LinkedIn is an amazing professional social media channel and is probably the most effective one of all for professionals. If you haven’t been leveraging LinkedIn up to this point, it is definitely time for you to change that situation. Remember, at the same time, to exercise proper etiquette whenever you are using LinkedIn.
Getting involved with all that it has to offer
As you may or may not be aware, LinkedIn has a tremendous amount to offer but it also has a large amount of information, tricks, and tools that you will need to learn in order to be able to take full advantage of it. That doesn’t mean that it is not user-friendly. It certainly is that. However, there is some information regarding LinkedIn that you will need to learn so that you can use it most effectively for your business. At the same time, you will need to follow the proper LinkedIn etiquette at all times.
There are many different reasons why you may wish to be active on LinkedIn. You may be using it from a job-seeking perspective or you may be using it from a networking perspective. You may also be using it from the perspective of someone who is trying to build relationships in a particular niche or industry. Your first-tier connections can introduce you to other people with whom you do not share a connection yet. The point is that LinkedIn has tremendous potential in many different directions and even if you are not going (or don’t need) everything that it has to offer, it is definitely a good idea for you to become well acquainted with what it has to offer.
Using the proper LinkedIn etiquette at all times
There are definite dos and don’ts when it comes to your interactions on LinkedIn (as well as your other online activities). When it comes to your LinkedIn profile, you must make sure that yours is as transparent as you can possibly make it. If you are hiding something (or not revealing something that should be revealed), your online connections will either know or will, at least, have some sense that you are hiding something. It isn’t worth being secretive. It is critical that you are conscious and careful (at all times) about your approach and your interactions on LinkedIn.
It is a professional social media channel and it has a professional “voice.” In other words, you must maintain professionalism at all times too. That goes for every communication that you send out. Your approach should be clear and to the point. You can count on the fact that people are very busy and nobody has the time or the patience to get tied up in unnecessary communications. Your approach should always be professional and courteous.
Other people will not appreciate it if you don’t treat them as though they are special
When you are communicating one-on-one with the other person, it is very important that the other person feels that he or she is special to you and that his or her opinion matters to you. You have a responsibility to make sure that you communicate in a way that makes the person feel that way. It will not be that difficult to create a sense of the personal with the other person. The beauty of social media is that you can obtain interesting details about the other person that can allow you to connect with him or her on emotional level. It is those details that will make all of the difference in your relationship with the other person and they will positively affect your future interactions.
Share your many sides and many talents
It is an excellent idea to express your creativity (as long as it isn’t so far over that top that people can’t relate to it). Creativity is what gets you from Point A to Point B. Without it, you won’t get noticed by the other person and if you don’t get noticed, you won’t be able to build a relationship. If you don’t succeed at building a relationship, that person will never be a contributing factor in your professional success.
Conclusion
LinkedIn etiquette is critical to your professional success. Without it, you may be remembered but it will be for the wrong reasons. If you wish to have a strong, healthy relationship with the other person, you need to go about it in the appropriate way so that the rewards that you reap from that relationship were earned honestly and truly. It is important to keep in mind that your LinkedIn connections are about quality, not quantity. Always make sure that you treat other people respectfully and professionally. It will take you very far in your relationships.
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Michael Cohn is the founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of CompuKol Communications. He has over 25 years of experience in IT and web technologies. Mr. Cohn spent a significant amount of time at a major telecommunications company, where his main focus was on initiating and leading synergy efforts across all business units by dramatically improving efficiency, online collaboration, and the company’s Intranet capabilities, which accelerated gains in business productivity. He also reduced company travel and travel costs by introducing and implementing various collaboration technologies.
His expertise includes business analysis; project management; management of global cross-matrix teams; systems engineering and analysis, architecture, prototyping and integration; technology evaluation and assessment; systems development; performance evaluation; and management of off-shore development.