again and please feel free to share the post with others you think may benefit from it. – Mic
As always, sound advice my friend!