Human Resources
(Organisational and Staff Development Services)
Workshop 3:Market Yourself
Career Planning and Mobility
How to use this workbook
The purpose of this workbook is to provide information and resources to assist staff
understand and focus on networking in order to access the hidden job market that
exists today. The focus will be on practical activities to explore the two way process
central to networking and an overview of Social Media – particularly LinkedIn. If you
are accessing this information on the Career Planning and Transition website only, it
is recommended you attend the workshop to fully understand the techniques for
developing and utilising your LinkedIn profile. If this is not possible there are several
tutorials provided by LinkedIn - it is recommended that you review these to better
understand the opportunities and pitfalls of LinkedIn!
Once you have a good understanding of what you have to offer an employer and
have your marketing toolkit ready to go (Workbooks/Workshops 1 and 2) it is time to
focus on a consistent and targeted approach to working on your next career
opportunity and/or finding that next role.
This means activating your networks in the short, medium and long term.
We will cover:
 The reality of the hidden job market
 Network mapping
 Tailoring your “career snapshot” (Lift Pitch!)
 Volunteering
 Social media – Particularly LinkedIn
OTHER WORKSHOPS AND MODULES
Page 2 of 28
Table of Contents
Getting Started: Know yourself and what you want ............................................................... 4
Job Search - Focus on your strengths and set goals ......................................................... 4
Exercise 1: Know yourself – (short exercise) ..................................................................... 4
My Personal Career Objective .............................................................................................. 6
Exercise 2: Write Your Career Objective .......................................................................... 6
The Hidden Job Market ......................................................................................................... 7
Implementing an effective multi-channel job find strategy ..................................................... 8
Exercise 3 - Networking – the ‘N’ word! ............................................................................. 8
What is networking? ............................................................................................................ 10
The Networking Process ................................................................................................. 11
Know What You Want ..................................................................................................... 12
Know Who’s Out There: Mapping My Network ................................................................ 13
Exercise 4 – Mapping my Network .................................................................................. 13
My Network Table ............................................................................................................... 14
Know how others can help .............................................................................................. 15
Know how you can help others........................................................................................ 16
Exercise 5 – My Network Directory.................................................................................. 17
Connecting.......................................................................................................................... 18
Tailoring your career story (lift pitch!) .............................................................................. 19
Exercise 6 - Prepare your lift pitch. .................................................................................. 20
Making contact ................................................................................................................ 20
How to make contact ....................................................................................................... 21
Exercise 7 – Practice your Pitch ...................................................................................... 22
Exercise 9 – Prepare different versions of your lift pitch .................................................. 24
Volunteering ........................................................................................................................ 25
Ten Tips on Building a Strong LinkedIn Profile .................................................................... 27
Page 3 of 28
Getting Started: Know yourself and what you want
Job Search - Focus on your strengths and set goals
Work is most meaningful when we use our strengths in a way that is important to us,
contributes and makes a difference.
It is therefore very important to identify your overall career goal.
Consider the following questions which are a summary of the work that was covered
in depth in Workshop 1 – Know Yourself.
By answering these questions in relation to work, it will help you focus on what you
want to achieve in the next phase of your career and also provide a clearer idea of
what employment opportunities will suit you in the future.
In the appendices of Workbook 2 – Develop a Winning Job Application there are
some resources that provide lists of skills and competencies which may act as
thought starters for some of the questions. You may also find it easier to talk
through these questions with someone close to your or a work colleague who knows
you well. Dot points are a good way of recording your thoughts quickly and
effectively.
Exercise 1: Know yourself – (short exercise)
What skills and personal attributes do you use to work effectively?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What kinds of tasks do you feel most comfortable performing?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What work do people compliment you on?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What do you do well?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What type of organization do you want to work for?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Page 4 of 28
Do you want to work in a team or independently?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What type of environment do you want to work in?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
How do you contribute to a team?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What are your top strengths?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What do you want to do within the next 5 – 10 years?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Why do you want to work?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What do you value most about work?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What are the constraints that may prevent you from developing your career at this
stage?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Page 5 of 28
My Personal Career Objective
Use the reflective activity above to write career objectives that appeal to you and
may well be options in the future. This will help you in the networking exercises to
follow. This overarching objective:
 can lead to goal setting to help you work toward this objective and describe
what you are looking for to your networks;
 will guide career decision and decisions related to future job opportunities;
and
 help you stay focused.
Examples of Career Objectives:
“I want to use my accounting and interpersonal skills to help clients with financial
planning in a small consulting firm where my colleagues would include a lawyer and
a financial analyst, my work space would be cheerful and organized, and where by
values of working with others, profit gain and recognition would be fulfilled.”
“I want to use my organizational and planning skills to efficiently manage employees
and the production of new computer applications in a fast paced high tech company,
where my colleagues are smart, laid back and lots of fun, my work space is centrally
located so that I can always know what is going on, and my values of profit gain,
knowledge and leadership will be fulfilled.”
Exercise 2: Write Your Career Objective
I want to use my _____________________________________skills and my
passion for
___________________________________________________________________
to serve/provide/develop/achieve/help/teach/fix/promote etc
___________________________________________________________________
I want to work in a _________________________________ company/organization
where my values are fulfilled and my skills are utilized effectively.
My colleagues are_______________________________________ and my work
space is
___________________________________________________________________
Page 6 of 28
The Hidden Job Market
The term “hidden job market” refers to jobs that are revealed through channels other
than the traditional advertisements or job board postings. More frequently today real
jobs never get advertised for examples a company has:
 a need but the job has not yet created a job to address it.
 created a position, but it has not been advertised yet.
 postponed filling an open position for lack of the right candidate through a
previous effort. But, they would fill it if they found the right person.
 is about to create a new position because someone is leaving the company.
 is planning to expand and jobs will be added soon.
 a job open and advertised but it has not come to the attention of job hunters.
Industry estimates are that between two thirds of all vacancies are never advertised
but are filled via word of mouth.
The hidden job market is not a myth.
Your networks and networking can help you unearth these opportunities.
The reality of the employment market is that employers and potential employees
take a different approach to job seeking. The diagram below tells us that we need to
be actively utilising a multi-channelled approach to finding our next career
opportunity.
Page 7 of 28
Implementing an effective multi-channel job find strategy
It is important that we use all the channels available to help us find the specific
career opportunities we are looking for.
These include:
o
Networking, including social media such as LinkedIn
o
On-line job advertisements
o
Print job advertisements
o
Professional Journals and newsletters – paper and electronic
o
Professional organisations
o
Recruitment firms
o
Direct approach
Exercise 3 - Networking – the ‘N’ word!
Discuss the following questions with a work colleague, friends or family write some
notes below.
What is networking?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
What are your first thoughts and feelings when the word ‘networking’ is used?
Discuss in pairs (workshop) and write your thoughts and feelings below
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Page 8 of 28
Are these thoughts and feelings helpful for your job finding process?
On the scale below, rate the degree to which you like networking
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Neither like nor dislike
Strongly dislike,
Avoid at all costs
9
10
Thoroughly enjoy, will
seek out
opportunities to
network
Now rate your confidence to network based on how you have defined it above
0
1
No Confidence at All
2
3
4
5
Somewhat Confident
Page 9 of 28
6
7
8
9
10
Extremely Confident
What is networking?
Networking is the art of building relationships in an intentional way to develop
ongoing shared mutual benefit. We all network on a daily basis but do not realise it.
When you:
o
Volunteer your time for a community event?
o
Post messages in a discussion group?
o
Socialise with colleagues in your industry?
o
Attend a professional or industry association meeting?
o
Email or used face book to connect with your friends/contacts
o
Share pick up and drop off with other parents of your children’s sporting
teams despite not being close friends with them?
o
Use your connections to track down a hard-to-find product or service?
o
Rally your connections to raise money for a charity?
o
Ask someone with influence or authority to champion an idea on your behalf?
o
Mentor someone who you wanted to retain?
o
Support someone so that both your lives were just a little easier?
o
Catch up with your wider group of friends at a café or sports event?
o
Rally a group of friends to get a group discount at an event or holiday
destination?
o
Collaborate with like-minded colleagues to achieve a shared goal or benefit?
When you do any one of these things you are making connections, gaining
knowledge and often helping others or providing them with information – you are
networking. When this occurs it is reciprocal - a win-win arrangement which has
outcomes that are mutually beneficial for everyone. Networking can be enjoyable
and provide us with a great deal of internal satisfaction from helping others. It is
important to remember that you are building a relationship and the benefit to you
may not always be immediate but may come when you need assistance.
Networking is important for continued success in your career. With 50-80% of all job
vacancies being filled through people making connections – formal or informal - if
you don’t network, you are critically self-limiting your career and job find prospects.
Page 10 of 28
The Networking Process
To activate your networks you need to deliberately co-ordinate the following five
factors.
Know What You
Want
Know How You
Can Help Others
Know Who's
Out There
Know How
Others Can Help
Page 11 of 28
Know What You Want
People network every day. Knowing a lot of people is not networking. Successful
networking requires that you know what you want so that you can direct your
valuable time and energy productively on your targeted career goal, especially when
the objective is to find a job. A scattered approach to networking will leave you with
a huge list of names and no clear plan of action. The starting point is having a clear
objective.
Review your career statement from Exercise 2.
Once you have your objective defined you think about whom in your networks may
be able to assist.
Do you know where you might find a job like this? Do you know if extra training is
required? What the pay and conditions are like? How competitive you would be for
such a role? If not, who might? These questions provide you with a few more
immediate goals to meet your main objective i.e. I want to:
Get straight feedback on …
Learn a specific skill like …
Hear about opportunities such as …
Get information about …
Get help with an idea like …
Demonstrate a strength like …
Gain visibility with …
o Find new contacts that can …
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Page 12 of 28
Know Who’s Out There: Mapping My Network
Exercise 4 – Mapping my Network
The circular chart below identifies three different categories of people that you
currently know. Using the table following the chart fill in as many names as you can
think of in each category. The inner rings are the people with whom you are most
comfortable. The outer rings are those to whom you feel less connected.
Ideas to source these people:
o
LinkedIn profile – all your connections
o
Email circulation lists
o
Your diary/calendar/telephone contact lists, work and personal, including
spouses if you can
o
Other people you know who have worked/are working in your field
o
Family contacts
o
Neighbours – who do they know?
o
Regular trades people
o
Your accountant, dentist, GP, lawyer, old lecturer at TAFE or University
o
People who you talk to at your kids’ school, at sporting events, social or
spiritual gatherings
o
People you have met at courses, conferences, seminars, conventions and
trade shows
Closest family
& friends
Outer circle of
friends & family
Aquaintances,
spouses/friends
of outer circle
Page 13 of 28
My Network Table
Closest family & friends
Outer circle of friends &
family
Acquaintances
spouses/friends of outer
circle.
NOW : Place an asterisk next to the names of those people who are good
connectors, have power or influence and/or who know what’s going on both inside
and immediately outside of the sector/organisation you are interested in working in.
Page 14 of 28
Know how others can help
People can help you in a variety of ways. There are six networking functions you
want the people in your network to perform:Advise
Inform
Nurture
Sponsor
Teach
Connect
These are
people who
know you,
your work,
skills,
passions,
values, and
interests
may be in a
good
position to
give you
advice on
suitable
career
choice
These people
know what’s
going on both
inside and
outside of the
organisation/
These are
people who
listen to your
ideas,
frustrations,
and your ups
and downs,
and are great
supports.
They provide
a safe place
to talk
openly and
honestly.
These are
people who
can and do
actively
champion
your ideas or
advancement.
They have
authority,
influence or
the ear of
those in
power, so
they can help
you gain
visibility and
exposure to
move your
career
forward.
These are
people who
can help you
understand,
practice and
master new
skills. These
relationships
may be shortterm, limited
to specific
tasks, or ongoing
associations
lasting many
years.
These are
people who
can
introduce
you to others
for a variety
of purposes
and can
open
channels you
never
expected.
Casually
exchanging
names is
perhaps the
most
common
form of
networking.
sector. They
have access to
information
you don’t
have. It may
be technical
information
that will help
you do your
job better and
faster or
critical
information
about the
organisations/
sectors longterm plans
and
strategies.
Column categories are not exclusive. Functions can overlap and be combined.
Page 15 of 28
Know how you can help others
Because networking is reciprocal by nature, before we ask for help from others, we
should think about what we can offer in return. Ideas include:o
Introduce to others
o
Volunteer help
o
Provide original ideas
o
Reduce their workload
o
Share specific data
o
Offer feedback
o
Support other’s activities
o
Recommend to others
o
Promote other’s ideas
o
Provide information
o
Provide research
o
Share expertise
o
Help others brainstorm
o
Other?
o
Listen to others
Page 16 of 28
Exercise 5 - So what help do you need from others right now and what
can you offer them?
Review your network map, and complete the following table for three contacts.
Contact Name
What help do I need from
him/her?
What can I offer him/her
What are my immediate goals?
Remember: This workbook (if you have attended the workshop) is on the website
and you can print the table above endlessly to when you have a new objective or
goal.
Page 17 of 28
Connecting
Preparing your message or career story – sometimes referred to as the “Lift
Pitch”
What to say to people who know you and your situation might be different to what
you say when meeting someone for the first time. Always think about what you are
going to say before you pick up the telephone to discuss opportunities with someone
you do not know. Canvassing or information gathering takes practice and needs a
concise, well developed message for the listener. Remember – you are not asking
for a job.
Effective networking messages have three parts:Link
What is your link to
the person you are
calling? How are
you connected? Tip:
Use LinkedIn to
research their
background so you
know who you are
talking to
Lift Pitch*
This is the one
line/5 second
sound-bite that
summarises who
you are.
Call to Action
You know what
you’re objective is,
so ask for it
“I believe you know John Smith. He and I were talking the other day
and he suggested I give you a call...”
“We first met at the XY seminar a few months ago”
“I’m an experienced Building Works and Project Manager in the
process of transitioning from my regional role with XYZ, exploring
contract opportunities in the aged care sector..”
“I’ve always been in operational management in sales environments
and am looking at career opportunities in the pharmaceutical sector.”
“I’d be really grateful if you might be able to spare 30 mins sometime
in the next week to explore what opportunities might exist for me,
‘I’d value hearing your insights on X sector and your wisdom on my
proposed plans, so was wondering if you had 30 minutes in the next
week or two to spare? I can come to you?
Notice that the message is concise, specific and quantifies what you are seeking.
For example, 30 minutes of their time to… For those who understand networking
that is not much time and they will give it willingly if they have it. Otherwise they may
suggest a conversation on the telephone right there and then. Be prepared!
Page 18 of 28
Tailoring your career story (lift pitch!)
Your Career Story, or lift pitch is a brief, prepared statement that defines a product,
service or outlines the value of an organisation or individual in as little as 10
seconds, the length of time of a typical lift ride.
You are marketing yourself when networking. It is useful to identify the elements of
your pitch so that you can adapt it for different audiences. It should:
 Be Authentic
 Clearly and succinctly describe what you do, the benefit it provides or
problems it solves, and what you are looking for.
 Be relaxed, adapted to the audience and the conversation.
Don’t deliver a potted small speech where there is no relevance to the audience or
conversation! You will sound inauthentic and people will not want engage. Your
information “bite” needs to be in the context and the normal flow of the conversation.
These short “bites” of information have three parts:
1st Begin with a statement that puzzles, intrigues or is humorous or
problem/conflict statement phrased as a question to elicit interest.
2nd
Give a brief description of what you do and maybe an example.
3rd
End with the benefit or resolution it provides
Examples of Lift Pitch
E.g. 1: I build PowerPoint resilience (Statement that may attract interest)
I teach people how to use PowerPoint more effectively in business. For instance, I’m
working with a global consulting firm to train all their senior consultants (Brief
description of what he does with who) to give better sales presentations so they can
close more business (Benefit).
E.g. 2: You know how most business people use PowerPoint but most use it pretty poorly?
(Problem statement phrased as a question)
Bad PowerPoint has all kinds of consequences – sales that don’t close, good ideas
that get ignored, time wasted building slides that could have been used developing
or executing strategies (Problem detail). I show businesses how to use PowerPoint
(what he does) to capture those sales, bring attention to those great ideas and use
those wasted hours on more important projects (Benefit).
Page 19 of 28
Exercise 6 - Prepare your message for one of the contacts identified in
the previous activity.
Linking
statement
Lift Pitch
Call to Action
It is a good idea to have a few versions of your lift pitch and identify the main
elements or messages. This allows you to adapt when discussing your objective
with different audiences who have different needs. It also helps you relax and
authentic.
Tip – When an opportunity arises to network it helps to ask people you meet about
them first and see where you can fit into their world. This makes it easier to tailor
your story.
Making contact
When contacting people to set up a meeting or have a telephone conversation
remember - people are busy. It is important not to take rejection personally and to
some extent it is a numbers game i.e.:o
It may take three calls/emails for you to make contact
o
One in three of your contacts will have a relevant opportunity to meet your
objective
o
One in two meetings will result in a firm career opportunity
o
You may need to find a dozen opportunities before you are comfortable with
your career options
So just using the numbers above, we are talking about 250 calls, emails, contacts
and meetings all up by you to surface a firm career opportunity.
Your activity needs to be focused and persistent - remember, don’t take it personally,
stay positive and mentally fit.
Page 20 of 28
How to make contact
People usually make contact in one of four ways. To follow are some tips for each:Email
 Often a good way of breaking the ice before making a phone call
 Particularly good if the contact does not know you
 Effective if you need to attach a resume ( don’t do this in the first instance as it will seem
too aggressive)
 Don’t over-use this approach and certainly ensure it is not your primary contact method
 Always follow up with a telephone call or meeting
Phone
 Practice your script/opening (rehearse it out loud with someone)
 Have some simple notes with key words, facts and figures (e.g. about the organisation,
your achievements)
 Stay objective and don’t waffle
 Use their name to personalise the conversation
 Smile - this changes the pitch of your voice and research has shown this improves the
outcome
Online networking
 See Email
 Use blogs or group forums for information and to increase your network
 Your hit rate with this group will be lower so your activity needs to be higher. Remember
to evaluate the return on this networking activity
Face to Face
You may be at a lunch, networking event or social occasion
 Your lift pitch works well here
 Remember you are at a social event, so don’t blatantly search for career leads – after
all, it is meant to be social.
 If an opportunity does arise however, agree on a firm follow up action and check that
this is their understanding too e.g. So, I will send you my resume by Friday and call next
week to follow-up? Is that OK?
Page 21 of 28
Exercise 7 – Practice your Pitch
If you have the opportunity - do this exercise with someone but if nobody is available
practice in front of the mirror. It may feel silly but it helps to get comfortable with your
career story! Take turns to practice making contact with someone in person or by
telephone. Also listening to another person deliver their message will also provide
excellent learning opportunity.
After the first practice, the receiver should provide feedback to the ‘requester on:o
the ‘requester’s tone e.g. confidence, positivity, smiley pitch
o
clarity of message i.e. who the requester is, their expertise and what they
want
o
impression they made.
The ‘requester’ should then re-do their contact incorporating the responder’s
feedback.
After the first requester has practiced making contact twice, please swap roles.
The Meeting – at last
So it has taken approximately sixteen calls, emails, and contacts for you to land a
meeting. Well done for your perseverance! How to maximise a positive outcome?
Prepare!
This meeting is like an interview – you must prepare. Preparation is the key to
success. Never go to a meeting without a clear plan of what you want to achieve. To
follow is a useful pre-meeting checklist:








The full name and role of the contact
Their background (see LinkedIn)
You know how you are connected
Your objectives – written down
Confirmed the time and place (best done the day before, email or text will do)
You know how to get there and have allowed plenty of time. Do not be late!
You have printed any materials that you may need e.g. Resume, Profile
You have protected yourself from interruptions for that period and can run
over the time allocated if the other person is keen.
Page 22 of 28
During the meeting
Remember you want to make a good impression no matter what so maintain a
relaxed but respectful dress, body language and approach to the meeting. The
timing you allow for each part of the discussion will depend on how long you have
agreed the meeting will go for. Be respectful of others’ time, never go over-time
unless they have flagged that this suits them.
This meeting is about gleaning information and perhaps asking for referrals to people
who may also be able to assist with your job search or career objective. They may
offer these but if they don’t you could potentially say “would you recommend
anyone that I could speak to further about this?”
In rough terms, structure the meeting as follows:-
Opening/Set the scene
Discussion
(5 mins)
* Small talk to lighten mood
* Thank for time to meet with
you to (state objective here) eg.
pick your brains about
opportunities in the X sector;
* Exchange business card or
contact card
(3/4 meeting time)
* Actively &
constructively respond
* Strong eye contact
* Ask /cover what you
need tomeet your
objectives
* Let discussion flow
Close
(5 mins)
* Summarise, record &
agree on follow up
actions
* Ask for referrals
* Ask to stay in contact
* Thank for their time
Follow up
o
Ensure you send a thank you email within 24 hours of your meeting.
o
Always do what you have agreed to do e.g. if they ask you to forward a
resume or profile, then do this within 24 hours. It shows you are keen and
reliable
o
It is also a good idea to send a thank you email and update to the person
who helped you connect with this person. Not only does this show your
appreciation, but it also helps place you on their radar again so they think of
you if any suitable opportunities come their way. Look after your network and
they will look after you!
Page 23 of 28
Exercise 9 – Prepare different versions of your lift pitch
Please prepare three different versions of your lift pitch using the action words. Tailor
one pitch to each of the three types of networks you have most contact with e.g.
Friends, Professional, Sports-team mates or gym buddies, Community group
members, Parents of your children’s friends.
Tip #1: Does it pass the 4 ‘S’ test? Is it simple, specific, succinct and sincere to the
listener?
Tip # 2: If the work you do is quite obscure or complex, do not go into a detailed
description as this will only bore them to tears. Instead try to reference something in
popular media that is linked to or shows what problem you solve, solution you
provide in a more general way. If they are interested in learning more detail, they
will ask
Tip # 3: Be patient! This looks easy but can be tricky
Lift Pitch# 1 (e.g. with family and friends)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Lift Pitch# 2 (e.g. for delivery to different people at a professional networking event)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Lift Pitch # 3 (e.g. with acquaintances introduced by friends)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Page 24 of 28
Volunteering
Research shows that when people give, their mood and well-being is elevated.
Volunteering not only provides a great way for you to boost your positivity and
resilience throughout life but particularly during a transition period, but it also
provides a sense of purpose, daily structure and opportunity to use your skills and
possibly master new ones.
Volunteering also provides another opportunity for networking!
So aside from all the benefits volunteering provides, to ensure it also helps you move
towards your job find objective, here are some tips:o
o
Research volunteering opportunities by:
Asking your contacts. This will remind them you are looking for work
and also create a positive impression.

Contact local organisations e.g. Charities, Lions Club, Rotary Club,
Sporting clubs, School

Investigate options on line e.g. www.voluntereingaustralia.org and
Volunteering.com.au
Once you have chosen a few organisations, talk to the volunteer coordinator
to find out what role might provide the best ‘fit’ for your Knowledge, Skills,
Abilities, Personal Attributes and Passions. Research their Facebook page
to see who volunteers there and cross-checking with LinkedIn to see if there
is any overlap.
Organisations that rely on volunteers will be very keen to have as many hours from you as
possible. It is important to limit your commitments to ensure you have time for other people
and activities related to your career objective.
How would I
like to
volunteer?
Why?
When?
Page 25 of 28
Who?
(E.g. with which
organisation?)
What?
(What would I
like to help with?)
Social Media
Like any networking strategy, you need to be careful to keep it targeted otherwise
you will spend many wasted hours crafting diplomatically phrased replies to
connections which are not within your target market.
Internet networking sites such as www.LinkedIn.com all have as their foundation the
notion that we are all connected in some way.
If you don’t have a LinkedIn profile, set one up by going to www.linkedin.com.
If you have one, use it. LinkedIn is not like Face book or Twitter. It is a business tool
for connecting people in business. Recruitment firms use it to find you and a growing
number of employers are using this method as a sourcing tool.
Top Tips for your profile
 Less is often best
 Get people to recommend your work
 Join discussion groups of people that you network with
 Make it simple for people to search for you under key words and location
(e.g. Payroll Officer, Perth)
 Consider a simple, professional photo
How to use
 Find people that you know and want to reconnect with
 Find new contacts through one of your connections
 Find jobs through the jobs section.
 Research contacts (before first contact)
 Email/call contacts to book meetings
 Research specific companies and their contact network
There are a huge number of resources available for different levels of LinkedIn
users. These can be accessed at their Help Centre: https://help.linkedin.com/
LinkedIn Webinar Video: How to Optimise Your Profile for Job Search Success
https://youtu.be/Ep2nq_oRYLI (9 minutes)
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Ten Tips on Building a Strong LinkedIn Profile
LinkedIn is all about connecting, but before we connect, we look for what we have in
common. That’s the key to putting together a profile that jump-starts conversation.
Think of your profile as a way to promote your brand—a professional permalink, a
fixed point on the web to promote your skills, your knowledge, your personality.
Brands build trust by using an authentic voice and telling a credible story. Here are
ten tips to help you do the same:
1.
Don’t cut and paste your resume
LinkedIn hooks you into a network, not just a human resources department. You
wouldn’t hand out your resume before introducing yourself, so don’t do it here.
Instead, describe your experience and abilities as you would to someone you just
met. And write for the screen, in short blocks of copy with visual or textual signposts.
2.
Borrow from the best marketers.
Light up your profile with your voice. Use specific adjectives, colourful verbs, active
construction (“managed project team,” not “responsible for project team
management”). Act naturally: don’t write in the third person unless that formality suits
your brand. Picture yourself at a conference or client meeting. How do you introduce
yourself? That’s your authentic voice, so use it.
3.
Write a personal tagline.
That line of text under your name? It’s the first thing people see in your profile. It
follows your name in search hit lists. It’s your brand. (Note: your e-mail address is
not a brand!) Your company’s brand might so strong that it and your title are
sufficient. Or you might need to distil your professional personality into a more eyecatching phrase, something that at a glance describes who you are.
4.
Put your elevator pitch to work.
Go back to your conference introduction. That 30-second description, the essence of
who you are and what you do, is a personal elevator pitch. Use it in the Summary
section to engage readers. You’ve got 5–10 seconds to capture their attention. The
more meaningful your summary is, the more time you’ll get from readers.
5.
Point out your skills.
Think of the Specialties field as your personal search engine optimizer, a way to
refine the ways people find and remember you. This searchable section is where that
list of industry buzzwords from your resume belongs. Also: particular abilities and
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interests, the personal values you bring to your professional performance, even a
note of humour or passion.
6.
Explain your experience.
Help the reader grasp the key points: briefly say what the company does and what
you did or do for them. Picture yourself at that conference, again. After you’ve
introduced yourself, how do you describe what you do, what your company does?
Use those clear, succinct phrases here—and break them into visually digestible
chunks.
7.
Distinguish yourself from the crowd.
Use the Additional Information section to round out your profile with a few key
interests. Add websites that showcase your abilities or passions. Then edit the
default “My Website” label to encourage click-throughs (you get Google page
rankings for those, raising your visibility). Maybe you belong to a trade association or
an interest group; help other members find you by naming those groups. If you’re an
award winner, recognized by peers, customers, or employers, add prestige without
bragging by listing them here.
8.
Ask and answer questions.
Thoughtful questions and useful answers build your credibility. The best ones give
people a reason to look at your profile. Make a point of answering questions in your
field, to establish your expertise, raise your visibility, and most important, to build
social capital with people in your network—you may need answers to a question of
your own down the road.
9.
Improve your Google PageRank.
Pat your own back and others’. Get recommendations from colleagues, clients, and
employers who can speak credibly about your abilities or performance. (Think
quality, not quantity.) Ask them to focus on a specific skill or personality trait that
drives their opinion of you. Make meaningful comments when you recommend
others. And mix it up - variety makes your recommendations feel authentic.
10.
Build your connections.
Connections are one of the most important aspects of your brand: the company you
keep reflects the quality of your brand. What happens when you scan a profile and
see that you know someone in common? That profile’s stock with you soars. The
value of that commonality works both ways. So identify connections that will add to
your credibility and pursue those.
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