Online Networking: Lifeline and Gold Mine
By Susan H. Burnell, APR
I recently stopped in to see a dear friend whose multi-year contract with a large company had just ended. She hadn’t lined up her next
job yet and was feeling a little low. During our visit she showed me a giant card her co-workers had presented to her on her last day –
each person had signed it and had written glowing praise for her and her work. My eyes lit up.
“Do you realize you have a gold mine right here?” I asked. “These people care about you. They love your work. They are eager to help
you. Why not give them a way to do that?”
She had already set up a profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn, but she hadn’t done much with it at that point. So we
talked about how she could use it to request recommendations from the people she had recently worked with. Luckily, she still had all
of their email addresses. She’s now using the site to ask for recommendations, build new connections and land job interviews.
The loss of a job or a contract assignment gets us focused more clearly on the hunt for the next one. The best time to build an online
network is before that happens.
“Build your network online before you need it,” advises Krista Canfield, Career Expert at LinkedIn Corporation in Mountain View, Calif.
With more than 35 million members, LinkedIn is the world’s largest online professional networking site. “You may feel comfort in the
fact that you have a Rolodex® on your desk chock full of business cards. But in reality, many of those people have left that position or
company, making their contact information, phone and email address null and void. Staying connected online helps you keep track of
people when they change careers or switch jobs, since they update their own contact information.”
Use the full potential of your profile
Independent creative people who depend on referrals need a far-reaching network, too. Many of us are using online networking
sporadically, but we may not be tapping the power of viral networks as effectively as we could.
Canfield offers these additional tips for using online networking tools to survive seismic changes in the economy. They’re applicable
whether you’re employed, unemployed or self-employed.
The right – and wrong – words matter
There are words you should avoid using in your resume and your LinkedIn Profile, Canfield explains. The company’s analytics team
looked through all LinkedIn members’ profiles and found these six most commonly abused phrases:
1. Proven Track Record
2. Problem Solver
3. Fast Paced
4. Due Diligence
5. Cutting Edge
6. Results-Oriented
Here are examples of the action words/words of accomplishment you should use instead:
1. Arranged
2. Improved
3. Trained
4. Generated
5. Created
6. Presented
Additional tips and resources
It’s a good idea to include multiple email addresses when you set up your LinkedIn account, Canfield notes. “You can designate your
work email address as your primary email, but add a backup personal email address too, so if you lose access to your work email you
can still log in to your account.”
For additional tips on getting the most out of your online networking, see learn.linkedin.com
To start using the LinkedIn network from your iPhone, point your phone at m.linkedin.com
Facing a layoff and thinking about freelancing? See “Trying Your Wings: Freelancing Tips”
This article was published on Only in Houston, the one-stop source for finding Houston creative. www.onlyinhouston.org/en/art/2181
About the author: Susan Burnell, APR is an accredited public relations professional and business writer based in Houston, Texas. Her
work has appeared in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, American Legacy, North Florida Doctor and numerous other magazines.
Burnell's bylined special sections have earned writing awards from the International Association of Business Communicators and the
Florida Public Relations Association. For more information visit www.inkspark.net
By Susan H. Burnell, APR
I recently stopped in to see a dear friend whose multi-year contract with a large company had just ended. She hadn’t lined up her next
job yet and was feeling a little low. During our visit she showed me a giant card her co-workers had presented to her on her last day –
each person had signed it and had written glowing praise for her and her work. My eyes lit up.
“Do you realize you have a gold mine right here?” I asked. “These people care about you. They love your work. They are eager to help
you. Why not give them a way to do that?”
She had already set up a profile on the professional networking site LinkedIn, but she hadn’t done much with it at that point. So we
talked about how she could use it to request recommendations from the people she had recently worked with. Luckily, she still had all
of their email addresses. She’s now using the site to ask for recommendations, build new connections and land job interviews.
The loss of a job or a contract assignment gets us focused more clearly on the hunt for the next one. The best time to build an online
network is before that happens.
“Build your network online before you need it,” advises Krista Canfield, Career Expert at LinkedIn Corporation in Mountain View, Calif.
With more than 35 million members, LinkedIn is the world’s largest online professional networking site. “You may feel comfort in the
fact that you have a Rolodex® on your desk chock full of business cards. But in reality, many of those people have left that position or
company, making their contact information, phone and email address null and void. Staying connected online helps you keep track of
people when they change careers or switch jobs, since they update their own contact information.”
Use the full potential of your profile
Independent creative people who depend on referrals need a far-reaching network, too. Many of us are using online networking
sporadically, but we may not be tapping the power of viral networks as effectively as we could.
Canfield offers these additional tips for using online networking tools to survive seismic changes in the economy. They’re applicable
whether you’re employed, unemployed or self-employed.
- Make sure you have a profile on LinkedIn and that it’s filled out and complete. If you forget to add that you are “experienced in
guerilla marketing” or that you “expanded your company into new territories like China and India,” then you won’t surface in
search results when people do searches for potential employees that have that experience.
Get recommendations from current co-workers, old colleagues and clients. They spread virally through your network and
through the recommender’s network. This helps spread the word, even to your current boss, that your work at your current
company is valued.
Search for other people who have your current title on LinkedIn so you can polish your resume and your LinkedIn Profile. By
doing a search for other “Photographers” or “Web Designers” on LinkedIn you can see what other people in your industry have
listed under their experience and summary. There may be things you want to add/incorporate into your own resume and profile
that you forgot to include.
Remove over-used phrases from your resume and profile so your resume gets to the top of the pile.
The right – and wrong – words matter
There are words you should avoid using in your resume and your LinkedIn Profile, Canfield explains. The company’s analytics team
looked through all LinkedIn members’ profiles and found these six most commonly abused phrases:
1. Proven Track Record
2. Problem Solver
3. Fast Paced
4. Due Diligence
5. Cutting Edge
6. Results-Oriented
Here are examples of the action words/words of accomplishment you should use instead:
1. Arranged
2. Improved
3. Trained
4. Generated
5. Created
6. Presented
Additional tips and resources
It’s a good idea to include multiple email addresses when you set up your LinkedIn account, Canfield notes. “You can designate your
work email address as your primary email, but add a backup personal email address too, so if you lose access to your work email you
can still log in to your account.”
For additional tips on getting the most out of your online networking, see learn.linkedin.com
To start using the LinkedIn network from your iPhone, point your phone at m.linkedin.com
Facing a layoff and thinking about freelancing? See “Trying Your Wings: Freelancing Tips”
This article was published on Only in Houston, the one-stop source for finding Houston creative. www.onlyinhouston.org/en/art/2181
About the author: Susan Burnell, APR is an accredited public relations professional and business writer based in Houston, Texas. Her
work has appeared in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, American Legacy, North Florida Doctor and numerous other magazines.
Burnell's bylined special sections have earned writing awards from the International Association of Business Communicators and the
Florida Public Relations Association. For more information visit www.inkspark.net
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