Most of the social networks that you find on the Internet are primarily geared toward, well, socializing. Businesses may be capitalizing on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube to drum up brand awareness, but these social media channels weren’t originally meant for this purpose. They were meant to be used by individuals to share their thoughts and stories with other individuals. LinkedIn is different. Rather than being a place where you share funny cat videos or pictures of your lunch, LinkedIn is the so-called “professional” social network.
Admittedly, I don’t spend nearly as much on LinkedIn as I do on Facebook and Twitter, but I do recognize some of its value from a professional standpoint. Some of the business contacts that I make may not necessarily want to “friend” me on Facebook, but we can “connect” on LinkedIn. They may know me best from the work that I do for one client or another, but my LinkedIn profile gives them an opportunity to see what else I have been doing (and can do for them). This is why it is always in your best interest to put your best foot forward on sites like these.
To give potential clients a better idea of what they can expect from my freelance writing services, I’ve drummed up several “recommendations” on my LinkedIn profile from past and current clients. Some of these are echoed on the client testimonials page, but the actual writeups themselves are unique and not all of them cross over. That said, I completely understand that people don’t want to wade through all those testimonials either and that’s why the “skills & endorsements” section on LinkedIn is so useful.
I’m a Freelance Writer, So…
With the “skills & endorsements” section, my contacts can vouch for the talents that I have and this provides an “at a glance” overview of what I’m known for doing. Since I do work full-time as a freelance writer, my top ten endorsements aren’t at all surprising.
- Blogging (32)
- Social Media (19)
- Feature Articles (15)
- Freelance Writing (14)
- Articles (14)
- Editing (12)
- WordPress (9)
- Video Games (8)
- Press Releases (8)
- Consumer Electronics (7)
The number in the parentheses represents the number of people who have “endorsed” that skill for me. I am a little surprised to see consumer electronics slightly below video games, as I do a lot more reporting (and reviewing) of smartphones and tablets than I do of console and computer games.
How Do You Use LinkedIn?
While I don’t doubt that there is value to having an active LinkedIn profile, I find that people don’t interact on there nearly as much as they do on some other social networks. And while I do try to maintain my connections and keep my account up to date, I find that LinkedIn hasn’t been a significant source of business or “exposure” for me either.
To this end, I turn to you. What has been your personal experience with LinkedIn? Has it been helpful in building relationships and finding work? Do you actively participate in the various groups?
My total numbers in categories aren’t as impressive as yours Michael, but I have a lot of areas that I cover that kind of spread out what I get endorsed in.
Top Skills
9 Windows 7
9 Active Directory
6 Operating Systems
6 Technical Support
6 Hardware
4 Software Installation
4 Networking
3 Microsoft Office
3 Windows
3 System Administration
3 Software Documentation
2 Disaster Recovery
2 Social Networking
2 Security
2 Project Management
2 Social Media
2 Strategic Planning
2 Network Administration
2 Troubleshooting
2 Access
2 Wireless Networking
2 System Deployment
2 Servers
2 SharePoint
2 Computer Hardware