Activity on LinkedIn is very visible
LinkedIn changed the look of LinkedIn some while back so that your activity is very prominent on your profile and has become a very important part of showing your professional brand. Your activity was visible before on LinkedIn but most people didn’t know where to look for it. Now, every time you like, comment, or share something on LinkedIn, it becomes a part of your image.
- “Like” a silly word puzzle and risk being labeled as frivolous.
- Comment on a political attack piece (for or against) and risk alienating potential business connections.
- Share a funny cat video and look out!
It’s not that you can’t show different sides of yourself but be aware you’re doing it in a very public forum. Some things may be considered fine on your personal page on Facebook but not on LinkedIn. It’s very much personal preference.
Why be active on LinkedIn?
- LinkedIn rewards people who are active by propelling them up higher in searches; e.g., if you are one of the 42,818 John Smiths on LinkedIn (1,676 of them in the Bay Area), you are more likely to show up high on the list, because LinkedIn assumes you are the John Smith people are most likely searching for.
- People you’re connected to will see your name associated with your activity and think of you – for jobs, for business opportunities, for referrals, for your great expertise.
- People you’re connected to may share posts or articles you’ve liked or shared with their network, which will further expand your reputation.
- It’s an opportunity to build your relationships with your connections by sharing useful information or building goodwill when congratulating them on some accomplishment.
Making time for being active on LinkedIn
SCHEDULE IT – Set aside 10 minutes a day and do some of the simple activities listed under “How to be active on LinkedIn” below
LIMIT IT – I have many clients who complain that LinkedIn is a time-suck. I suggest that they set a timer for 10 minutes and just do as much as they can in that time. When the timer goes off – STOP! Be excited about returning the next day for more activity.
CATEGORIZE IT – LinkedIn should be a part of your marketing or job search efforts. It’s part of your business reputation. It’s part of your sales efforts and it’s part of building and maintaining business relationships. If any of these categories are meaningful to you, you should find it easier to commit some of your precious time to this activity.
How to be active on LinkedIn
Use your home newsfeed and the new, separate “Notifications” page as a rich source of ways to be active.
LinkedIn has a tab at the top called “Notifications”
You can congratulate people on new jobs, anniversaries and birthdays. You can also see where people have liked or commented on your posts or posts where you’ve commented. You can like, comment, or skip the items here. It’s tempting to just hit “Like,” whether it’s an anniversary of a job, a new job, or a birthday, but I recommend writing something more meaningful if you want to be memorable.
Your home newsfeed page
There is a long list of items in your news feed on your home page. There are articles others have written, liked, or shared. You can simply like these items or share them and you can also add a comment.
You can share some of these items with a group(s) you belong to (think about sharing something relevant and useful for each specific group.)
Okay – Time’s up!
That’s it for today. Return tomorrow and do more.
I would love to talk with you about the benefits to you of being more active on LinkedIn and how I could help you with your professional goals. Please schedule a free 20-minute strategy consultation to see how I might be able to assist you.