Most people use
LinkedIn as a tool that they combined with other networking tactics. You don't really network on
LinkedIn, you find people to network with on
LinkedIn and they find you. It isn't setup for chat or anything real-time and probably never will be.
In person, face-to-face interaction is far and away the best networking tactic and I think everyone here agrees. That is what makes a networking EVENT so attractive.
The power of
LinkedIn is in:
1. Finding people based on some type of need/search.
2. Seeing who YOUR connections may know.
3. Getting exposure for yourself to people that you DON'T know.
To be most successful, you should:
1. Have a proper profile for your needs.
2. Know how to search most effectively.
3. Build a decent sized network so your searches can deliver results.
4. Understand the etiquettes on
LinkedIn.
If you want to learn all this in one afternoon, you can visit the Integrated Alliances Web site and find out when the next
LinkedIn workshop is.
Join me on LinkedIn at
www.linkedin.com/in/mikeoneil