How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
So how would you digest LinkedIn? Right, one prospect at a time. Pretty simple stuff. But something many – perhaps even most – LinkedIn users ignore or never knew.
First, let’s look at the elephant.
- LinkedIn now has 756 million members in 200 countries and regions
- It made a profit of $8 billion last year, an increase of 19%
- Over 100 million work applications are sent out every month
- Over 57 million companies and 120,000 institutions have LinkedIn accounts
- At any given time, there are 14 million open jobs listed
That is frankly awesome for a concept with just one simple mission: to put like-minded professionals in touch with each other. LinkedIn has become one gigantic, massively powerful, specialist device– for connecting with colleagues as well as advisors, building individual brands, generating passion from potential consumers and customers, finding employers or hiring supervisors.
But there is a catch. A searchable pool of 756 million people, nearly all skilled, is a year-round Christmas gift for anyone seeking contacts or promoting an idea. An amazing database makes it easy to locate a specific type of person with specific interests and in a specific part of the world. So, hey! Let’s reach out to a whole bunch of them.
Back up. The many people who still utilize LinkedIn as a method for “cold-calling”, mass-mailing a cool sales pitch or deal, are totally in the wrong place. Most individuals on LinkedIn absolutely despise being pitched to.
LinkedIn clocks “interactions” and it counts over 1 billion every month. So, if you are looking for a person fitting a specific profile, there’s a good chance a few hundred other people are too and said person is now fed up with being pestered about something of little or no interest.
Conclusion: cold calls never warm up.
LinkedIn’s impact is expanding and it’s vitally important to get it right with regards to how you involve others. A burned bridge on LinkedIn is usually one that can not be rebuilt very easily. You have one possibility to make an effective and favorable impression.
“I directly obtain roughly 50 cold pitches weekly on LinkedIn,” says Kathy Caprino, an occupation and leadership trainer. “Only 1 in 500 is anywhere near to being something I want. Usually, I shouldn’t have been in the target list in the first place, due to the fact that I’m not a fit.
When my interest is piqued, it’s when the person went to the effort to create something special and appealing, and tailored to me directly. They revealed to me clearly exactly how they might move the needle for me and also my organization.”
Here is Caprino’s short list of how to make yourself welcome on LinkedIn:
- Don’t make the mistake of sending out an out-of-the-blue request to someone you do not understand, requesting an introduction or favor. Being attached at the very first degree on LinkedIn does not suggest you have a real relationship, yet.
- Don’t push the “Attach” switch without following up instantly with a customized note
- When you’re making your very first outreach and sending an invite to link, do not simply click the “Connect” switch and leave it at that. Promptly, send out a longer note sharing information on exactly how you found out this person, why their work is of interest and supply some compelling factors for wishing to follow them.
- Make your message regarding them, not all about you.
“On the whole,” says Caprino, “the key takeaway is to remember to do the work and put in the effort to locate an authentic means to be of service, to develop a true link, and be gracious and handy.
“Don’t contact strangers with your vacant hand outstretched, expecting something that’s of benefit to you when nothing has been offered.”
For an eye-opening review of LinkedIn’s weird and wonderful components, take a look at
