Quick Tip Tuesday: How to remove LinkedIn connections

Recently, I was part of another iteration of the ongoing debate about whether it’s better to be expansive in choosing LinkedIn connections or more restrictive. My take is that less is more. You can read why I believe so here and here, but it’s really pretty simple: in order to provide the most value to those who are likely to provide you with the best opportunities, you can’t spread yourself too thin. The possibilities inherent an ever-growing network are great, but they don’t overshadow the possibilities inherent in reinvesting time and effort in the relationships most important to you. The hypothetical limit on the number of connections you can make is infinite; time and attention, however, are very much finite.

If you buy into that logic, it may be appropriate to remove the occasional LinkedIn connection: someone you never should have connected with in the first place, no longer have a good reason to stay connected with (a side note: I do believe that when in doubt between keeping people in your network or removing  them, you should retain them), or who is taking time away from those with whom you’d rather stay more closely connected. How you do that on LinkedIn, however, isn’t immediately apparent. With that in mind, here’s a short video that shows you how to remove a connection, when it’s time to say goodbye.

Will LinkedIn Contacts replace your address book?

For years, I’ve encouraged people to use LinkedIn as their address book, thereby avoiding all the labor that comes with updating their contacts’ information. Now, LinkedIn has improved upon that idea by introducing a new app that will bring together email addresses, calendars, and address books in one location. It’s called LinkedIn Contacts.

According to this Los Angeles Times article, LinkedIn Contacts app is currently available for the iPhone and iPad, and an Android app is under development. In addition, LinkedIn is rolling out invites for a web version of Contacts.

I’ll provide a detailed look at LinkedIn Contacts once I see it in action. For now, though, have any Apple users had the chance to try Contacts? If so, share any thoughts in the comments, please.

LinkedIn to host webinar for higher ed professionals

If you work for a college or university and you’re looking to get the most out of LinkedIn, this 30-minute event may be well worth your time:

Post Company Page status updates via HootSuite

LinkedIn Company Pages are a little bit of a mystery to many users. Designed to give organizations an identity of LinkedIn independent of its individual employees, Company Pages have the potential to be a great promotional tool. The challenge, however, is that it’s not yet common for LinkedIn users to follow companies and–perhaps as a consequence–most companies have done little with their Pages. Most don’t, for example, post Company Page status updates, a simple way to connect with followers.

LinkedIn is looking to change that–and a new feature on HootSuite may help. HootSuite users can now post LinkedIn Company Page status updates just as easily as they can post status updates associated with their personal profile. That makes it much easier for LinkedIn Company Page admins to simultaneously share a status update with their individual connections and the company’s followers.

The video below provides an overview. I recently added my company’s page to my Hootsuite account, and it was quick and easy. If you want to do more with your LinkedIn Company Page, this may be a good place to start.

Want to learn more about LinkedIn Company Pages? Join me for “Building a Standout LinkedIn Company Page” on May 7 at Indiana Data Center. Click here to register.

Question of the week: who is your most well known LinkedIn connection?

I was going through my LinkedIn connections a couple of weeks ago and it dawned on me that I have few–if any–“famous” connections. Don’t get me wrong: many are leaders in their community and in their industries, but they’re not household names. Depending on your work, you may know of Jay Baer–I’ve written a couple guest posts for his blog, Convince & Convert–or Chris Brogan–whom I honestly don’t know all that well–but that about as close as I get to being connected with a celebrity.

How about you? Are you connected to anyone you think is especially well known or influential? Name drop in the comments, along with a note about how you know that person. Consider it your one chance for a little refracted glory.

Taking the Pulse of LinkedIn’s ambitions to be a content hub

Last week, LinkedIn announced it will acquire Pulse, a news reader application. If the news made you wonder what use LinkedIn would have for Pulse, it may be helpful to consider it alongside other moves LinkedIn has made during the past couple years:

• The May 2011 launch of LinkedIn Today, which delivers news and perspectives to users based on their industry and interests
• LinkedIn’s May 2012 acquisition of SlideShare, a content sharing site primarily focused on presentations
• The October 2012 launch of its “influencer” initiative, which allows users to follow thought leaders who provide content exclusively to LinkedIn

Perhaps the best evidence, however, is provided by Deep Nishar, LinkedIn’s Senior Vice President, Products & User Experience. As he said in a blog post about the acquisition, LinkedIn wants to be your hub for content creation, distribution, and consumption:

We believe LinkedIn can be the definitive professional publishing platform – where all professionals come to consume content and where publishers come to share their content. Millions of professionals are already starting their day on LinkedIn to glean the professional insights and knowledge they need to make them great at their jobs. We believe we can help all professionals make smarter and more informed business decisions leveraging all the great business knowledge flowing through LinkedIn in the form of news, Influencer posts, industry updates, discussions, comments and more.

So, could LinkedIn serves as your morning newspaper? Well, in a world where Facebook can become an Android user’s home page, it just might be possible–especially if LinkedIn keeps acquiring companies that have build a loyal user base.

Quick Tip Tuesday – What does “LION” mean?

“Lions Raw (roar)” by M Norris on Flickr

If you’ve ever seen the acronym “LION” associated with a LinkedIn user’s profile, you might be wondering what it means. Well, it stands for “Linked In Open Networker.” In short, “LIONs” seek to connect with everyone they can, regardless of whether they have any real-world connection.

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you can probably guess how I feel about “LIONs.” In short, my strong belief is that being a king in the LinkedIn jungle is more a matter of quality of connections than quantity. As always, though, it’s important to remember that different approaches work well for different types users. Another way of putting it: it could be that LIONs, appropriately, are a reflection of the old adage that there’s more than one way to skin a cat.

Join me for “Building a Standout LinkedIn Company Page” on May 7

LinkedIn has earned a reputation as unparalleled in helping professionals enhance their one-on-one relationships. At the same time, it’s been seen as somewhat weak in allowing organizations to build relationships with an audience. Recent changes to LinkedIn Company Pages, however, are changing that–and they’ve become excellent tool for building your brand and connecting with your customers.

The next LinkedInstitute session is designed to help you understand these changes so you can make the most of Company Pages. In this session, we’ll go in-depth and look at the anatomy of great LinkedIn Company Pages, with examples from organizations that are making the most of them. We’ll also focus on how to promote your page so its reaches the right people. You’ll leave with specific tips for building an audience for your Company Page, showcasing your products and services, and keeping your customers and prospects engaged.

Registration is just $45 per person. To learn more, or to reserve your seat, click here.

Building a Standout LinkedIn Company Page
Tuesday, May 7, 6 – 8 p.m.
Indiana Data Center, 620 West Coliseum Blvd., Fort Wayne
$45 per person; register here

Tag connections and companies in your LinkedIn status updates

Last week, LinkedIn announced the introduction of an item that’s been at the top of my wishlist for a long time.

On Thursday, LinkedIn said it’s rolling out a feature that will let users tag their connections and companies they’re following in status updates. That means you can more easily start conversations with those you know and have a better expectation of them joining in. The feature also promises seamless integration with Twitter, converting LinkedIn user names into Twitter handles/at replies.

The slideshow below includes examples of what to expect. If you don’t have this feature yet, you will soon. When you do, let me know what you think–either via a comment here, or by tagging me in a LinkedIn status update.

A recap of my presentation, “LinkedIn in 10 Minutes a Day”

On Monday, I had the pleasure of presenting “LinkedIn in 10 Minutes a Day” to the Rotary Club of Fort Wayne. Here are my slides and a recap of some of the high points:

One of the best attributes of LinkedIn is that it doesn’t require the same time commitment as many other social media platforms because its users have stronger intent. In other words, they’re there to work–not get away from work. 

While there are no shortcuts, and a long-term commitment to LinkedIn is necessary to get results, you can still be effective in a short amount of time each day.

LinkedIn’s not for everyone, but it has very broad appeal because it’s all about enhancing the one thing most professionals rely upon: great relationships.

LinkedIn’s users are focused on business (as opposed to platforms like Facebook and Twitter, which are about everything–and, therefore, about nothing specific). That means you don’t have to work as hard to cut through the clutter if you focus on being a resource to other professionals.

While there’s no one right way to use your 10 minutes on LinkedIn, certain actions have a greater impact than others.

The key is to balance your time between sharing your story and engaging with others.

If you need a speaker for an upcoming event, I’d love to discuss how I can help. Just drop a note in the comments or contact me.