LinkedIn, established in 2003, is driven by its mission to “connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful” and its vision to “create economic opportunity for every professional”.
In December 2016, LinkedIn became a part of Microsoft, uniting under the shared objective of enhancing productivity for individuals and organisations. This collaboration aims to develop a technology platform that revolutionises office collaboration, sharing, and productivity on an unprecedented level.
Advantages of Being on LinkedIn
LinkedIn offers numerous advantages for its users, enabling them to:
• Showcase their professional journey, including experiences, skills, and achievements;
• Share insights and expertise through status updates and articles;
• Network with professionals who can enhance their knowledge or open doors to new business opportunities;
• Discover job openings;
• Elevate their personal or company brand awareness;
• Receive referrals and endorsements;
• Conduct market research;
• Enhance their online visibility.
Optimising your profile is essential to harnessing LinkedIn’s full potential. A well-crafted profile is the foundation for building connections and engaging in meaningful networking.
LinkedIn, recognised as a premier business-to-business (B2B) networking platform, facilitates the establishment of professional relationships, allowing users to expand their network through various degrees of connections:
• 1st-degree connections: Individuals you’re directly connected to, either because you’ve accepted their connection request or vice versa.
• 2nd-degree connections: People who are connected to your 1st-degree connections.
• 3rd-degree connections: Individuals linked to your 2nd-degree connections.
Engaging and maintaining these connections on LinkedIn is straightforward and doesn’t require constant attention. Regular, brief check-ins are sufficient to stay informed about your network’s updates.
Company Pages
Company Pages serve as a digital storefront for businesses on LinkedIn, offering two primary advantages:
• Discoverability: Viewing a Company Page allows you to see all associated employees, facilitating the identification of contacts before reaching out to an organisation. When employees link their profiles to the Company Page, it enriches their understanding of the company.
• Content Hub: A Company Page should be a central point for sharing content. Employee amplification, through sharing company updates with their networks, is an effective strategy for disseminating information to clients and prospects.
News and Insights
LinkedIn is a valuable resource for industry news and insights. Regularly browsing your newsfeed can provide insights into your network, including:
• Profile updates from your connections;
• New connections within your network, potentially indicating new business opportunities;
• Recommendations received by your contacts;
• Group memberships, suggesting communities you might also be interested in;
• Status updates and content shared by your connections;
• Engagement activities such as likes, comments, and shares;
• Job postings and company news.
This dynamic exchange of information makes LinkedIn an indispensable tool for professionals seeking to deepen business relationships and stay abreast of industry trends and opportunities.
Author
Graham is the CEO of Taxoo.
He is a Serial Start-up Entrepreneur, Investor and Multiple Business Owner. He has vast experience in Marketing, Business Management and UK Foreign Investment. He has multiple qualifications in both Law, Post Grad Marketing and is a Chartered Marketer and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
He is also the CEO of Lawble, Xpats.io, HR Hype and Rokman Media.
