Linkedin seems like one of those networks that most people don’t spend much time on. I think a lot of people figure it is only for those who are searching for a job or who are trying to network in corporate America. With high traffic platforms like Facebook out there, Linkedin sometimes gets overlooked. With over 150 million users, it is far from a ghost town. Linkedin to me suffers from not having a clear message on who it is for, and when it should be used. I think if their brand messaging and interface was more finely tuned more people would be using it.

There is more to Linkedin then you may realize. As a “living resume” it can be used as a tool to keep track of your professional history. Your profile contains employment history, recommendations, skills, and education. You can also see the groups people are part of and their current posts and social media streams. What may surprise people is that it is more than an online resume. Linkedin lets you learn more about the people you are trying to network with, then provides many opportunities within the site to make that connection. You could call it a networking site and that would be accurate, but beyond formal networking it is also a social platform and an opportunity to display your expertise and business.

Linkedin is built around the profile and this is one of the strengths and downfalls. The Linkedin profile is extensive and gives you a lot of indirect information about a person. The downside is people think that is all it is useful for. LinkedIn profiles are really hubs to a lot of secondary information though. A Linkedin profile is like a normal profile with a timeline of information and external input from other people who know the person. I also like that it has a bit of influence measurement built into it as well by seeing how connected the person is and to who. Aside from the extensive profile it is a great tool for researching and meeting people. The groups are focused around professions and topics and the quality of discussion can be exceptional. It does a great job on helping you find new people to connect with and then actually facilitate the connection and development of the relationship around a profession or topic. If you can imagine Twitter as a great tool to target relationships and networking with specific parameters, Linkedin does that plus allows more community targeting so that you can meet people in a group setting.

The interface is not perfect, but the usefulness of the platform is great. It really does fit well into the Facebook,Twitter, Linkedin trifecta. As with any platform the more you understand how it works, what it can do, and how you can use it along with other platforms, the more you will see the value.

If you have ignored Linkedin before take another look at it. I am going to be doing a series on Linkedin where I talk about the various parts of it and some strategies on how to use it for different purposes. Stay tuned and subscribe if you like the quality of our content. Thanks

If we haven’t connected on Linkedin send me request: http://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=20649755&trk=tab_pro

Ross