Guest AuthorShital Kakkar Mehra
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Why should I join LinkedIn?

By | Shital Kakkar Mehra | Executive Presence Coach for CEOs I Business Communication Expert I Best-selling Author I Co-Founder Katalyst, NGO

When I ask professionals why they aren’t on LinkedIn, the most common reply I receive is “I’m not job-hunting”. While yes it’s a great way to pick up a job, there are several other benefits as well: 

  1. Improves your visibility: LI is the Google for professionals who aren’t ranked high on Google e.g. if you aren’t senior enough to be on your company’s website or your industry doesn’t make frequent news, people will have trouble finding you on the internet. 

2. Creates Impact: In real life it takes 10 seconds to create a great impression, online it’s much shorter. A businessperson will Google your name, click on the top 2 results and decide if it’s worth reading more about you. LI usually appears on this shortlist, offering a standardised format of your credentials. 

3. Updates Address Book: People change cities/ jobs but rarely send emails informing others. By updating a single page, you can inform your entire network about your move. 

4. Power of the Visual: When meeting a person for business, a quick check of their photograph helps me identify him/her in the group of strangers seated in the conference room. 

5. Small Talk Tool: Assume you’re meeting the Director Marketing of a company for business. By visiting his online profile, you know his school, his college, the companies he’s worked with, his current role, etc. In short, it prepares you better for the meeting, providing vital information to help strike up a conversation. 

6. I-the-Brand: As you’ll show up as a contact on your associates’ LI pages, it improves your online brand. 

7. Free Career Insurance: A business network like LI is your insurance for your future career growth, ensuring you appear on the radars of both head-hunters and future employers. 

8. “Relationships Matter”: By helping others connect with your contacts and do business, you deepen the bonds with your existing network. 

9. Reconnect: With old colleagues/ classmates and business associates. 

Clearly, being in LI is a valuable online networking opportunity. After all, business is not just what you know but also who you know.

Republished with permission and originally published at Shital Kakkar Mehra’s LinkedIn

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