When it comes to connections, I am perfectly comfortable sending a connection request to just about anyone on LinkedIn. Whether or not they respond to me is another issue, but I promise I do not know over half of my connections on LinkedIn, and you don\u2019t need to either. I will back up a little here and say that if you are just starting out on LinkedIn, have zero connections and are not sure where to begin in terms of connections, start out with friends\u2014from high school, college or even summer camp.<\/p>\n Next, reach out to alumni, especially those in career fields or companies that interest you. Most importantly, include a note in your connection requests. If you go to someone\u2019s LinkedIn profile and click the connect button, a pop-up box appears with the option to \u201cAdd a note\u201d or \u201cSend\u201d the request without one.<\/p>\n Now, members of your college study group might not need a note to respond to your connection request, but there\u2019s no harm in having one anyway.<\/p>\n When sending requests to people I know, I make the note very informal:<\/p>\n When it\u2019s an alum I have never met, I write something like:<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/em><\/strong> Keep a document with a couple variations of connection request messages to copy and paste when you need them. Don\u2019t forget to change the names and any other details you might need to.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Engagement is currency in today\u2019s world and LinkedIn is no exception. The platform has several ways for you to take advantage of this once you build up a network, no matter how small. Celebrate people in your network when they get a new job or receive a promotion. Comment on interesting articles and ideas that are being shared. Post a thought-provoking article occasionally, around 6x a year, or less\u2014no one likes spam. Some LinkedIn users, especially prominent ones, prefer to be followed instead of connected with. Follow people and companies you care about to see their posts pop up in your feed!<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/em><\/strong> LinkedIn engagement is great but keep it professional\u2014it isn\u2019t Facebook for a reason. It isn\u2019t Twitter either, so no need for fervent debates in the comment section of a thought leader\u2019s post, especially not while you\u2019re job hunting (or ever, really). All your activities are visible from your profile page. Need I say more?<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n As far as I\u2019m concerned, this is the essence of LinkedIn when it comes to job searching. When you send a connection request to a potential ally* and the person accepts, follow up with a message within a week or two. Personally, I have sent follow up messages two months after connecting and gotten great responses\u2014sometimes, it\u2019s more about the message and confidence than timing. Thank them for connecting, go straight to the point and be sure to mention how busy they are to score points:<\/p>\n A couple things to note: In my message above, I mention my economics degree because Darrick also studied that in college\u2014finding common ground can be helpful. I mention Texas because he is based in Texas. I mention my master\u2019s degree because he is hiring for associate positions and I am trying to signal my qualification. If he wasn\u2019t a hiring manager, I would have framed my request as looking for any insight he could give me as a new professional in order to achieve my goal of setting up an informational interview. Personalize your message for your audience.<\/p>\n *In this case, potential ally means any and everyone who could be of some help to you in the job search process\u2014recruiters, hiring managers, former colleagues, and most importantly\u2014industry professionals in careers you would like to explore.<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/em><\/strong> Take advantage of being a student (or a newbie professional). All seasoned professionals were once students\/newbies of some kind, and they have some idea what you are going through. Most of them want to help. Don\u2019t be afraid to ask. A lack of response is likely the worst that could happen. <\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n An informational interview is exactly what is sounds like. It\u2019s an interview to seek information, career\/industry insight if you will, from someone with experience and knowledge in the areas you\u2019re interested in learning more about. When a connection agrees to an interview and sets aside some time on their calendar, you should take a moment to celebrate this as a small win while keeping in mind that there is still some work to be done.<\/p>\n Some professionals will take charge and lead the session with you, in which case you could sit back, listen, and absorb as much as you can and ask questions at the end. Most people will want you to lead the interview and they\u2019ll often signal this by saying something like: \u201cSo, how can I help you today?\u201d You should come prepared with a list of questions to guide the interview, enough to last 10\u201330 minutes, which is how long they typically go for. End the interview by asking for a referral. It might be uncomfortable but think of how thrilling it will be if they are willing to refer you for a job!<\/p>\n Pro tip:<\/em><\/strong> Follow up after each interview. If they have asked you to send your resume for a referral, do so immediately. Otherwise, do so within the week while the interview is still fresh on their minds!<\/em><\/p>\n With these tips in mind, I hope that LinkedIn is starting to look a lot less scary. Go forth in confidence and happy networking!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" LinkedIn is a social media platform for professional networking\u2014but what does that really mean? It\u2019s not quite Facebook or Twitter, but it\u2019s not quite a resume either. Only a few…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":218,"featured_media":25949,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[25],"tags":[206,316],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/media\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Picture-1.png\")
<\/em><\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
2. Add a note to your connection requests<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/media\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Picture-2.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/media\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Picture-3.png\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/media\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Picture-4.png\")
<\/p>\n3. Engage reasonably<\/h3>\n
4. Ask for informational interviews<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/media\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Picture-5.png\")
<\/p>\n5. Come to the interviews prepared. Ask for a referral<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/media\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Picture-6.png\")
<\/p>\n