Jody Raines

  • Web MarCom
  • About
  • Blog

February 21, 2018 By Jody Raines Leave a Comment

Social Media Fail: Are You Using Linkedin Wrong?

Linkedin Fail

Linkedin: Are You  Doing It Wrong?

If you had a dollar for every mistake that someone made using social media, you’d be a very wealthy person! In the meantime, the catalyst for this post was an email that I received from someone I am not well acquainted with, but who asked to connect with me on Linkedin.

The letter began with, “Im sorry to bother you but…”

For the record, I really like LinkedIn. It’s a resume online and also a living Rolodex (yes, I am dating myself), but the cool thing is that it enables me to keep up with my professional network despite years and distance and career hops and leaps and changes. I love the fact that each person updates their contact information so I can congratulate them on the promotions, or encourage them through the changes. It’s remarkable because it’s a tool for business relationships, unlike Facebook or Google+ or Twitter or Instagram. In this respect, Linkedin is unique and I love that about this interface.

Common Linkedin Mistakes:

1. LinkedIn is a BUSINESS Social network platform

So, my first gripe with new users is a big mistake of not understanding the nature of Linked-in as a business platform. It’s fine to connect with friends and expand your relationship to include business. What is not fine is to undermine your professional account with a casual, non-business profile photo. That means the picture of your beautiful dog or amazing cat will not do – unless you want to give the impression of being less than credible. Also, the photo of you swinging a bat at the company softball game, not a good choice. You should pic a photo of you playing baseball if you are a pro baseball player, otherwise, it’s not the right image to project. Leave the sweatshirts, tank tops, cocktail hour, family vacation shots on Facebook – this is not the place for them.

2. Don’t spam the Linked in Connections

My second gripe – ok, so we are connected. Now is your chance! Develop a social media relationship, right? Send an email, get to know each other… or wait, try to sell me something? What? I don’t really know you, I connected because perhaps we met at an event and had a nice conversation… the reality is that you don’t know me, don’t know my company and you are sending me the same template email you sent to everyone else. Do you really think I am going to jump out of my seat now that I got your email and pick up the phone to buy what you are selling? I don’t think so. In fact, most sales take place after you have developed a relationship. Social media is “social” for a reason – to use it as a device to create more emails to send out letter to is a disservice to you, your organization and it’s disrespectful of the connection. If you use Linked in to attempt to sell to me, you risk being disconnected. If I like you, I may reach out to you first, to try to explain why what you did was a bad idea… if that doesn’t work, will disconnect. Part of the power of linkedin is the ability to potentially connect with the connections of the person you are connected to. Yes, that sounds complicated, but what it means is that my network is now open for you to peruse. Why would I open my network to someone who seems to be ignorant of the protocols? I don’t want to be associated with that behavior, nor would I do business with someone who utilizes a network that way, so it’s not a loss to disconnect.

3 Linkedin is about QUALITY not QUANTITY

My third gripe and a very common mistake, is the false belief that someone who has a lot of connections must be very important. There are some people on Linkedin who will connect with anyone and everyone – this is called an “Open Networker” To say that someone has the “most” connections on Linked in does not say the same thing as having the most relationships. There is greater power in having relationships where you can ask or share or tell and it has some influence. The relative amount of influence if directly correlated to the depth of the relationship and the mutual respect. If I met you once at a networking event, and you immediately stared spamming my inbox, there is no mutual respect, no relationship, and no reason to continue to stay ‘connected’.

Bottom line: I suppose if you start an email with “I’m sorry to bother you, but…” you already know it’s not a good idea to send the email, right?

Filed Under: LinkedIn, Social Media Connections, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking Tagged With: LinkedIn, social media connections

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

15 + ten =

Internet Marketing Insights

Redesigning The Home Page? 8 Common Website Mistakes To Avoid

May 13, 2014 By Jody Raines 2 Comments

Redesigning the Website Homepage can result in greatly improved conversions when done well.  The first trick is finding a website designer who understands inbound marketing.    The process should begin with an evaluation of your existing online marketing campaign as well as your website to ensure that all  components work together in an effective and […]

QR Codes Are Dead? Long Live The QR Code!

February 3, 2018 By Jody Raines Leave a Comment

Are QR  codes dead, or are they making a comeback?  This week, Amazon announced that they are introducing their own version of a QR code, called a “smile code” which can be scanned using the Amazon app to unlock discounts and specials.   As an Amazon user, I’m intrigued, and I’m also curious whether this […]

Gamification marketing

Gamification Marketing – What is Gamification And How Can You Use Game Tactics For Business Marketing

July 11, 2013 By Jody Raines Leave a Comment

Gamification marketing and the creation of game-like  motivation to enhance engagement and usership is an exciting new trend.  According to a Gartner study, more than half of the companies that manage innovative processes will “gamify” them.  The same study forecasts by 2014 more than 70 percent of Global 200 organizations will have gamified at least one […]

Robin Williams Pass away

Social Media, Robin Williams, The English Language And Holidays

December 2, 2014 By Jody Raines

Social Media has a way of making you feel sad sometimes.   The posts of beautiful holidays and warm family celebrations may be more for the benefit of others than what’s true.   Consider the perceptions that we have from what we read or hear, and compare that to the reality… sometimes the way things […]

Blogging for business, Jody Raines

Feeling Happy – See The Light

January 21, 2014 By Jody Raines Leave a Comment

With an indoor office sometimes the lack of an exterior wall can result in seasonal affective disorder. A remedy is available by using a full spectrum light. One of my office mates has one of these Happy Lights and after a few weeks, he says it seems to work. He feels more focused and balanced. […]

  • Fly Eagles? Fly Dogs! How Social Media Changed A Mascot
  • QR Codes Are Dead? Long Live The QR Code!

Recent Posts

  • Social Media And Social Networking: Best Practices And Big Mistakes For LinkedIn
  • How To Develop An Online Brand
  • 3 Key Tips For Internet Branding
856.504.6066 Voorhees, NJ 08043

Copyright © 2022 Jody Raines | WebMaster· All For The Love Of Dogs