“HOW DO YOU BUILD A CREDIBLE AND SALABLE LinkedIn PROFILE? Why Do You Need Recommendations?”

WHY RECOMMENDATIONS?

Short Answer: Your credentials count ginormously to provide credibility for your expertise. However, when you are being considered for a position where you are rendering specific services, such as any type of consulting, speaking, etc., what past clients say about your performance weighs in more heavily than anything you could possibly say about yourself. Recommendations or testimonials furnish that weight.

WHAT ARE RECOMMENDATIONS?

(BLOAT ALERT: This is the beginning of the bloated answer that consumes the rest of this blog.)

On LinkedIn, recommendations are important, to the extent that your profile will not be considered “complete” until you have at least 3. But LinkedIn’s notion of “recommendation” is more akin to what is known as a “testimonial” in the business community, not what we know as a recommendation.

Academic Recommendations. We’ve all had letters of recommendation written for us when we apply for a position or are being reviewed for promotion. They’re usually a couple of pages in length detailing our most amazing characteristics and accomplishments and structured according to the position or promotion criteria. That’s not a Linkedin recommendation.

LinkedIn’s Version. LinkedIn’s “Recommendation” is much shorter and has a specific purpose. It can range from 1 or 2 sentences to a long paragraph. The concept is: “What credible authorities say about your performance counts far more than what you could ever say.” This is consistent with the 360 degree multisource feedback model used in businesses to evaluate employees. Those in the best and, preferably, highest positions to observe what you do should be the ones to scribe the recommendations. They can document your dazzling performance. Here the emphasis is usually on the specific performance at one time or collectively over multiple experiences.

Who Should Write It? It can be a

(1) colleague or administrator in your department,
(2) the person who hired you to consult or speak, or
(3) a faculty or staff member, or student who was on the receiving end of your services.

People in different roles provide multiple perspectives on your performance. My recommendations on LinkedIn and my Website represent all of the above.

These professionals can describe what you do, how you do it, and the value and impact of your contributions. The last-named element is especially important. Does your work produce any visible results, change, or impact? When you leave, does the client say: Who was what's-his-name?" OR "Who was that masked woman." (NOTE: The person writing the recommendation MUST be a connection in your network; otherwise, it cannot be posted. Only that colleague can post it.)

What’s Next? I will take you through the steps to request, write, and post a recommendation. I have lost several recommendations because colleagues gave up on the process.

COPYRIGHT © 2010 Ronald A. Berk, LLC

HOW DO YOU WRITE A PROFESSOR-TYPE ELEVATOR SPEECH? Part 2

Here’s the final ingredient in your recipe for an effective elevator spiel:

3. FOLLOW-UP (How can you follow-up and maintain contact?): Most first-time encounters are superficial how-do-you-do events with no follow-up. You probably will see them again only in your dreams. Here we’re trying to build relationships. You need to go one step further to continue the initial contact. Make an effort to follow-up. At the end, don’t forget to

a. ask for a business card, e-mail address, or info on the session he or she is presenting so you can attend,
b. give an invitation to join your LinkedIn professional network, your session at the conference, a reception your institution is sponsoring, or to collaborate on something, and/or
c. schedule a follow-up meeting at the conference, preferably over a beverage or food.

Example 1: “I’ll be doing a session here tomorrow on that topic at 1:30. Here’s my card. May I have your card? I’ll contact you about joining my network on LinkedIn so we can stay in touch. I hope to see you at my session tomorrow.” (Note follow-ups with session invite, card, LinkedIn, and session reminder.)
Example 2: “I’m doing a workshop on a few of them on Thurs. at 10AM. Here’s my card. Do you have a card? Let me know if I can help your faculty. Here’s an invitation to my university’s reception tonight. See you there.” (Note  card and invites to session, to help, and to reception.)

What do you think? Are the examples and focus of the spiel any different than what you’re already doing? Let me know your thoughts.

The next blog in this series will tie these examples together and address the delivery of the speech. There will also be a bonus example suggested. See you Mon. It’s time for a snack.

Have a blast this weekend! Also, don’t forget to set your watches and clocks to daylight savings time, if that applies; otherwise, you’ll be an hour late to my blog. Buhbye!

COPYRIGHT © 2010 Ronald A. Berk, LLC