Quote:
Originally Posted by David Sandusky
Online networkers CAN speak and get to know the members. Most users start with contacts they know and use the tool to generate more contact and specific needs. When new contacts connect over a job opportunity or business deal, or re-connecting - they tend to talk and meet. I personally have been found to discuss my business offering, request to speak and I found candidates for executive searches using LinkedIn.
If I had to guess, my contacts on LinkedIn are 60/40, men. Close, I would guess to the break-up in my executive contacts in Outlook. In my exerience networking in person and online, I would generally agree with the charactoristics mentioned; I wonder how many women list the number of connections in their profile. But I would recommend that women everywhere take advantage of the opportunty to be found and find others needed for the initial contact and, then, meet!
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Sometime ago, I read in the Denver Business Journal (one of my top networking resources) about a company out of the northwest planning to open a branch in Denver. It was a retail establishment with a demographic that fit the radio station at which I was selling advertising. Instead of doing the "gatekeeper dance" trying to get to a person whose name I didn't know, I logged onto LinkedIn. I put in the company name and city and found the name of the Marketing VP separated from me by one person - who I know very well and who knows the Marketing VP very well. I got the warm intro, we had great conversations, they came to Denver, I put them on the air, I got a nice commission, I'm in regular contact with her. Because of my connection to her through LinkedIn and the relationship that followed, I am the only "local rep" she allows to contact her without first going through their agency. We've never met face to face and only 3 times have spoken by phone.
You don't have to have 10,000 contacts in LinkedIn - you don't even need 100. You just need to recognize it as a tool to build whatever it is you're building and pull it out of the box and use it.
This very savvy business executive woman recognized its power, wanted to be found, and it worked - for both of us.