10 ways to leverage professional networking Mario Sundar, Community Evangelist at LinkedIn

© 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved. How BIG is Professional Networking? “ IBM says the tools foster teamwork among employees who work in IBM offices from Boston to Bangalore. Social networking is especially important for the 42% of IBM employees who regularly work from their homes or client locations rather than IBM facilities.”

Overview 1. Ten Tips on using LinkedIn 2. Building an online brand using Social Media 3. Questions? © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

Ten Tips on using LinkedIn 1. Professionals 2. Consultants 3. Entrepreneurs © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

Professionals 1. Build your professional network When does the network become valuable? Metcalfe’s Law: “ the value of a communications network grows (exponentially, as it turns out) as the number of users grows.” Reed’s Law: “ every new person on a network doubles its value. Adding 10 people, by this reasoning, increases its value a thousand fold” © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

1. Build your professional network

When does the network become valuable?

Metcalfe’s Law:

“ the value of a communications network grows (exponentially, as it turns out) as

the number of users grows.”

Reed’s Law:

“ every new person on a network doubles its value. Adding 10 people, by this

reasoning, increases its value a thousand fold”

Professionals 1. Build your professional network What is the optimal number of connections I should have in my professional network? Dunbar Number: “ represents a theoretical maximum number of individuals with whom a set of people can maintain a social relationship, the kind of relationship that goes with knowing who each person is and how each person relates socially to every other person.” 150 © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

1. Build your professional network

What is the optimal number of connections I should have in my professional network?

Dunbar Number:

“ represents a theoretical maximum number of individuals with whom a set of people can

maintain a social relationship, the kind of relationship that goes with knowing who each

person is and how each person relates socially to every other person.”

Professionals Move your offline contacts online © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

Move your offline contacts online

Professionals 2. Tap into the collective “wisdom of your crowd” “ Knowledge markets provide means and venue for discovering and sharing knowledge resources among individuals and organizations” The Evolution: ProfNet, Lycos IQ, Google Answers, Yahoo! Answers, LinkedIn Answers Yahoo! Answers & LinkedIn Answers (Business focused) Yahoo! Answers: 1 category and 11 sub category LinkedIn Answers: 16 categories and 167 sub-categories © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

2. Tap into the collective “wisdom of your crowd”

“ Knowledge markets provide means and venue for discovering and sharing knowledge

resources among individuals and organizations”

The Evolution: ProfNet, Lycos IQ, Google Answers, Yahoo! Answers, LinkedIn Answers

Yahoo! Answers & LinkedIn Answers (Business focused)

Yahoo! Answers: 1 category and 11 sub category

LinkedIn Answers: 16 categories and 167 sub-categories

Professionals 2. Tap into the collective “wisdom of your crowd” © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

2. Tap into the collective “wisdom of your crowd”

Professionals 3. Find your dream job Your online networking is only as good as your offline networking Let your dream job find YOU Three Step Process Start networking today – Events Start crafting an online presence around “keywords” Select a social media tool that brings together your offline contacts © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

3. Find your dream job

Your online networking is only as good as your offline networking

Let your dream job find YOU

Three Step Process

Start networking today – Events

Start crafting an online presence around “keywords”

Select a social media tool that brings together your offline contacts

Professionals 3. Find your dream job Use Professional networking sites effectively Usage Tips Gauge the health of the industry Gauge the health of the company Career Permalink Make your interviews go smoother More accurate job searches © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

3. Find your dream job

Use Professional networking sites effectively

Usage Tips

Gauge the health of the industry

Gauge the health of the company

Career Permalink

Make your interviews go smoother

More accurate job searches

Consultants 4. Grow your Business The attributes of individuals are less important than their relationships and ties with other connections within the network Word of Mouth referrals Recommendations When you connect with those who’ve endorsed you directly or indirectly by referring you, you help them by offering them access to your network Additionally you can also find prospective customers through 2 nd or 3 rd degree network LinkedIn Service Providers Over 2M Consultants © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

4. Grow your Business

The attributes of individuals are less important than their relationships and ties with other connections within the network

Word of Mouth referrals

Recommendations

When you connect with those who’ve endorsed you directly or indirectly by referring you, you help them by offering them access to your network

Additionally you can also find prospective customers through 2 nd or 3 rd degree network

LinkedIn Service Providers

Over 2M Consultants

Consultants 4. Grow your Business Find or Be Found Word of mouth engendered by Endorsements © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

4. Grow your Business

Find or Be Found

Word of mouth engendered by Endorsements

Consultants 5. Throw out a net before you need it Making invaluable connections “ Networking isn't really about getting a job. It's about using shared interests to develop and maintain mutually beneficial relationships. Then, if you lose your job, these contacts will be there to help.” Be found “ 84% of American Internet users have used the Internet to contact or get information from an online group --more than have used the Internet to read news, search for health information, or to buy something.” The Power of Small Gestures © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

5. Throw out a net before you need it

Making invaluable connections

“ Networking isn't really about getting a job. It's about using shared interests to develop and maintain mutually beneficial relationships. Then, if you lose your job, these contacts will be there to help.”

Be found

“ 84% of American Internet users have used the Internet to contact or get information from an online group --more than have used the Internet to read news, search for health information, or to buy something.”

The Power of Small Gestures

Consultants 6. Got Publicity? How can you reach the right people? Movers & Shakers Get in front of business celebrities (Entrepreneurs, VCs, etc…) Executives from all Fortune 500 companies Journalists Reaching these business celebrities Connecting through your common connections Answering specific questions they have © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

6. Got Publicity?

How can you reach the right people?

Movers & Shakers

Get in front of business celebrities (Entrepreneurs, VCs, etc…)

Executives from all Fortune 500 companies

Journalists

Reaching these business celebrities

Connecting through your common connections

Answering specific questions they have

Entrepreneurs 7. Find the right person for the right job The easiest way to find the right candidate Endorsements Company Reference Checks Demo (Example) © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

7. Find the right person for the right job

The easiest way to find the right candidate

Endorsements

Company Reference Checks

Demo (Example)

Entrepreneurs 8. Find Business Partners The Challenge Expertise search Service Providers search © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

8. Find Business Partners

The Challenge

Expertise search

Service Providers search

Entrepreneurs 9. Understand the market Competitive research Talk to future employees, former employees of similar businesses or of potential customers Use knowledge networks to mine business intelligence © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

9. Understand the market

Competitive research

Talk to future employees, former employees of similar businesses or of potential customers

Use knowledge networks to mine business intelligence

Universal Law of Professional Networking 10. Build, strengthen & maintain your professional brand Take control over your professional identity Online brand identity – Search engines, social networks, professional networks Being on top of things Enhance your search engine results – strengthen your brand © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

10. Build, strengthen & maintain your professional brand

Take control over your professional identity

Online brand identity – Search engines, social networks, professional networks

Being on top of things

Enhance your search engine results – strengthen your brand

2. Building an Online Brand About Me About LinkedIn © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

About Me

About LinkedIn

Building your online brand Started Marketing Nirvana in May 2006 Topics I was passionate about “ Customer Evangelism” “ Corporate Blogging” “ Community Marketing” “ Social Media” Active “Social Networking” LinkedIn Evangelist © 2008 LinkedIn All rights reserved.

Started Marketing Nirvana in May 2006

Topics I was passionate about

“ Customer Evangelism”

“ Corporate Blogging”

“ Community Marketing”

“ Social Media”

Active “Social Networking”

LinkedIn Evangelist

Mario Sundar, Community Evangelist Google “ Mario Sundar ” LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mariosundar