* Please note, this article is still very useful but now slightly old! If you are wondering if LinkedIn is for you, check out our more recent articles on Building a LinkedIn Profile and Building your LinkedIn Network.
LinkedIn is a great and popular way to utilize your own online presence in the professional world. The social networking site allows you to connect, be found and discover other LinkedIn users any time anywhere. There are many reasons to be on LinkedIn which include…
1. Headhunting
With jobs being hard to find these days, finding the right people for these jobs can also be difficult. LinkedIn is a brilliant way to create a work profile of previous experience and jobs that enable employers to easily see and find the right candidates for any vacancies. This gives a LinkedIn user the opportunity to become head-hunted by subject related companies but also allows users to connect with such companies to apply for any jobs they may post through their LinkedIn profile.
2. Business Interaction
With more companies using current networks such as LinkedIn the relationship between you and them becomes easy. With the ability to connect a businesses website to a LinkedIn profile, you are able to interact with the business or any website that may be relevant to your interest from being on LinkedIn. To those of you who own your own business LinkedIn is a great market place to promote and spread the word to others about what you have to offer as a company.
3. Maintain Friendships
As well as using your LinkedIn profile from a business perspective, they are great to also stay connected to those who matter, those from a long distance or those from the class of 69. But who’s to say you have to just connect with those who you know, why not use LinkedIn for the perfect break to meet new and interesting people who you never know might just be your soul mate.
4. Personalisation
One of many reasons to be on LinkedIn is the way you can create a profile to be who you want, whether its to focus on work or personal the profile you create is yours as a place to speak, rant and share. Having an online presence through LinkedIn begins to make you feel like you are part of a social community as you can join groups and discussions that may be of interest.
5. It’s quick, free and easy
Setting up the profile to sum up you is quick, free and easy creating my last but no means least reason to be on LinkedIn. With the site being free to sign up and join there should be no holdbacks in the process of the making of your profile. The profile you create can always be changed or edited to suit the needs of you. But I’m warning you LinkedIn can become addictive.
P.S. reason number 6 (one more than needed) is the fact that nearly everyone is now on LinkedIn, connecting away. And if your not then you’re missing out.
– By Alice Gilder (@AliceGilder), Social Media Content Assistant
