A comment he made during this interview has been much reported. When he was asked to comment on the ( apparent) view of younger people that Linkedin is for old people ( ie people in their 40s) he came back with  ”What the people who can give you a job?”

And this is key.

I speak widely to younger people – in college and university – and have run workshops to explain how important it is to have an online professional profile on LinkedIn.  They have skills in using social media – Facebook, Youtube etc – which, on the face of it, should mean that using LinkedIn should be an extension of that. But it’s a hard message to get across.

They all know about using search engines. A recruiter searching for someone with skills they have are not really likely to find them through the content on their Facebook page are they?

All of the recruiters I know are using Linkedin routinely to search for potential candidates.

I have lots of senior businesspeople and business owners in my network – all using Linkedin and the numbers are growing.

I regularly hear stories about people whose Linkedin profile contributed to getting the job they are in now.

So how much sense does it make to say – I am going to put information about me that a potential employer might be interested in in a place where they don’t visit?

It’s almost like a “Where’s Wally” ( where’s Waldo if you live in the US) scenario. Go on.See if you can find me.

If you know of  a younger person who is looking for their first job or who is maybe in a temporary job waiting for their big opportunity ask them if they have a Linkedin profile – and if they don’t maybe encourage them to get started?

And point them to read this post about Elle – who left school not that long ago.

If Linkedin seems like too big a step – or you would like to explore other ways of being visible online to those who have jobs to offer this site is also interesting http://www.cvdemon.com/

Bottom line – don’t miss out on the chance of a job because you can’t be found!

By the way – for the avoidance of doubt – this advice holds good for job hunters of any age!

Do all the talking
Do you find that you don’t know anything about the person you just met? Why might that be? Could it be that you talked about yourself so much that they could not get a word in edgeways? Next time how about asking questions too.
Only pretend to listen
You learned in a guide to networking somewhere that you should only spend 5 minutes with each new person you meet. This means that you have to keep an eye out for the next interesting person who comes into view and be sure that you cut the current conversation short. No amount of nodding, smiling and saying “uh huh” regularly will convince who you are talking to that you are listening – your body language will be leaking all the signals anyway!
Go straight for controversial
You’ve scanned the room and found a couple of people deep in conversation you think would be worthwhile speaking to. You move in to join them and realise that they are talking about something you fundamentally disagree with – so you tell them. Most people will be too polite to walk away immediately – but you can bet you’ll find yourself on your own pretty quickly. Timing is everything..get to know people first before bombarding them with your views!

Cut to the chase to quickly
You’re still working to your 5 minute plan so you talk and listen for a couple of those minutes and then get down to the nitty gritty of selling your stuff. Despite the fact that you don’t know nearly enough about what they are interested in you are in full sales mode. How often does that convert?

The business card brush–off
You’re done and ready to move on so you delve into your pocket( or bag) where you have a ready stash of business cards and hand them out as you move onto your next “target”. Just a thought …how many business cards do you get from other people….?

OK this was a bit tongue in cheek…but based on what has really happened to me! Any more to add???
By the way if you want to learn how to network effectively why not come along to the Career Hub Scotland workshop on the topic on 3rd October in Edinburgh.

1 Connecting

Connecting /friending/following etc is the starting point.  A key thing to think about when you start out using social media is what you are trying to achieve and focus your networking activity on  that.  And remember that you would not go into a real life networking event, march up to someone you have not met before, give them your card and say that you want to connect  – so don’t do that using sites like Linkedin – take a moment to personalise your invitation !  

2 Conversation ….

…which is where the development of a relationship happens. Just like it always has been.  You can comment on a Facebook wall , or add an @ response on Twitter or send an email using Linkedin. The additional benefit to doing this publically is that others notice you too.  It still holds that you should be cautious about  butting in on somebody’s conversation in a social event or on the train but in the social media world it’s fine  – as long as you have something interesting and relevant to say of course which brings me to …

3 Content

A few interesting posts/tweets/comments trumps a series of drivel any time.  Talk about things that you think others might find interesting. Test out ideas, look at what others do  and experiment until you find your own level.  Always use your own “voice”  because if you are aiming to eventually meet people in real life that you have built a relationship with online you want to continue on from what you have started.

4 ( and thanks to Morag for this ) Credibility

When people are getting to know you online they will look for social proof to back that up. Who do you mix/have conversations with? What kind of links do you share? Who do you follow/like?  Statements about your strength/skills/knowledge in an area should be backed up by some evidence. This of course has always been the case but Google etc makes it much easier for potential buyers/clients to check what you say for themselves.

5 Collaboration

An early concern about using social networking for business was that your competitors can see what you are doing and who you are speaking to. Of  course that is the case  but on the flip side it can mean that they see an opportunity for working together that would be more appealing to a potential client. Several of my current projects are with fellow coaches and trainers. Collaborative working has huge possibilities!

5 Clients ( and customers)

Without this what is the point? Remember that all of the previous activity – how you approach it, how you commit to it and what you put into it – if done well will lead you to people who will pay for your product or service. This means of course that social media activity is WORK . It might feel like play – and indeed some employers consider that it only has that function – but to really do it well you should give it the same focus as any other part of your job.

So there you go . Maybe there’s a 7th or 8th C that you would like to add? If so – please leave a comment!

If you would like support to work how you should interact with  social media I offer coaching  for  “absolute beginnners” and for those who are a bit further on. Email me for more information

jackie@consultcameron.com

Does this describe your network?

Maybe it describes some of it? If so how many members are you interacting with?

If you are engaging with a small percentage, think about why have you built this contact list( for that is what it really is) at all?

The list might be the start….the network comes from the activity. From the networking comes the potential to refer work and get work referred to you, co-create a new product or service, work collaboratively, flag up job/business opportunities, help with market reasearch, test ideas…..

So here’s a tip to get you started. If you use Linkedin go through your contact list. Click on each contact’s name and when their mini profile opens up on the right hand side  use the “notes” function in the ”Edit Details” section to write a comment about the last time you met/spoke to that contact. Then see what light bulbs might switch on !

“..the best …way to grow your business is to start a conversation”

Now Mitch Joel is a guru in the social media world and the comment is made in context of using social media for business but I would argue that it has always been so. Only maybe slower without the technology.

What do you do when you go into a meeting/event where you are with potential clients/customers?

Well firstly there are potential customers in every place where there are people. Of course there will be targetted events where the people there are already interested in what your business has to offer and I am sure that many businesses thrive by mainly working those.

But unless you have a conversation with someone you have no idea whether you will be able to do business together..

And that’s why cold calling does not work for me – I know that the person on the phone/ at my door wants to sell me something right away and unless they genuinely engage me in conversation to find out a bit about me it isn’t going anywhere.

However, let me tell you about at time when I was persuaded..

A young man turned up at my door. He told me that he was doing gardening work in the area  - a common opening line  and I was about to terminate the conversation  –  but then he went on to chat about how nice my garden was ( good flattering start I know) . He asked how much time I spent in the garden. What were my biggest headaches with it? How would I like it to look… After 10 minutes or so I agreed that he should quote for some tidy up work which he did as promised – in time and leaving my garden looking lovely. Then we chatted about the rest of the garden…and well  – you get the picture.

To get back to the event where people are standing round with wine and canapes. Still I encounter people who go straight into broadcast mode before any icebreaking chat happens. Does that work for them? I guess it must or they would not still be doing it..

Without  first having conversation you cannot find out if there is a chance that you might do business. And remember  that is just the opener to building a relationship. There will probably have to be more conversations – over coffee, by e-mail, on the phone – to develop a deeper understanding of what might be needed. This will involve asking questions, remembering details, making connections.

And if that person then leads you to who your real customer might be – the round of conversations must start again.

It takes time.

The online tools help speed that up a bit now.

But is still takes time.

And as a started for 10 – lots of people tell me that they hate “networking” because they never know what to say.  Well after the introduction don’t forget the small talk – How did you get here? How do you know the host?  – that sort of thing. If you join a group it is OK to listen for a bit until you get to a point where you feel you have something to add.

Just start a conversation!

But for me it is not about the card – its about the memory of why am I in touch with this person – albeit just once a year

Like many people who celebrate Christmas  the list  includes   family ( of course) . Then there are maybe old  neighbours with whom we shared a day to day life for a period of time.  And parents of children’s friends when they were at school. Add a sprinkling of former colleagues  and people we shared an experience with – studying, attending a conference, holiday etc and throw into the mix those who met in a wide range of one off activities and with whom enduring relationships were formed.The thread through all of these is that no matter how long it is since we last actually met up – if we did it would be easy to pick up where we left off and we would have loads to talk about.

 I think there is a lesson to be learned there for networking generally.

There are many business cards ( remember them ) in my organiser that I am committed to compiling a database with sometime soon and e-mail addresses in my contacts. There are my Facebook friends and Linkedin contacts along with my Twitter followers/followed as well as those who have taken the time to comment on my blog.

Am I in contact with all of those people all of the time?  Of course not.

Can I remember why we first connected? On Facebook, Linkedin and my blog  – yes I can. Looking through those business cards brings back memories too! To be honest  though with Twitter I can’t but I know why I am connected with a large proportion of them now !

Could I e-mail/ pick up the phone to chat about something of potential mutual interest ?  Yes indeed.

Would we support and encourage each other in challenging times  and send congratulations on good news ? Well all of the evidence based on previous experiences suggests so.

And I am looking at my Christmas card list to see if there is anybody on Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter with whom I can connect with throughout the year too. Now that could be fun!

An enormous amount of investment has been put into making it so. But was wondering if there was something that each of us could learn from that.

Later on I was in conversation with a couple of friends and we were talking about keeping the business message clear. Each of us are independent consultants and the nature of working that way means that we have diverse portfolios of work. But then Tiffany has jewellery, leather goods, pens, ornaments… . So our brand needs to reflect strongly what the consultant – as a person – has to offer . Tiffany has done major market research to get ( and stay) where it is.  Now there’s a thought.

This does not apply only to consultants though – I believe that having a strong personal brand in the workplace could be hugely beneficial. Think of it in terms of where someone would go if they want a clear thinker, or brilliant can-do attitude, or realistic view of current situations, or ability to pull teams together for great results….

So what does your own “brand” tell others?  It might be worth finding out… and making sure that it is what you want it to be!

On another occasion at another networking event I was chatting to 2 ladies about some work I was doing in schools when a lady I had not met before joined us. I brought her in on the conversation by briefly summarising what I had been talking about. She said that in her view schools should focus on the 3 Rs before they allocated time to projects like mine.  I had a choice – to try to win her over or to wander off for some nicer conversation…guess what I opted for.

I do not expect to like – or be liked – by everyone I meet but I do expect some manners. I cannot understand why someone would go to an event to alienate people so I can only assume that neither of these ladies realised that that was what they did.

On a final note on my bus this afternoon a passenger spent much of the journey telling the bus driver what he thought of this country and the government. It wasn’t flattering. Such an approach is often called ”nipping someone’s ear” in these parts.  The poor driver continued driving and offering the odd yes or no – but he was a captive audience and had not option of wandering off to find someone else to spend his time talking too ( besides he needed to focus on driving ).  It might be worth considering whether any conversation you strike up with a stranger is hitting a bum note from the start – then start again!

A while back I was working with a lovely lady who was pulling herself out  from her own personal hell to get back into the world of work. She had applied for a couple of jobs and had not been successful to that point but she came out with that quote.

I was impressed by her new found determination. She was hugely creative and talented. She had a great network of friends and family who were on her side and looking out for her. And she was about to complete the programme I was coaching to get her “work ready” again. So I could not sit back and wait for things to come to her.

You see I really believe that what’s meant for you will indeed pass you by if you don’t have your antennae switched to receive. To ensure that you don’t miss opportunities you must keep a level of awareness of what is going on at all times to jump when the time comes.

Let me give you an example. My lovely Mum – who is in her late 70s- has been going to the same hairdresser for 30 years ( she does my hair too – but mine is more suited to a 50 something!). Mum overheard the hairdresser say to another client that she was looking for speakers for the local business group she is a member of. Mum reported this to me and asked if that was something I could do! I have to say that Mum hears stories from me about the work I do but she really does not have a full grasp of what that entails on a day to day basis so I was mighty impressed that she made the link. I called to offer my services and I am in the diary for a meeting in September! So not only were my antennae up – but so were Mum’s!

If you want to enhance your chances of a good opportunity coming your way you need to talk about what you are looking for – to friends, family, colleagues, on your social networking site. This in turn will give them more chance to make the link or connection  when an opportunity arises.

A small but important addition to this advice is – be sure you are clear about what you are looking for so that they in turn can be clear.

The lady I mentioned  decided at the end of the programme to retrain as a nurse. She said that she had wanted to go into nursing when she was little and was reminded of this when chatting with a friend. Where previously she said she did not have the confidence to go for it now it was the right time for her.  So missing out on the other jobs was actually a good thing. Every cloud….now there’s a topic for another post.

So do you know who is in your network?

OK if you go to Bebo or Facebook etc you can see your “friends” at the touch of a button. What about your e-mail mailing list? Or your address book in your phone?  Or your Christmas card list even?

How about the internal mailing list in your organisation. Or your business card holder ( what do you mean you always throw the cards you get away?)

Then there’s your family and friends – and their friends….

And previous employers and colleagues and associates.

How is your picture looking now? If you were to draw your contacts network like a family tree how many branches have you got now?

The reason I ask is that a couple of people have asked me the same question lately.

How can I get a job in the sector/area that I want to work in when I have no experience?

First suggestion – ask someone already in that sector – that’s where your network comes in.

Second suggestion – use any names you get from that person to address an enquiry/CV to someone personally ( you may not know them but somebody you know does. Tell them that’s how you made the connection).

Third suggestion – ask people in your network to give you feedback on your CV, personal performance etc to build up a clear picture of yourself.

Fourth suggestion – if you pay it forward  ie do a good turn for someone, remember that when you need help they should be only too willing to pay back.

Get out those coloured pens and a big piece of paper and start drawing!