Get the Most Out of Your Social Networks
LinkedIn may be grouped in with Facebook, but it certainly isn’t your daughter’s social media network. Rather than being a way to promote your personal life, it is targeted more towards you and your professional life. You’re on LinkedIn every day, working hard to make connections, but somehow you’re just not gaining the attention you feel you deserve.
The benefits from having a LinkedIn presence are vast, so you may want to think about how you can double your LinkedIn connections. Networking has long been a necessity for those looking to advance their standing in their chosen professional industry. LinkedIn has just streamlined that into an online platform that can be used by everyone. Because of its ease of use, there are ways to double those connections in just five minutes each day.
Regular Visitation
It may be common sense, but you can’t expect to increase your online presence if you don’t access the service each day. Out of the more than 225 million users, only 1/3 login each day. It only takes a few minutes to sit down and login to update your status. While you’re there, take the time to comment on the companies you follow as well as your connections.
In addition to updating your status and profile information, there are other ways to increase your LinkedIn presence. Participating in group discussions once a week, at minimum, is a good idea. If there isn’t an active one pertinent to your line of work, feel free to create your own. You should also consider visiting the “LinkedIn Answers” section and answer questions there as well.
Make Intelligent Connections
The main rule when sending out requests for connections is to never send an invite to someone you don’t know. Doing so could be considered as abuse to the platform. While it is a good idea to send out connection invites at least once a day, you should make sure they are to people you already know. If you don’t know the person you are hoping to make a connection with, have a mutual connection introduce you.
When sending your connection requests, take a second to send a personalized message. The message can be short and to the point, but should also be long enough to make yourself look appealing and interesting. Don’t load it down with generic terminology usually used in resumes; rather you should just let them know who you are and what it you do. Introduce yourself just as you would in person.
Endorsements
LinkedIn endorsements are an excellent way for those looking at your profile to see that your work can be vouched for. The best way to receive quality endorsements are to request them from people that actually know you and can honestly vouch for your work history. Just be sure to return the favor; give people you know an endorsement for work that you have personally witnessed and would recommend. Just as you would in real life, send a message of thanks to those who endorse your work.
Promote
Once you’ve taken the steps above to double your LinkedIn connections, the last thing you need to do is promote your LinkedIn profile. You can do this by adding the link to your profile to your regular advertising and marketing material, adding your user name to business cards and promotional materials, and mention it in conversation with those in your industry.
Lucky for you, all of the suggestions given take very little time out of your busy schedule. Five minutes each day is all it takes to increase your presence on one of the best professional social media networks the Internet has to offer.
Image credit: freedigitalphotos.net/bplanet 
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