HAVE YOU EVER TRIED THIS WINNING LINKEDIN STRATEGY?

Wayne Breitbarth, Grad '86 and LinkedIn expert, provides some insights to maximize your job and networking search.

LinkedIn Winning Strategy #1: You are the Welcome Wagon (Advanced People Search and Search Alerts)

Overview: Even though LinkedIn has over 660 million people in its database, you're most interested in the people who can help you achieve your business and professional goals. By using LinkedIn's Advanced People Search function, you can laser focus your search for those people and then set a search alert so LinkedIn will notify you when it discovers new people who meet your search criteria.

In other words, LinkedIn will serve up the perfect list of targets (and I use targets in the most positive way). This could be customers, vendors, donors, employees, strategic partners, future employers, and experts, to name only a few of the endless possibilities.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Click your cursor into the big white search box in the top toolbar, and then select People in the dropdown menu.

2. When the white toolbar appears just below the top toolbar, select All Filters on the far right of the toolbar.

3. You will then be taken to the All People Filters page, where you can select up to fifteen different search filters or any combination of those. You can choose job titles, company names, geographic areas, etc., anything you think your targets would use to describe themselves on their LinkedIn profiles.

4. Review the list of people your search uncovers, making sure they actually look like people you'd like to meet, and see which of your connections already know these individuals. Then strategize about whether your next step should be an invitation to join your network, a referral, or some other form of traditional way to reach out (email, phone call, personal visit, etc).

5. To set up an automatic weekly alert so LinkedIn will let you know when new people meet that search criteria, type one bit of information from any of the search criteria you used (location, title, industry, school, etc.) into the white search box in the top toolbar.

When the search list reappears, possibly in a different order but it is the same list, the Saved searches box will be on the top right next to the search results. Click Create search alert, hit the Save button, and then LinkedIn will notify you via email of the new entrants to your list.

You can have a maximum of three saved search alerts working for you at any one time with a free LinkedIn account. Also, keep in mind that these types of searches, although available for free LinkedIn users, may be limited on a monthly basis.

6. The next step is where the Welcome Wagon part kicks in. Once you're notified of new people on the list, you can welcome them to your town, congratulate them on their promotion or starting a business or changing companies, etc., keeping in mind that you want to move this new relationship forward. Obviously, the information you receive from LinkedIn will depend on the filters you used to set up your search.

This step can be done with either a LinkedIn invitation to join your network (always include a personal note with the invitation) or an InMail if you have a premium account. You can also do your Welcome Wagon "reach-out" with a phone call, email (if you have the person's address), or by mailing something or dropping it off at their office. Whichever technique you choose, just think how impressed they'll be with your thoughtful message and proactive step to begin what could be a fruitful relationship for both parties.

There you have it, LinkedIn Winning Strategy #1. Do a good job of creating a targeted search and setting a search alert, and LinkedIn will keep filling your virtual room with just the right people for you.

Wayne Breitbarth, Grad '86, is a speaker, author and consultant for Power Formula LLC in Milwaukee. Register for his weekly email with LinkedIn tips. He can be reached at wayne@powerformula.net.