LinkedIn's Latest Update

It is no secret: LinkedIn is the largest professional network available on the Internet. As of August 2011, LinkedIn CEO, Jeff Weiner, could proudly verify that the global network had over 120 million member profiles – with approximately half of these users located in the United States. In addition to individual user profiles, LinkedIn also offers company profiles. Over 2 million public and private corporations are listed on the network, and this number is growing as small businesses begin to make use of the platform.

In the past, company profile pages were a passive communication tool. Individuals would flock to the listings to pull information and statistics – which proved to be especially advantageous for job seekers.


The addition of the "company follow" feature two years ago provided further value, as individuals were able to become more engaged with the companies. Knowing exactly who their followers were in terms of demographics, companies published content that appealed to their audiences. Alternatively, the users that chose to follow provided social proof of the companies' value to them.
Now, LinkedIn has again stepped up their level of engagement. Company pages have added a new feature: company status updates.


These updates are a great marketing tool to begin to utilize. Companies can now directly communicate with their audience by posting corporate news, product releases, promotions and other relevant information. The updates are automatically directed to the followers' homepage news feeds, where the users can choose to engage by commenting, liking and sharing the content with others on their networks.


Updates are a great way to build engagement with current customers, potential employees and prospective clients alike. Many of us have learned to leverage the power of status updates on other social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. When utilized properly, this dynamic information sharing can lead content to "go viral" – an ambition that all marketers share.


Even more good news: LinkedIn has given us two metrics to monitor these conversations. Page administrators can see the number of impressions (the amount of times the update appears on various users' news feeds) and the level of engagement (the percentage of users that decided to click, like, comment or share the content). Using these numbers we can see which content posts users best respond to.

There is one limitation. Status updates can only be posted by the administrators of a company's LinkedIn page. However, if you are not an administrator already it is easy to become one. Connect to one of the current page administrators, and once the connection is made they are

LinkedIn Marketing Debate: Should Your LinkedIn Profile Be in 1st Person or 3rd Person?

Social media sites are more popular than ever and with over 100 million users LinkedIn is in the top five most popular. LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network and is an extremely resourceful tool for job hunters, recruiters, business owners, etc. Once you sign up for a LinkedIn account, you must create your professional profile. The more effective your profile, the more professionals can find you and connect with you.

Below are ten things you can do to enhance your profile so it is the most effective it can be in building your network of connections.

1. Complete the Profile – This is very important in that you do not want a half-done, unprofessional profile. This will not accomplish much in the way of building your network of connections. Complete each section, completely and professionally to make the most of your online professional identity. According to LinkedIn, you are 40% more likely to be found in a LinkedIn search with a 100% completed profile as opposed to one that is not completely finished.

2. Always Use a Photo – There are many people who do not want to use photos for various reasons, but you need to post a photo on your LinkedIn profile to get more results. You do not have to have a professionally taken photo, but you do want it to look professional. People will be more likely to remember your profile, if you present a photo of yourself. Photos can also increase the chances of people trusting you.

3. Use a Persuasive Headline – Don’t just plaster your name and title as your profile headline. Add a short slogan or benefit you provide. Compare the two headlines below and decide which one would capture your interest more.

Jane Doe
Virtual Assistant

Jane Doe
Virtual Assistant – I will free up your time and grow your business.

You don’t even have to add your title, you can just stress the benefits you provide or the skills you possess. Use something that makes you the one to choose.

4. List Your Websites – Be sure to add your URL and/or blog to your profile. You can add up to three urls. Customize the tiles of your links as opposed to My Site, My Blog, etc. You can do this by choosing the “Other” category in the Edit Profile section.

5. Get Recommendations – Having people give you recommendations will increase your chances of being found as well as give people more reason to choose you and/or your business or connect with you. You can ask people who have worked with you or past customers for recommendations. If they like your work/service, they will be glad to give a testimonial. You can also trade with people you would recommend but always remember, your reputation is on the line every time you recommend someone, so don’t ask random people to trade recommendations.

6. Video Presentation – Add a video presentation to your profile highlighting your skills, services, products, etc. You can do this by going to Google Presentations under “More” in the

The Current State Of Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn & Google+ [INFOGRAPHIC]

The social media adoption rate continues to grow at a staggering pace as the big four networks – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+ – gobble up the attention and man-hours of brands and users alike.

Facebook recently announced they had passed 800 million active users. Twitter has at least 200 million registered profiles (more than 254 million, by my count). LinkedIn has 64 million users in North America alone. And still wet-behind-the-ears Google+ picked up 10 million users in about two weeks.

This infographic from creative agency One Lily looks at the state of social media today.

(Source: One Lily. Image credit: nasirkhan via Shutterstock.)

5 Ways to Manage Your Social Media Time

Social media can be an effective tool for connecting with other Internet users and to promote yourself and your business online. If you don't put some strict limits in place, you can find yourself spending far too much time on sites like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. To get the benefits of these sites and continue taking care of business, you need to effectively manage your social media time.


1. Set up a schedule (and stick to it).
Once you start checking out tweets and status updates online, it's very easy to lose track of how long you have been on these sites. By all means respond to comments on your pages promptly, but you may find it helpful to set aside a particular time of day for these activities and to limit the time you spend doing it.


2. Decide what you want to accomplish and make a plan.
You won't be able to reap the benefits of using social media sites if you don't have a clear idea of why you are using them. Make a list of sites that you would like to use and determine exactly what results you want to generate from each one. Make sure that you are setting measurable goals for your social media efforts so that you can track how well this strategy is working for you.
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3. Set up a checklist to keep you on track.
Once you know what you want to accomplish with your social media time, make a list of exactly

A Guide to Etiquette on Social Networks

Social media marketing is a very useful tool in generating awareness about your business. Social networks have become one of the most indispensable tools for any business to have an online presence. There are a number of social networks on the web today, each with a character of its own. It is important that you understand the character of these social networking sites and understand the etiquette that each of these sites require. Some of the accepted standards of etiquette will be discussed in the paragraphs below.


Twitter
One of the most popular social networks on the web, Twitter is used by individuals and businesses alike. Posts in tweeter are available for viewing by a large section of users and an inappropriate post can harm one's reputation. When creating a page for your business, it is important that you do not post text that is irrelevant to your business. You must also remember that tweets made cannot be deleted, so write your words with utmost care.
Another very important tip while using twitter is to refrain from making personal posts using your business page since it can make your business look unprofessional. While including facts relevant to your business or industry is accepted, indulging excessively in self promotion can create a poor image not only of the business but also of its owner. Also make sure your posts do not expose confidential business information and data.
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Facebook
Facebook is also an increasingly popular choice for business to promote themselves online. Entrepreneurs can create an exclusive page for their business and the more "likes" a business gets, the more it strikes a chord with its customers. The site also has its own advertising service, where businesses can post ads about their business. This service works in a similar way to the Pay-per-Click (PPC) campaign of Google.
You can use your Facebook page to create posts articles, links, video and pictures, so make sure you make efficient use of them. It is advisable to refrain from posting pictures and links that have little to do with your business or are pure spam. The same policy should also be followed while posting text- such behavior can reflect poorly on your business.


LinkedIn
It must be known that LinkedIn is quite different as a social network from Facebook and Twitter. While the other two are casual social networks, LinkedIn is an out-and-out social network for

10 Ways to Enhance Your LinkedIn Profile

Social media sites are more popular than ever and with over 100 million users LinkedIn is in the top five most popular. LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network and is an extremely resourceful tool for job hunters, recruiters, business owners, etc. Once you sign up for a LinkedIn account, you must create your professional profile. The more effective your profile, the more professionals can find you and connect with you.

Below are ten things you can do to enhance your profile so it is the most effective it can be in building your network of connections.

1. Complete the Profile – This is very important in that you do not want a half-done, unprofessional profile. This will not accomplish much in the way of building your network of connections. Complete each section, completely and professionally to make the most of your online professional identity. According to LinkedIn, you are 40% more likely to be found in a LinkedIn search with a 100% completed profile as opposed to one that is not completely finished.

2. Always Use a Photo – There are many people who do not want to use photos for various reasons, but you need to post a photo on your LinkedIn profile to get more results. You do not have to have a professionally taken photo, but you do want it to look professional. People will be more likely to remember your profile, if you present a photo of yourself. Photos can also increase the chances of people trusting you.

3. Use a Persuasive Headline – Don’t just plaster your name and title as your profile headline. Add a short slogan or benefit you provide. Compare the two headlines below and decide which one would capture your interest more.

Jane Doe
Virtual Assistant

Jane Doe
Virtual Assistant – I will free up your time and grow your business.

You don’t even have to add your title, you can just stress the benefits you provide or the skills you possess. Use something that makes you the one to choose.

4. List Your Websites – Be sure to add your URL and/or blog to your profile. You can add up to three urls. Customize the tiles of your links as opposed to My Site, My Blog, etc. You can do this by choosing the “Other” category in the Edit Profile section.

5. Get Recommendations – Having people give you recommendations will increase your

How To Use Social Media To Promote Your Small Business

You have a small business and you haven’t bought into the social media craze? Guess what? Silence is no longer an option. People are online talking about your company as you read this, whether you like or not.  If you don’t engage in the conversation, you risk losing your customers. But maybe you don’t have a choice as many small airports do in the State of California and across the United States. Many are owned by cities who don’t give them a dime and yet take money whenever they please. Those city managers force their airport managers to jump through hoops and political red tape to be able to promote their facilities. These airport managers have their hands tied in dealing with counties which just recently decided to launch a website, let alone a social media marketing strategy. So, I was asked by Michael McCarron, Public Information Office for San Francisco International Airport, to speak to the managers of small airports through California about the benefits of having a social media presence, so that they can convince their ‘bosses’ to allow them to open Facebook, Twitter and Google+ accounts, as well as to create blogs.

Here’s part of my presentation. I hope it helps you with your online social media strategy. If You have more ideas, please share them in the comments section at the bottom of the post. The more ideas, the better.

30 imagesGallery: Social Media Overachievers

1. ASSESS YOUR ASSETS: The first action you should take before engaging in online marketing or social media marketing and engagement is to look at what are you’re trying to promote. What are your assets? Who are your target customers? It may seem obvious. But, A Bay Area airport had small planes for rent. But business was slow because they were simply targeting pilots trying to rack-up hours. Turns out there was a larger audience they could target through social media, tourists looking for aerial Bay Area tours. Business took-off.

2. SIGN-UP FOR SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube and LinkedIn. Facebook allows you to create a business page.  Make sure you read the rules for businesses first. You can even ‘create a page’ through your personal account, if your business allows you to do so. That makes it easy for small business owners to manage it. On LinkedIn, every employee becomes your best advocate.

3. FIND A SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER: Managing multiple social networks is daunting. So, before you start posting content, requesting friends and adding followers, sign-up for a social media manager such as Ping.fm and HootSuite. It allows you to manage all of your accounts on one site and schedule your messages to deploy so you don’t have to sit over it all day. It also allows you to review the success of the tweets real-time with click-through statistics. And you can gather all the mentions of your brand, industry or search terms on Twitter through it as well. That’s for the free version. I suggest trying that first. As you get more involved in social media, I prefer SproutSocial.com. You have a choice on plans for nine-dollars to $49. There’s a 30-day free trial to make sure it works for you. What I like is that it allows you to take all of those you follow and the followers and create contacts out of them which you can manage in the system and track engagement. It also has one inbox for all of your messages from all the networks. Plus, it allows you to track check-ins at FourSquare and Gowalla.

4. POST UPDATES: It’s important to have content on your social media pages before you start

LINKEDIN Marketing Database: Should your LinkedIn Profile be in 1st or in 3rd person?

I spend hundreds of hours on LinkedIn every month researching, testing, tweaking and seeing what works and what doesn’t – and that’s on top of the hours I spend marketing my business and my clients’ businesses on LinkedIn. So in a week’s time I view thousands of different professional profiles.

I see people who write their profile in 1st person. Others will write in 3rd person. Even the LinkedIn marketing experts say different things when it comes to whether or not you should write your LinkedIn profile summary in first person or third person

So, today with this article, I am putting the debate to rest. I’m giving you the definitive answer to whether you should write your profile in 1st person or 3rd person – along with the reasons why.

7 Reasons to Put Your LinkedIn Profile in 1st Person and Not 3rd Person

Reason #1:

When you write your LinkedIn profile in 3rd person it reads like a boring resume and seems very technical. Or, it can sound like you are writing a biography which is not very personal or interesting. It does not give the reader a true idea of who you are as a business person, thought leader or individual.

Reason #2:

When you write your LinkedIn profile in 1st person it says to the reader that “I have character and confidence in my abilities. I’m willing to tell you in my own voice.” It tells the reader that you actually wrote your profile in your own words and took the time to personalize it.

Here is an example from one of my clients, Dan Janal, who took the time to pay attention to detail when writing his profile:

“Imagine being featured on the front page of USA TODAY — and then being able to double your speaking fees immediately just like PR LEADS client Patrick Snow of Creating Your Own Destiny. Imagine the website traffic and sales you can generate if only you can find a way to get more publicity so you can speak to millions for free!

Now, small business owners, solo PR firms, speakers, authors and entrepreneurs can get name-brand publicity tools and publicity coaching they can afford. I’m talking about the same top-tier publicity tools that major corporations use to get mega media placements – but you can get it at a fraction of their cost.

For example, my PRLEADS.com service puts you in touch with reporters who are writing articles and need to find expert sources like you! We’re talking journalists from big name publications and media outlets like The Wall Street Journal, CNN, and Redbook.”

You can read Dan’s entire profile at:

http://www.linkedin.com/in/danjanal

Reason #3:

When you write your LinkedIn profile in 3rd person you create an automatic disconnect. It’s too distant and pompous. And, it automatically makes me think of the back cover bio of an author in a book.

MAPPING SOCIAL MEDIA USES

When we talk about how we’re going to use social media to build relationships and sell and things like that, do we ever come out and map what we really mean? In the simplest form, the graphic above represents one iteration of that. Maybe I want to help Josh sell more shirts at Secret Superhero Gear. I can tell people about the stuff. I can ask them to tell their friends –but wait! There’s the first opportunity to think more about this!


If I replace ‘ask them to tell their friends’ with ‘install Facebook LIKE button next to the shirts,’ then I’ve just used social media tools to advance a marketing goal. Let’s carry on. If I want to listen for people who might need a shirt that Josh is selling, I’m sure to be a bit intrusive, but maybe if I listen to people asking about gifts to give, etc, I could politely butt in now and again on Twitter.


If I spend some time on Twitter, on Facebook, on Blogs, on forums where they might care about Josh’s products, then I can look at a more integrated approach to selling.
That last one: “Make someone a hero with it.” I think that’s the gold standard of marketing, isn’t it? My Camaro isn’t just a car. It’s my own personal therapist. It’s my batmobile. I feel like a hero when I get in that car. It makes me a hero. Does your product make your customer the hero? If no, then rethink this.


THIS IS JUST ONE SIMPLE MAP


If I’ve done it right, then I’ve opened your head just a little and now you’ve got some creative ideas brimming with how else you can map the various social media uses. For instance, if you need a lot more inbound links, then you’ll have to make a delectable prize for people to consider linking to, and that prize will have to be remarkable and hero-making for the people you hope will create those links. See how that map would go very much differently than what I gave you up top?


So, what will your maps look like?


ChrisBrogan.com May 20, 2011

Is Social Networking Your Business' Priority?

Let's say you own a small business, would you consider investing on social networking for your business? Some business owners may think it is not clever to bank on social networking efforts but according to numerous business surveys, a good number of small businesses are ready and more than willing to spend money in pursuing their endeavours. If you are one of these risk-takers, then it could be that you are already enjoying the benefits to your business or maybe you're just starting to build a website of your own to pursue this business priority. If you are one of those who decided social networking is not worth your time, money and effort then maybe it is high time for you to re-consider your decisions.


The truth is, social networking as a means of business marketing is very effective and cost-efficient. Numerous reports and figures have told us that between advertising in Facebook and advertising in Google Ads, there are more positive marketing results in the former than the latter. This is one of the many reasons why many businesspeople would spend money just to advertise their products and services there and some even went the extra mile by building a website for their business. These custom-made social media sites may not be as complex and thorough as Facebook but as long as it is able to provide the owners all the tools that they need to interact directly with their customers and provide them all their needs as well as the information that they need to enhance their products and services and therefore provide more satisfaction to their customers, it is good to go.


Joining the social network bandwagon and building a social network website for your business though requires careful planning from your end. You will have to list down every data that you need and how you wanted these data to be gathered, analyzed and transformed into something useful for your company. All of these can be addressed through hiring a good developer who can assist you in your efforts, or better yet, you can start shopping for different software available online and try it yourself. The latter choice will be advantageous for you if you wanted to have complete control over your social networking site and learn a lot of new things along the way. If you don't have much time to spare though, it may be wiser to tap someone to do it for you. Whichever is which, be assured that creating your very own site for your business is but a great decision that you will never regret.


Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nico_Kurniawan
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6428811

LinkedIn: An All-In-One Job Source

Facebook has taken the world of social networking to places that no one had ever imagined. Having access to millions of people worldwide from the convenience of your own computer, is an amazing feeling. It has allowed us all to reconnect and stay connected to family and friends across the nation and the world. The social connections that have come about as a result are beyond imagination. Just imagine the same ability to network on a business level that is now possible with the upcoming network site LinkedIn.


Although not as well-known yet, LinkedIn is doing for business networking what Facebook has done for social networking. It is a site that allows people to connect in a professional manner through across, and within, industries to further their careers, or business relations. Unlike Facebook, the information is well categorized by business related categories such as "education", "experience", and business related accomplishments and accreditation. LinkedIn makes it easy to search through individuals instantly to find the right people for a position or that you are intending to connect with for business related reasons.


LinkedIn is an all-in-one job source. It has a professional blog that gives you a leg-up on trending industries and tips to further your career and to stay ahead of the competition. It also has its own job posting site if you are yourself looking to hire a new employee or if you are researching a new career or position. The industries are broken down by area of expertise, making the job search easy and convenient. Also available are expert opinions to help you to recognize what employers are looking for in a candidate. Sometimes finding the right niche to make yourself marketable is difficult. Knowing what the new workplace is searching for is an important part of knowing how to market yourself. The experts on LinkedIn give you insight into how to present yourself in the right light to set yourself apart from the rest.

Online Marketing Through Social Networking Sites (Part 2)

Keep it Real
Just as with every new communication technology, there are those who use the medium in overbearing, unwanted ways. Social networking sites are no different. The key term here is “networking,” give and take. According to Bob Baker, author of MySpace Music Marketing, social networking success stories have one thing in common: “They’re all about the ping-pong effect ? It’s you sharing yourself with and getting to know dozens, and then perhaps hundreds of people. In turn, those people mention you to their friends.”


It’s NOT about posting, sending and otherwise spamming hundreds or thousands of others. Because interaction is a key feature of these sites, the potential for backlash is enormous. Social networking sites are back-and-forth communication forums, not broadcast media. Annoy or abuse people and they’ll tell the world.


So what can you do on these sites? How exactly does one share his/herself and get to know people?


Basic Online Marketing Principles
There are certain basic online marketing principles that apply when networking online. Among them:
- First and foremost, no spam. Communication should be individual and meaningful, not bulk, impersonal nonsense.
- On a related note, do not use automated software to post generic comments or messages in bulk.
- When emailing or messaging, unobtrusively remind people of what you do through your signature. Include your name; clickable Website URL; tagline or short mission statement; and/or other contact information in the signature.


Finding Connections
—– Sidebar on Terminology. Those you connect with are termed differently across different social networking sites. “Friends,” “connections,” your “network” and “subscribers” all describe online associates. Here, I use “network” and “connections.” —–


A critical component of successful networking (both in the physical and cyber worlds) is finding quality connections. On social networking sites, first think about the types of people you want to connect with (see “Whom to Interact With” in part 1. Then use a variety of methods to find them:
- Use the site’s search features to find connections by their psychographic or demographic features (religion, age, gender, geographic location, interests, likes/dislikes, etc.)
- Each time you find a new connection, look for additional connections in her or his network.
- Study comments on your connections’ pages ? or those outside your network with similar interests ? for potential new connections.


Approaching People to Become a Part of your Online Network
After finding potential connections, approach them about becoming part of your network. Ways

Online Marketing Through Social Networking Sites

Social networking online is one of today’s hottest trends. Many, however, wonder how social networking can help their careers or businesses and exactly how to get started with this online marketing technique. Here in part 1, I will help you get started. In part 2, I will explain some techniques for expanding your presence and building a quality network of online contacts.


What is Online Social Networking?
From a conceptual standpoint, online social networking is no different than traditional networking and socializing. You meet people and get to know them by sharing information about each other. Those you like and/or share interests with become part of your “network.” The marketing magic kicks in when those in your network start talking about you. Your reputation spreads by word-of-mouth.


The Internet and related technology have taken networking to the next level, expanding each individual’s reach and exposure through online marketing. Where traditionally people gather in person to network–at the same time and place as others–members of online networking groups are not limited by time or geography. Each group member can interact 24/7 from any location worldwide. Consequently, online networking techniques are very different from in-person networking.


How To Interact Through Social Networking
Ways to interact are numerous. The first order of business is to decide what your marketing goals are with respect to social networking. While “finding new friends” is a sufficient personal reason for social networking, business marketing goals need to be more specific. Are you an individual looking for a job or freelance work? Do you want to gain exposure for your product, brand or company? Are you looking for potential employees or contractors? Do you want to get prospects interested enough to visit your Website or contact you? Your goals will dictate what you put on your profile and social networking home page, as well as who you look for to become part of your network.


After you’ve decided on your purpose for online networking, choose which social networking Website(s) you will participate in.


Where to Network Online
You can find a comprehensive list of social networking sites here, at Wikipedia. I am familiar with those listed below. They will give you an idea of the range of opportunities you will find at social networking Websites:


Yahoo! 360 (360.yahoo.com): Yahoo!’s social networking site is in beta as of this writing. The unique feature here is your Yahoo! 360 space is cross-promoted with other Yahoo! products, such as with your reviews on Yahoo! Local and your Yahoo! Groups. Like many social

Social media butterflies just can’t take a break

Even on vacation, they feel pressure to feed the Facebook and Twitter beasts

As a full-time mother, Yara Marquez doesn’t have a boss. But when she goes on vacation, she has work to do beyond caring for her 1-year-old son. “If I’m not on Facebook, I don’t feel like I’m doing my job,’’ said Marquez, 22, of Waltham.


If she takes a few hours off - at the insistance of her annoyed grandmother - her personal taskmasters are quick with negative performance reviews. “Why haven’t you hit me up?’’ friends write on her Facebook wall. Or: “You’re lost!’’


For years, employees have been complaining about bosses who expect them to respond to e-mail or meet other online demands even when they are on vacation. But now some people are feeling social pressure to stay on the grid.


“People expect you to be available,’’ said Rich Ling, author of “New Tech, New Ties: How Mobile Communication Is Reshaping Social Cohesion.’’ “It’s become taken for granted you are accessible.’’


Statistics on holiday travelers who feel compelled to feed the Twitter beast or respond to friends’ texts are hard to come by. But smartphone penetration has hit 35 percent of the adult population, according to a study by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project.


And in a recent online survey of 1,000 US adults, 54 percent say they use social media on vacation, up from 28 percent in 2010. The survey was commissioned by Marriott.


Expectations for staying in touch are so high that some people feel the need to send out a preemptive variation of the “out of the office’’ auto response.


“I’ve seen people declare, ‘I’m going to be gone for two weeks, so you won’t see me on Twitter or Facebook,’ ’’ said Andrew J. Rosenthal, an MBA student at Harvard Business School. “They’ve built such a strong day-to-day relationship with their followers they need to let them know when they’re leaving town.’’


Few are better positioned to see vacationers’ fear of falling out of the loop than Joe Fernandez, the chief executive and cofounder of Klout, an online firm that measures users’ influence on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. He regularly hears from people who are despondent, or even angry, that their Klout scores dropped while they took a break.


“Leave town for 3 days for a funeral and my @Klout score drops 8 points,’’ tweeted @asimpson920. “How quickly I am forgotten.’’

A Crash Course on Social Networking

If you are unfamiliar with social networking it can be a bit intimidating at first. There are numerous sites online that you might find that you're at a loss knowing which to sign up for, how to use them, and what each is about. This crash course will help you to learn about each social network before you even begin.


Facebook
Without a doubt this is the largest social networking website either in the US or Europe. Main features include the ability for you to add friends and keep in touch while at the same time being able to see a constant stream of news to keep you abreast of what is going on with those around you.


The phrase "Facebook me" has become a common thing to hear. Facebook enables you to keep in touch with other people with whom you might have lost contact with.


Twitter
Using quick, sound-bite sized 140 character messages called Tweets. These can be made up of anything from business tips to general life titbits.


It makes use of what is called a "following" system meaning that you can "follow" others by viewing their Tweets and they in turn can follow yours.


Blogging
This option means that practically anybody can publish a website without much hassle. Blogging allows people to start a website and soon rank in the search engines. They can publish their ideas and so be of help to many other people who read what they write.


The word 'blog' is short for 'Web Log' and is essentially an online journal. Compared with other sites blogs tend to be updated more frequently.


LinkedIn
This option is basically like Facebook for professionals. Here you can upload your resume, employment experience, references, testimonials, and enjoy professional online relationships.


A LinkedIn profile can actually be even more relevant than you physical resume in certain cases, especially for those who are involved in tech related industries.

If you haven’t yet been to LinkedIn, it’s like the professional version of Facebook. Instead of listing your favorite movies and music, you list your past jobs and skills. Instead of a wall, past employers and coworkers can write public recommendations for you.


Your LinkedIn profile should be more than just a duplicate of your print resume/CV. You have the room to elaborate, and it’s a great opportunity to network with individuals who were nearly impossible to reach before. I’ll talk about utilizing the networking opportunities of LinkedIn in a separate article.


Creating an account and profile are pretty self-explanatory, so I’m not going to elaborate on the technical details. For those of you with LinkedIn accounts, you should already know the basics. I’ve created a LinkedIn account for an imaginary “Marion Appleby” so you can see the sections I’m referring to.


LinkedIn Profile Summary
This is your elevator pitch. It’s important to add substance to this section because it’s the first block of text people will see, and then they might skim over your work experience. Don’t only summarize your past experience; discuss your goals, what type of work you’re passionate about, and what your biggest accomplishments have been.


Specialties
Highlight the specific skills you have in keyword form, separated by commas, like this:
marketing, branding, quality analysis, website design, media buying, recruiting, graphic design


Experience
Don’t just list the companies you’ve worked for here. For each job you’ve had briefly describe what the company does and what you did there. This includes the job you currently hold. The content here should be similar to what you would write on your resume, except you can elaborate more because you don’t have to fit it onto a 8 1/2 by 11 sheet of paper.


Education
List your relevant coursework in this section if it’s relevant to the types of jobs/opportunities

Social Media Statistics 2011

Our good friend Eric Qualman, the Socialnomics author who has made a name for himself by creating short, entertaining videos jam-packed with social media statistics, is at it again. His original video, the "Social Media Revolution", now has 2.8 million views.


Today, Qualman released his newest video, "Social Media Statistics 2011." Check it out:


Some of the most interesting statistics in the video include:


1. If Facebook were a country, it would be the world's third largest.


2. A new member joins LinkedIn every second.


3. 50 percent of mobile internet traffic in the UK is Facebook.


4. Social Gamers will buy $6 billion in virtual goods by 2013.


5. YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world.


What statistics do you find most interesting?



Read more: http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/16121/Social-Media-Statistics-2011-Video.aspx#ixzz1Omi7WrIm

4 Unique Ways to Get Traffic to Your Blog from LinkedIn Answers

LinkedIn is a great social network for small and large businesses to reach out to relevant prospective customers. LinkedIn Answers in particular allows you to find people publicly stating that they have a specific problem or need that your product or service would solve. It’s pretty awesome.




What’s even more awesome is that you can get high-quality traffic to your blog from LinkedIn Answers, and get some really qualified leads as well. Here’s what you can do:


1. Create a New Blog Post in Response to a Question

Instead of simply answering the question in full right on LinkedIn Answers, create a remarkable blog post answering that user’s question. Then reply to that question within LinkedIn Answers
with a summary of your answer, and let the user know that you’ve created a detailed and helpful post to answer their question. Something like: “Your question inspired me to write a blog post on the subject, and I’ve provided even deeper analysis over there: (insert link). Let me know if you find it helpful, or if you have any more questions!” Also enter this link in a “Web Resources” field, as you can’t create linkable text within the Answer text field. Going above and beyond will show potential customers that you really do care about helping them.






2. Answer a Question Linking to Relevant Existing Posts

When linking to your own blog within LinkedIn Answers, be careful not to be spammy. Create a new law for yourself: “I am only allowed to link to my blog if I include insightful information in my

Five Things to Do on LinkedIN

Thanks to www.chrisbrogan.com

Lots of people have a profile on LinkedIN, but they’re note exactly sure what to do after they put in all their past job information. Here are five things you can do to make your experience with LinkedIN better, once you’ve set up your profile.


Invite Others


LinkedIN has a strong tool to import your address books and then select people to invite to connect with you. You can import from Outlook, Google, Yahoo, Hotmail, and several more. So do it. Connect to people, and invite a bunch of people that you know to connect with you and to try the service. More connections means more future opportunities.


Launch a Recommendation Campaign


Reach out to connections on LinkedIN that you know reasonably well and offer to write them a recommendation. Ask if they’re willing to recommend you in return. **Note: it really is important that you ask for recommendations from people you know fairly well. Though LinkedIN and I differ on how to add connections, I believe FIRMLY that you have to know the details of someone’s job and a strong understanding of how that individual performed in it before you can write or ask for a recommendation.


Reread Your Profile


Does your profile state what you’ve done, or what you CAN DO for someone else? If it’s A, rewrite. If it’s B, pat yourself on the back. Make sure you blend your job description with your future value to an organization.


Answer some Questions


I’m finding that by answering questions of either my colleagues or people in the twice-removed

Power Up Your LinkedIN Profile

Thanks to http://www.chrisbrogan.com/

If you want to power up your LinkedIN profile, there’s a one-two punch that matters in getting the most out of the software. If you want to make that platform work for you, do these two things once a week:


Edit your profile.
Write 5 recommendations.


Edit Your Profile
I promise that you haven’t probably written your LinkedIn profile for your future. I bet you haven’t made LinkedIn work for you. Those two things matter. Is your profile concise? Does it tell people what you want to do with them? Mine doesn’t right now. I just looked in and it’s crappy. I have to update it. Do the same with yours.




Write 5 Recommendations
First off, only write recommendations if you can honestly vouch for the person you’re writing it for, and only if you want your endorsement to reflect on who YOU are, too. Want some more LinkedIn recommendation tips?


Second, write recommendations that are punchy, powerful, dynamic, and sell the person you’re hoping to recommend. If it’s a tepid recommendation, don’t bother.