| Back to Home > Bulletin Board > Beginner Issues > Topic: LinkedIn etiquette |
Topic: LinkedIn etiquette
| Author | Message |
| Unemployed-gal | Posted – 2/26/2008 6:51:34 PM | show profile I joined LinkedIn about six weeks ago, and since then I've been trying to get a feel for the website and how to use it properly: inviting former and current coworkers, and people I've networked with in publishing over the past two years. But I have a few questions, that I was hoping someone here (or several people here) could help me with. When I first signed up, I invited a former coworker to be a connection--but she still hasn't accepted my request. I know it sounds juvenile, but I feel kind of bad for inviting her (it's a small company, so it's not as though she didn't know me; and I left only about six months ago on pretty good terms with everyone). Am I wrong to worry so much about this kind of thing? I kind of feel like the unpopular girl I was in high school! Also, what's polite in terms of inviting people to be connections? I've invited those people I know well, but how about people you've only met once or twice? Is it presumptuous? And what about linking with hiring managers you've met before? Any insight about LinkedIn is greatly appreciated! |
| kim780 | Posted – 2/26/2008 8:20:58 PM | show profile linked in is great! yeah, the same thing has happened to me- well, actually worse. i asked a former co-worker to be a connection and she responded that she didn't know me. ha! she was a bit of a freak, so i'm not surprised. don't worry about stuff like this. very often the person will never get the email notification that they have a connection request and many people have profiles, but aren't very active. i think you should definitely ask people you have only met a couple times to be your friend- that's the whole point of the website. the more people you are connected to, the better. i think linking to hiring managers unless they hired you or are overly friendly with you is a bit presumptuous. |
| observer | Posted – 2/26/2008 8:21:01 PM | show profile i'd only invite people you know well enough and have worked with on a project or two. i'm not too sure how the linking goes but there have been a few instances where i never received an e-mail alert and then after logging in and going to my inbox did i see the invitations. additionally, there have been some people i sent invitations to who finally accepted weeks or a month later. hope this helps |
| Cyrus | Posted – 2/26/2008 8:22:53 PM | show profile Things like you experienced happen for a lot of reasons, so I wouldn't worry that much about it. Odds are, (s)he's uncomfortable by the fact that you might ask him/her for a recommendation or try to capitalize on a connection. Some people feel embittered after a co-worker leaves, wishing they could move on too, so that may also explain it. As far as connections, stick to only asking people you really know to connect because you want to know they'll speak favorably of you. Bottom line: I'm not sure anyone's making much money or getting new biz from it yet, but it's will be a valuable tool over the long term hopefully. ------ Cyrus Afzali Astoria Communications www.astoriacomm.com |
| Yam | Posted – 2/26/2008 8:28:56 PM | show profile Or maybe she hasn't gotten to it yet? Personally, I go through phases with LinkedIn and sometimes go a couple of months without checking it. |
| WritingEd | Posted – 2/26/2008 11:30:39 PM | show profile A related issue I've discovered if PR people and sources I've worked with on only a single article inviting me to be their connection. Sometimes these are people I've only dealt with via email, and not in a way that became personal or conversational. I think LinkedIn defines connections as people you've worked with whom you trust, so it's a tough call--especially if it's someone I think I may need to call on again. I have accepted a couple of these invites for that reason and not accepted a few when I noticed that the person inviting me has like 500 or some other astronomical number of connections (meaning he or she probably invites everyone and their mother!). |
| globetrotter78 | Posted – 2/26/2008 11:57:27 PM | show profile Maybe the request went to her spam filter and she didn't pull it out. Maybe she doesn't want to join. Maybe they are out of the office on extended leave. Who cares. Move on. There are thousands and thousands of people on LinkedIn -- what does it matter that this particular person didn't join your network???? |
| mumbo jumbo | Posted – 2/27/2008 12:26:56 AM | show profile I've been asked to join Linked in and I just haven't. I'm afraid I'll get a lot of solicitations that I don't want or am in no position to act on. I already get plenty of junk in my email at work and really don't want anymore. Can anyone here tell me what value they've derived from Linked In? |
| WritingEd | Posted – 2/27/2008 9:31:03 AM | show profile I don't think being active on LinkedIn has increased my spam at all. I have introduced friends to friends and this once resulted in a job offer. Many writers I use frequently know other writers I work with and that's been helpful to know (a reminder that freelancers are talking and sharing experiences, probably about particular editors). Writers I know have used LinkedIn to ask connections for help finding story features through the site's Q&A feature. Overall I just think it's smart to have a profile and network set up. You never know when you'll be able to help someone out or have to ask for help yourself. Facebook is for fun, LinkedIn is an investment (of time) in your professional life. To be honest, I am surprised how many job hunters I know who haven't taken the time to do a full profile and invite others to join. |
| WritingEd | Posted – 2/27/2008 9:33:51 AM | show profile mumbo jumbo, I just want to add that I use my personal email for LinkedIn. With the possibility of job opportunity talk (and the fact that it's something for me rather than for my company), it makes so sense to use work email. (although a surprising number of people don't care about that) |
| Unemployed-gal | Posted – 2/27/2008 9:52:50 AM | show profile Thanks for all the responses. As I said, I kind of feel like that needy chick with the former coworker! I'm definitely new to all this, so thanks for the imput. (well, I'm on facebook, but that's a whole 'nother story). Another question, though: has anyone seen long-term benefit from using LinkedIn? Ie, have you gotten jobs or the like through connections on there? |
| foodlit | Posted – 2/27/2008 10:47:45 AM | show profile | email poster An amazing resource People use LinkedIn in different ways, but honestly, it's a free resource that can only benefit you so I would highly suggest putting up a detailed profile and build a network. LinkedIn is for networking, and know that if you don't use it, your competition does. Also, keep in mind that the best time to build a network is when you don't really need one. Then when you do, it's there, and you can tap into it. I have over 1000 direct connections, so you would think that I'd be slammed with requests. I'm not at all. I just steadily receive invites and probably accept about half of them. If the invite is just a one liner, 'You're a person I trust and would love to connect with you.' Unless I know that person, I usually just archive. I do accept invites from people with detailed profiles that look interesting, or that write me a personal note saying why they want to connect. As an fyi, it's considered the polite thing to do not to hit I don't know this person....because that penalizes the sender. A better option is to just hit 'archive'. That sends the invite away and doesn't penalize anyone. So, how does LinkedIn work and how does it benefit you? Well, I joined a few years ago, and then ignored LinkedIn completely for over a year. Until a friend, the one who had initially invited me, told me how he was using LinkedIn, and then I also started hearing that it was a great resource for people like me, headhunters. The way my friend used it, was when he was laid off from a dot.com and was on the job search. He looked through his network, sent out a note letting everyone know he was on the market and to give him a heads up if they heard of anything. He got interviews this way, and also, when he had interviews scheduled, he'd look through his network to see if anyone worked or had worked at that company and he'd shoot them a note asking for their insight. This led to additional interviews and great info on the companies and he had several offers to pick from...and this was several years ago when the market in tech wasn't as strong as it is now. (That sounds odd, but here in MA the tech market is better now than a few years ago). So, how do I use LinkedIn? Here's an example....the first time I tried to consciously use it for recruiting. I had a very tough needle in a haystack search for someone with a Library Science degree who was also outgoing and had managed people and was technical with data. I was given a list of companies. Did a search on LinkedIn of people who had worked there, and sent some inmails, maybe 5 or so, several were at a former client of mine from years ago that were in a similar space. I heard back from one woman who said she was too senior level but that she knew people. She gave me a list of 4 to call and said, call her first, she's perfect. She was, and got the job, and I received a $20k fee. That was the first of many placements that came as a direct result of networking on LinkedIn. LinkedIn also gives you the option to make it clear what kind of contact you are open to. So, you can check 'career opportunities' if you want to hear about jobs. Or not. If you don't want to be contacted by headhunters, then don't put as much info in your profile, don't check open to career opportunities and you can even put a note saying, "I am not interested in a career move, please do not call or email me." However, if you are open, do the opposite, and include your contact info, a cell number or home email so you can be reached. I know many others who have connected with new clients as well via LinkedIn and facebook too. Regarding linking w/hiring managers you've met before, I think that is presumptuous. It's fine if they invite you, but they might think it odd, pushy even if you invite them after only meeting them once or twice. The strength of LinkedIn is the connection to your direct connections people. You have access to two levels of connections and you never know who knows who. I think you have greater success with LinkedIn when you connect to people who are in your general field, but are not people you're likely to solicit work from. You don't want to seem opportunistic so that the person is hesitant to connect with you. For example a PR person who invites an editor to connect....one that she's tried to work with. That editor might be hesitant to accept the invite, fearing more solicitations. The PR person might have better luck connecting with a designer for instance and you never know who is in that designers network...maybe an editor that she will click with. Hope that helps! If anyone wants to connect with me, shoot me an invite. pamclaughton@comcast.net http://www.linkedin.com/in/pamclaughton |
| editordebit | Posted – 2/27/2008 5:22:19 PM | show profile I have had invitations *months* old get accepted eventually. I think lots of people just don't do that much with LinkedIn, as others said. In fact, I came in and asked a co-worker once, "Hey, is that you on LinkedIn?" and he said "no" at first, and then, "Oh, yeah, that is me! I forgot I did that." I almost always give people an "out" when I invite them: usually it's someone I know socially, so I say if they want to stick to business contacts only, that's perfectly fine. So far no one has said no, though I've had several fail to respond. |
