Join Discussions with Colleagues and Prospects
Many of you have probably heard the fun fact that Linked In now boasts over 100 million members, the gorilla of all networking groups. But if you want to hang out at a smaller cocktail party of professionals that are related to the growth of your business, you should consider actively participating in Linked In Groups.
Currently there are close to 900,000 such groups whose membership varies from 1 to 377,000. To select groups that will be most effective for your networking goals, use the LinkedIn Directory and search by keywords for your industry, expertise, geography, etc. Another shortcut is to look at the groups listed by your key clients or prospects.
After deciding on the appropriate LinkedIn groups, listen and scroll through popular/engaging conversations:
- Ask questions. The quickest way to engage with others is to ask interesting questions and comment back on others’ responses.
- Answer questions. While blatant product pitching is likely to turn off fellow group members, facts and expertise are respected. If you wish to work in mentions of your company, refer to past client engagements/successes.
- Link to articles or information on your website. You can get traffic, SEO benefits and add depth to your comments.
- Support others. You will quickly get noticed.
And to save time while staying connected, set up LinkedIn’s Digest Email setting. You can get summaries of recent posts daily or weekly.
What has been your experience with LinkedIn Groups? Share in the Comments section below.
 | Jeanne Rossomme – President, RoadMap Marketing Jeanne uses her 20 years of marketing know-how to help small business owners reach their goals. Before becoming an entrepreneur, she held a variety of marketing positions with DuPont and General Electric. Jeanne regularly hosts online webinars and workshops in both English and Spanish. www.roadmapmarketing.com | @roadmapmarketin | More from Jeanne |
Discussion (3) Comment
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The Chemistry ClubVisitor
Hi Jeanne,
I have started using Linkedin for the last 3 years and it really helped me to know more people and find jobs especially. I actively involve with alll my related groups and get connect with other members. This helped me to grow my network and I have now 850 members in my network, which i feel a bit proud of sometimes. Nice article.
StephanieVisitor
I’ve found that asking questions on LinkedIn is one of the best ways to connect with people n my industry in different states or companies. It is also one of the best ways I’ve found to complete research for projects needing input from several sources.
Carole Holden "The Media Fairy"Visitor
I’ve been a LinkedIn member for over 4 years, and really enjoy the group discussions. Asking and answering questions has resulted in new connections and even a few new ‘fans’ for my facebook page and blog.
One discussion became so inundated with spam, it inspired an article that was published in CommPro. Read it here:
http://www.commpro.biz/blog/blog/2011/03/21/linkedin-a-let-down-why-social-media-spam-is-a-blemish-on-pr-and-maketing/