LinkedIn - Liz Lynch Smart Networking

Plug Into the Power of Existing Connections

November 29, 2010 by Liz Lynch Leave a Comment

Before anyone will
help you – give you a referral, partner with you on a project, whatever it is
you need – they have to know, like and trust you.

You already have a
big head start with existing contacts — people you’ve worked with before, have gone to
school with, live near, served on a charity organization with, etc – but sometimes we’re so focused on making new connections that we
take for granted this rich resource that’s already in our grasp.

Rekindling those
connections is
like plugging into an electrical socket. The current is there, the energy is
flowing somewhere behind the wall, but unless you have a way to get to it, you
can’t tap into the power.

If you’ve read “Smart
Networking” you know that the very first networking event that I attended as an
entrepreneur, I ran out of the room after 5 minutes.

After
I failed so miserably meeting total strangers at events, I took a step back and
decided to re-start my networking efforts with people I already knew. I sat
down with about a dozen former co-workers, bosses, and classmates to have
coffee with them, find out what they were doing in their careers and
businesses, and let them know that I had left corporate America and was now an
independent consultant.

I
didn’t ask them to hire me. I didn’t ask them if they knew anyone looking for a
strategy consultant, I just focused on reestablishing the relationship. But of
course, through the conversation we had, they got a good idea of what my focus
was and what I was looking for.

From
those dozen meetings, I filled up my practice for the next two years. Some of my
contacts hired me directly. They already knew my work and knew they liked
working with me, so if they had a need, I was the obvious choice.

Some
referred me to others in their network sometimes even 6-12 months later. They
were speaking to someone they knew who mentioned they needed help, and I got
the referral. If my contacts didn’t know I was doing this kind of work, they would
have recommended someone else.

I
guarantee that there are folks you know that you’ve forgotten about who can be
tremendously helpful to you. To rekindle the connection, first take deliberate
inventory and then take focused action:

1)
Write down every job you’ve had, every school you’ve attended, every networking
group you’ve been involved with, and every community organization you’ve
belonged to in the last 10 years.

2)
Make a list of at least 50 people you haven’t spoken to in a while, focusing on
those with whom you had a solid relationship. This will be the foundation of
your reconnection strategy for the next 12 months.

3)
Find as many of them as you can on LinkedIn and invite them to connect with
you, following the advice in my post on the best way to write a LinkedIn
invitation. LinkedIn is perfect for getting back on someone’s radar screen in
an unobtrusive way. You’re not asking for anything, you just want to reconnect.

4)
For those with whom you’re already connected on LinkedIn, read through their
profile to find out what they’re currently doing. Start a conversation. Comment
on their status update, answer a question they posted, or send a brief message.

“Hi
John, it’s been a while, but I was browsing through LinkedIn and noticed that
you’re working with ABC company. I’m at XYZ & Co., now and thought it would
be great to catch up and see if we can help each other in some way.”

5)
Plan to get together with at least one person each week. While catching up by
phone saves time, it doesn’t have the impact of a face-to-face meeting over
coffee or lunch, where you can be totally present with each other and not be
tempted to multi-task with email and web surfing.

6)
Leverage your time even more by organizing a group meeting. Invite 2-3 of your
contacts to a group lunch or after-work drinks. Not only will you be able to
reconnect with each one in a productive way, but you’ll also create an
opportunity for them to reconnect with each other.

7)
At your meeting, ask questions and show genuine interest in understanding their
current situation and needs. Listen for opportunities to connect them to
resources or contacts that can help them.

8)
Be prepared to explain what you’re doing in a clear and concise way. If people
can’t understand what you do, they won’t be able to help you. A confused mind
takes no action.

9)
Send a follow up email after the meeting. Forward any info you promised you’d
send. Reiterate that you’d like to stay in touch and would be happy to help
them in any way you can.

While
not every interaction will generate new business for you, learning this process
of contacting, meeting and following up with existing contacts will improve
those relationships, open up a strong line of communication, and increase your
comfort and skill level in building meaningful new connections.

Want to use this article on your website, blog
or ezine? No problem! But here is what you MUST include:

“Liz Lynch, business development
strategist and author of ‘Smart Networking: Attract a Following In Person and
Online,’ teaches entrepreneurs and professionals how to get 24/7 networking
results WITHOUT the 24/7 effort. Get her Smart Networking Toolkit at www.SmartNetworking.com.”

Filed Under: Building Your Business, LinkedIn, Reactivating Contacts Tagged With: LinkedIn, liz lynch, smart networking

LinkedIn Best Practices Poll: Friend, Colleague or Other?

November 9, 2010 by Liz Lynch 1 Comment

Quite often I get LinkedIn invitations from people I don’t know personally, and I used to be very stingy with my acceptances.

Everyone uses LinkedIn in different ways, and I like how there are no hard and fast rules about that (even though LinkedIn does advise that you connect only with people you know).

My philosophy a few years ago was that I wanted to link only with people I could recommend without hesitation if one of my contacts needed a referral. For me, that meant that I should know the individual personally and be able to vouch for their work.

At the very least, I should be able to pick them out of a line up.

So when complete strangers would invite me to link with them, especially if they didn’t include some kind of personal note introducing themselves (big no-no, read my last post on this), I would typically ignore the invitation.

Since Smart Networking was published two years ago, though, I’ve softened my stance. Because the book is international and I’ve been regularly interviewed in the media and spoken for audiences all around the world, more people know about me and seek me out. So I’ve been more open to forging new connections through LinkedIn, rather than just reconnecting with those I already know.

But then a sticky situation arises. Before you can send the invitation, you must indicate how you know the person.

Let’s say you’d like to connect with Steve, someone you met at a networking event and would like to stay in touch with online. As part of the invitation process, LinkedIn asks you to indicate how you know Steve. Here are your choices:

So now what do you do?

If you choose “Colleague” LinkedIn will ask you to indicate at which company in your profile you and Steve worked together. Hm, this doesn’t apply…

If you choose ”Classmate“ LinkedIn will ask you to indicate which school in your profile you attended with Steve. Getting colder…

If you choose “We’ve done business together“ LinkedIn will ask you to indicate which company in your profile you were working at when you did business with Steve. A bit presumptuous, aren’t we?…

You could choose “Friend“ and LinkedIn won’t ask you for any additional information, so this seems like the easiest solution, but is it the best one? Does this devalue your real friendships on LinkedIn?

Personally, I would choose “Other” since there is no specific option for “Acquaintance” and really, at the end of the day, by process of elimination, it’s the most accurate. If you do choose “Other” however, LinkedIn will ask you to type in Steve’s email address, but you should have this anyway if you exchanged business cards at the event.

I’ve been having a fun debate with my friend/colleague/other Lea Marino whom I first met just a few weeks ago at the NYXpo conference where I led a seminar on Smart Networking. We learned that we have different preferences when it comes to this issue. Honestly I had never thought about it before until Lea brought it up, but I’m glad she did!

Lea prefers “friend” over “colleague” because “Every time someone uses the colleague approach,” she says, “I always make sure they don’t think I’m someone else.” Good point. Because you have to indicate which company you worked at together, it can be confusing.

For an employee at a company (and for LinkedIn terminology), “colleague” means “co-worker,” but for me as an entrepreneur who partners with and gets help from other entrepreneurs on different projects all the time, “colleague” means “collaborator.” So it doesn’t bother me to be categorized as a “colleague” though if we haven’t done any work together yet, then “other” is still the most appropriate choice in my book.

Since Lea and I have different personal preferences, we figured others do too. And we thought it would be interesting to run a poll to get your input.

What do you think? Please vote below, and if you would like to elaborate on your selection, leave a comment too. Really interested to get your thoughts and tally up your votes. Thanks for playing!

When someone you don’t know invites you to connect on LinkedIn, how would you prefer to be categorized?survey software

Filed Under: LinkedIn, Polls & Surveys Tagged With: lea marino, LinkedIn, liz lynch, nyxpo, smart networking

LinkedIn Best Practices: 5 Keys to the Perfect Invitation

October 28, 2010 by Liz Lynch 7 Comments

We all know that when we meet someone at a networking event, we want to put our best foot forward and make a favorable first impression.

That’s why we get self-conscious if we feel our palms are a bit sweaty or there might be a poppy seed stuck between our teeth. We know to give a friendly smile and a firm but not crushing handshake. We know not to invade the person’s private space by standing too close. And we know to communicate standard pleasantries like, “Hello” and “Nice to meet you.”

Yet when it comes to networking online, so much of that awareness of how you might be coming across goes out the window. Not for everybody, but it happens enough that I can’t stay quiet any longer.

Yes, the rant you’ve been waiting for…my personal pet peeve…the sloppy LinkedIn invitation.

How you introduce yourself for the first time to someone who doesn’t know you sets the stage for the relationship. Not that their impression can’t be changed, but that takes more work than doing things right the first time.

When you invite someone to connect with you on LinkedIn, you have the option of including a personal note with your invitation. Unfortunately LinkedIn pre-populates this field with a rather sterile introduction:

There’s no warmth, no personality, no indication that even a modicum of time or thought was invested. It looks like you were in a hurry, lazy or clueless, none of which is particularly appealing to people you want to do business with. Your invitation may still be accepted, but simply adding another connection to your LinkedIn profile really isn’t the point.

The point is to develop relationships. And a stamped out, cookie cutter, impersonal invitation like the one above is not a good way to start.

The sad thing is that it doesn’t take a lot of extra time or thought to stand out in a positive way. There are only five things you need to do. Not a hundred, just five, so there’s absolutely no excuse:

Say hello. You would do it in person, so why not do it here? Add two words to the beginning of the note such as “Hi Liz” or “Dear Liz.” This makes me feel like you’re addressing the note specifically to me.
Add context. Your first sentence should be a brief explanation of why you want to connect. Something along the lines of “I saw you speak at last week’s event” or “I read your book” or “I see that we both know Marvin Jones.” Even “I saw your name pop up when I was logged in” is better than nothing.
Introduce yourself. Describe what you do in your next sentence. DO NOT say, “Read my profile to learn what I do.” That’s just rude. If you’re the one making the initial contact, it’s YOUR job to give them the basic information. “I’m a systems engineer at Boeing” or “I’m a blogger and executive coach in San Diego.” Let people know who you are, and if they want to find out more, your profile is just a click away.
Invite them to connect. I don’t have a big problem with the default sentence “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn” IF the other four steps of this formula are followed. But while you’re personalizing things, why not personalize this sentence as well? One of my favorite ways is to say, “I’d love to connect with you on LinkedIn and see how we can help each other.” Think about what would make it appealing for someone to accept your invitation.
Add a closing sign off. Before your name, add a closing like “Best regards” or “Sincerely” or “Take care.” Something that you would include in any other note to a stranger whom you are trying to impress.

So what’s the benefit of taking the 10 extra seconds to do this, rather than leaving the default message as is?

First of all, you’ve stood out among all the other LinkedIn invitations your contact may have received that day or that week or that month, so you’re going to be remembered.

Second, you’ve left the impression that you’re friendly, polite and willing to go the extra mile.

And third, you’ve established that you’re interested in building a relationship rather than just increasing your number of connections. In other words, you’re about quality rather than quantity.

For a few extra seconds of your time, I’d say that’s a big return for your investment, wouldn’t you?

What do you think? How do you feel about receiving a LinkedIn invitation with the default intro rather than a customized one? What are your ideas for personalizing your messages? Please comment below. I’d love to hear from you.

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR EZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Liz Lynch, business development strategist and author of Smart Networking: Attract a Following In Person & Online, teaches entrepreneurs and professionals how to get 24/7 networking results WITHOUT the 24/7 effort. Get her FREE Smart Networking toolkit at www.SmartNetworking.com

Filed Under: LinkedIn Tagged With: LinkedIn, liz lynch, networking

Office Depot Web Cafe: Maximizing Social Networking Webinar (Tuesday, January 26th, 4pm Eastern)

January 24, 2010 by Liz Lynch 1 Comment

On Tuesday, January 26th, I’ll be kicking off Office Depot’s 2010 Web Cafe Series with a special webinar on Maximizing Social Networking.

Launched in 2002 as part of the company’s online Business Resource Center, Web Cafe is a series of FREE web-based seminars providing small business owners and other professionals with the opportunity to learn from industry experts on a variety of topics ranging from marketing and sales tools to finance and technology trends. See the schedule here.

At last count I heard that more than 6,000 people have registered for my webinar and there’s still time to join in.

Can’t make it? All webinars are recorded and available in their archives.

I have to give a special shout out to Nancy Michaels, the fabulous marketing maven from Grow Your Business Network who introduced me to Office Depot and will be leading the following week’s webinar on 10 Marketing Ideas Under $100.

Filed Under: Building Your Business, Marketing Yourself, Social Networking, Teleseminars & Training Tagged With: facebook, LinkedIn, office depot, social networking, twitter, web cafe

Your Job Search: The Hidden Goldmine Within the LinkedIn Companies Tab

August 28, 2009 by Liz Lynch 3 Comments

I was interviewed by CNN last week to give some quick tips on using social networking for a job search beyond just updating your status to say you’re looking for a job.

In the segment I focused most on LinkedIn not only because there are now close to 45 million professionals who are members of that site, but because more and more recruiters and hiring managers are using it to find candidates directly rather than relying on job boards. With the unemployment rate at its highest level in 26 years, a posting on an online job board can inundate a recruiter with hundreds or thousands of resumes, a large percentage of which are likely to be unqualified for the job.

An article in The Wall Street Journal last month, for example, told of a law firm that posted a position and received responses from almost 1,000 people, half of whom did not even have a law degree!

But I also focused on LinkedIn because I feel there are some underutilized features that job seekers can leverage to help them find opportunities that are just starting to bubble up before they’re widely advertised. And by the way, it’s a great tool for entrepreneurs too to help them be proactive in identifying unmet needs and proposing solutions.

The company who’s who

One of these features is the Companies page. From the top menu of the home page of LinkedIn, click on the “Companies” option and type in a company name or keyword in the search box. LinkedIn will show you an employee listing, including specifically anyone in your network who works there, used to work there, or is connected to someone who does.

Speaking to a few people within each group can be enormously valuable for getting different perspectives on the potential opportunities within your target companies. For example:

Current employees are invaluable resources for getting a handle on what is happening at the company now and the direction it’s going. Plus, they can be great allies for helping you get your resume to the right people and putting in a good word for you (if they know you, of course!).
New promotions and changes may be in the market to hire new positions as they expand their department or replace existing under performers.
New hires can hint at where there may be growth opportunities within the company. Even if you can’t speak to them directly, you can get a sense if certain divisions have been on a hiring spree and target them first.
Recent departures might be more open to talking about the challenges the company is having, which leaders might be great to work for and who might be a nightmare (good info to know before you accept a job, right?).

This is incredible market intelligence that would have been near impossible to perform just a few years ago.

To assist you in crafting your outreach emails to these folks, I’d like to point you to two recent posts from my Personal Branding Blog colleagues: Monica O’Brien outlined a terrific sample template for requesting a brief informational interview over the phone, and Chad Leavitt shared great strategies for how to effectively contact recruiters you might find on that employee list.

All the information you need is at your fingertips, now go for it!

Read the original post in Personal Branding Blog.

Filed Under: Job Search Networking, LinkedIn, Personal Branding Tagged With: job search, LinkedIn, liz lynch, personal branding, smart networking

Wake Up and Smell the Coffee Grinds, My Corporate Friends, It’s Time to Network

February 28, 2009 by Liz Lynch 1 Comment

I spent twelve years employed by corporate America and the past eight years consulting to them on strategy and business development issues. Since the Dow took a nose dive last fall, many friends and some clients have lost their jobs, and those who haven’t are the working wounded, taking up the slack for their fallen comrades and waving goodbye to cost-of-living raises, annual bonuses, and 401k matches.

If you’re one of the lucky ones, working for industries and companies unaffected by the economic crisis, kudos for choosing well. But for the rest of you, listen up. The worst is not over.

I’m generally a very happy, positive person, so to write such a doom and gloom post, especially for my debut on the Personal Branding Blog, is out of character. But, it pains me to see really talented people feel like they got the rug pulled out from under them when they should have seen it coming and had time to do something about it.

Take a look around and be aware

It’s one thing to start over when you’re 20-something, but when you’re 40- or 50-something? With car payments, kids in school and a monthly mortgage? Please don’t let this happen to you. The fact that the Bunn coffee machine in the break room is collecting dust because no new supplies have been ordered for months, is a sure signal that your employer is getting rid of the non-essentials. Might you be next on the list?

You have to take control of your own career fate. Whether you stay or go, shoring up your network and your personal brand ought to be high on your list. Clearly, networking can help if you’re planning to jump ship, and we’ll discuss that in more detail in a future post, but how can investing some time in relationship-building help you at work?

While it might be tempting to take cover in your cubicle and lay low until the bullets stop flying, getting out there and being visible is a much more productive strategy, setting the stage for success in your current job and giving you many more options for future ones.

It’s who you know and who knows you well

Here are 5 ways to be seen and heard at the office to build a positive personal brand image and strengthen your contact base at the same time:

1. Ask for more responsibility. Layoffs and slower hiring practices may have left your company with fewer hands on deck. So, your boss might be grateful and impressed that you’re willing to take on more work.You’ll develop a reputation as a team player and a hard worker, which can only help your brand as times get tougher. Plus, you can gain some new skills and experiences, and perhaps even wrangle a higher title, both of which you can leverage for your next job if you decide to leave later.

2. Prep your elevator speech. Imagine getting into the elevator in the lobby of your office building, sipping your extra hot venti soy latte when the president of your division slides in just as the doors close. It’s a long ride up, so she asks what you’re working on. Caught off guard, you barely manage to put two coherent sentences together, leaving a very fuzzy impression in her mind of your value to the company. Obviously what you’re working on is important or you wouldn’t be there, so be sure you can toot your own horn when the time comes, because no one else will do it for you.

3. Attend industry events. Most of the time you’ll tread a well-worn path between work and home, with little deviation, but getting out to meet others in your industry is one of the quickest ways to add to your network. And meeting new folks when you’re not looking for a job will make it easier to make connections because you can focus on the conversation and not hitting them up for leads (not that you should do that anyway). Plus, you may find out important information, or learn about a best practice that you could use on the job or relay to others at work.

4. Grab a sandwich with co-workers. Networking doesn’t always have to be formal. The everyday experiences we have with others make up little strands that eventually produce strong bonds over time. Instead of having lunch at your desk all the time, take a day a week to walk down to the cafeteria or the deli around the corner with one or two colleagues. The only real assets you take with you when you leave a company, assuming you don’t raid the supply closet before you go, are the relationships you build. Take advantage of that opportunity.

5. Build your online network. You may have ignored those pesky invitations you’ve gotten from friends to connect on LinkedIn, or maybe you’ve accepted a few of them, but have done very little on the site otherwise. Filling out your profile and adding people you already know to your list of connections will put you in the flow of opportunity as more recruiters and hiring managers bypass job boards and go directly to their networks to find qualified candidates.

I know what you’re saying. That you don’t have enough time to do any of these things when you have real work to do. Well, guess what? You don’t have time not to do them. Just like they tell you on airplanes, you have to put on your own oxygen mask first before you can help anybody else. You need to secure your own future first before you are physically and psychologically free to do your best work for your employer.

Secure your own future first

Once you start building stronger relationships and feeling more a part of your professional community, you might even find more joy and satisfaction in your current position. And if at some point you do decide to leave, or your company takes a turn and you’re asked to leave, your brand and your network will be stronger then – all thanks to the efforts you’re putting into them now.

Read the original post on Personal Branding Blog

Filed Under: Career Advancement, Job Security, Networking Aversion, Personal Branding Tagged With: layoffs, LinkedIn

Plug Into the Power of Existing Connections

LinkedIn Best Practices Poll: Friend, Colleague or Other?

LinkedIn Best Practices: 5 Keys to the Perfect Invitation