LinkedIn is a professional networking platform used by over 60 million people. It allows users to connect with colleagues, clients, and business contacts; find people and information to help achieve career goals; and promote business opportunities. The presentation recommends using LinkedIn to build your professional network, engage with groups in your industry, and promote your brand, business, and events to a targeted audience.

1. LinkedIn
Networking Made Easy
Presented by:
Andy Brennan, Jacksonville Business Journal
e: abrennan@bizjournals.com t: 904-265-2207
li: http://linkedin.com/in/johnabrennan

2. The Purpose of LinkedIn
Over 60 million professionals use LinkedIn to
exchange information, ideas and opportunities
• Stay informed about your contacts and industry
• Find the people & knowledge you need to achieve your goals
• Control your professional online identity
• Create and promote new business opportunities

3. The Purpose of LinkedIn
• Connect and network with like minded business people on a local
and national level
• Build your network of influence through this virtual handshake
• Create unique groups to generate targeted thought sharing
• Promote business services to your connections and group members
• Ask and answer questions to gain and offer industry knowledge

4. Who to connect with?
• Colleagues
• Clients
• Local business owners
• Get introduced through current connections and groups
• Anyone you’ve met, done or hope to do business with
• Trade shows / Networking events / Vendors / Board Members

5. How do I build my profile?
Follow the easy steps to complete your profile…
There is no cost http://linkedin.com
associated with a
basic account
Adjust account
settings to manage
who has access to
various levels of detail
Remember: Be safe
with your personal
information

6. How do I build my profile?
Use your avatar as a
representation of yourself
Update your status box - your
contacts receive these updates
This is NOT Face Book or My
Space - It’s what you’ve
accomplished, what you
represent and what you have to
offer others
TinyURL’s
Use them to
redirect with
minimal text
characters

7. How do I build my profile?
Promote intelligently
Use meta tags
Populate all fields and
websites
Provide full contact info to
your connections
Recommend contacts
and be recommended
Request recommendations
judiciously or let them come
naturally
Customize
your public
profile URL

8. How do I build
my network?
Many ways to find people

9. How do I build
my network?
Many ways to find people

10. How do I build my network?
Your Network
Their Connections
Your Connections

11. Receiving network updates
Update your status
See what your
connections are up to

12. Q&A
Answer questions of your
entire network.
Get answers from those
in the know.
Search answers.
Browse questions by category.
Become an industry expert.
Promote yourself as an
industry thought leader.

13. Find Groups
Stay in touch with schools,
organizations and
companies with whom you
are associated
Network with professionals
who share similar interests
and goals
Collaborate in a professional
online community

14. Join a group
LinkedIn Groups can help you
stay informed and keep in touch
with people that share your
interests.
Great way to promote your
brand and build a following
within your community.

15. Join a group
LinkedIn Group discussions
are great places to promote
upcoming events.
Group members are great
sales prospects!
Keep discussions informative
and relevant.
Think about smaller groups

16. My Groups Page
Once you have joined a
group, it will appear on
your left side navigation
bar under My Groups
This page gives you a
quick overview of all of
your groups

17. Receiving group updates
Start discussions
Add to discussions
Ask or Answer questions
Reconnect with networks
Stay up to date
See what your
connections and
other group members
are talking about

18. Company Profile

19. Company Profile

20. Self Promote
Shamelessly
SEO - Be out there
Get found - Sell more

21. LinkedIn
Next Steps: Using Groups & Events
Presented by:

22. Create a Group
Gain insider information on
a specific industry or
business segment
LinkedIn Groups can help you
stay informed and keep in touch
with people that share your
interests.
Great way to promote your
brand and build a following
within your community.

23. Create a Group
Connect, Communicate &
Collaborate
A group allows your brand to
extend it’s reach and
strengthen the TOMA with
existing users
Use your group avatar as a
representation of your brand

24. Create Brand Awareness
Make sure your logo is legible
in a very small size – It’s your
mini digital billboard
This is your opportunity to
place your publication’s logo
on hundreds of executive’s
profiles
Make it a “badge of honor”
with whom others want to be
associated

25. Edit Group Info
Offer a description of your publication,
your group and it’s purpose
Utilize welcome messages to auto-
communicate to requestors and newly
approved members
Make new
members feel
welcomed and
encourage their
participation

26. Manage Your Group
Pre-approve members
via contact invites or
email domain
Send invitations to join
Send announcements
Add managers and
moderators
Block poachers
Manage RSS feeds

27. Discussions
Groups are a great place to
communicate with group
members or organizations
Discuss issues that are of interest
and relevant to the entire group
You can also use the navigation
links to sort discussions by most
recent, popular topics or in those
which you’ve participated

28. Discussions
Encourage intelligent
opinion and thought
sharing
Share information
with other group
members or contacts

29. Discussions
Promote your events on
other group sites, redirect
to bizjournals registration
page or LI event listing
Add value to OTHER
local groups by waiving
admission fees

30. Members
Your group’s member page allows
you to view all the members in
your group
You can search by name,
company, and other keywords
such as specific areas of expertise
This is a great way to find experts
to utilize talent from within your
network
Members are great prospects -
They already like you!

31. Discussions: Event Promo
Promote your publication’s
events and charitable
events with whom you may
be associated
Remember to add value to
your group by offering
complimentary or
discounted tickets

32. Discourage Poachers
Once you develop an active
group, users will attempt to hard
sell to your members
Keep an eye out for these posts
and delete them quickly
If valid as such, refer them to
advertising dept as prospect leads

33. Encourage Charity
Charitable events and nonprofits
get a bit more latitude when it
comes to poaching
Think of it as a public service
message that manages itself
A simple way to
soft sell your
company as a good
corporate citizen

34. Promote & Find Events
You can and should
promote your
publication’s events
on LinkedIn
Search via specific
criteria

35. Promote & Find Events
Track attendees and potential
attendees for follow-up
opportunities
Redirect with your bizjournal
registration URL
Utilize event URL in discussions
to keep things “LinkedIn centric”

36. LinkedIn Conclusion
• Promote your brand personal / product
• Meet new contacts and potential clients
• Stay informed and keep in touch
• Connect with groups and grow your network
• Share knowledge / Promote yourself as an expert in your industry
• Enhance brand awareness and create a following of prospects
• Create a group - Connect, Communicate and Collaborate
• Keep your members informed and engaged

37. LinkedIn Q&A
Presented by: