Yet over the years I’ve seen some marketers develop several bad
habits on LinkedIn. Thankfully, they’re all easily correctable. Below are some
of my pet peeves:
Posting inspirational quotes and photos. This has become an epidemic on LinkedIn. I’m delighted people have found words of wisdom
to live by, but so have thousands of others. My LinkedIn update river is choked
with photos of sunsets, rainbows, forests, and other picturesque settings with
accompanying motivational thoughts. Facebook really is a more appropriate
venue for these messages. And my heart goes out to the troops serving overseas and kids with cancer, but posting their
photos and asking for likes seems more self-serving than supporting to me. Sharing an article, with some relevant and interesting personal commentary, on these topics would be a much more effective way to demonstrate concern.
Using inappropriate photos. LinkedIn is a professional
networking site and, as such, in many ways it’s an online resume. No one would
clip a selfie to a hard copy resume when applying for a job, so I’m baffled as
to why some think that is appropriate for LinkedIn. The same applies to wedding
photos, vacation shots, pictures with kids, and so on. Of course, we all
have priorities outside of our work lives, as we should, but on LinkedIn photos
should reflect our professional profiles. After all, would you be more inclined
to accept a meeting from someone whose profile shows him on the beach (How
important will my concerns be to him?) or from someone whose professional
head shot conveys a warm appearance and the demeanor that she’s ready to do
business?
Focusing on sales. LinkedIn is a networking community. When
people network in the physical world, it’s about building relationships, not
scoring quick sales. Yet some marketers believe that by posting their latest
special, discount, and so on, they’ll generate easy revenue. Unfortunately, they’re
more likely to be ignored—or even banned from groups. I've fallen into this trap myself. In building long-term sales relationships, I want to demonstrate that I'm a valuable, consultative resource, but using LinkedIn as a megaphone for "Buy This!" won't do that.
Each of these no-nos diminishes a marketer’s reputation and
professional appearance on LinkedIn. The true value of this community is in
building and maintaining relationships. I routinely peruse LinkedIn to see who
has gone where, read interesting articles my network is sharing, set up
meetings when I travel, start a conversation, and announce when my brands
have something educational to share. Focusing on our professional lives,
viewing LinkedIn as a virtual resume, and remembering that this is a public
forum will help any marketer quickly improve his LinkedIn--and overall online--reputation.
