What is LinkedIn - An Introduction to LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a platform for social network that aims to bring together its members in order to create job opportunities. Signing up for LinkedIn is free and quite easy, as after registering, getting ready in a few minutes with your own presentation page, you can start building your own network of contacts inviting colleagues, friends, suppliers and customers.

LinkedIn, however, is not limited to putting people in touch. Analyze their relationships and track routes with which you can apparently reach distant people. It offers powerful research tools and helps us to create a strong online persona and a good network of contacts, which we can use at any crossroad of our lives.

There is a theory called the "six degrees of separation", according to which each person may come into contact with any other person through a chain of knowledge composed of not more than five intermediaries. LinkedIn has not done anything but put this theory into practice. 

If you are looking for a person who can help you solve a problem, you can use the search function to locate a LinkedIn chain of contacts that can lead to the person sought. Now, you just take the chain from time to time by sending to each of its members a request for presentation to the next link in the chain, until you get the desired person.

Through LinkedIn you can also find old acquaintances who do not feel for a long time and be updated on the progress of the career of old friends. Currently the network LinkedIn has over 150 million registered professionals and is growing rapidly.

Linkedin, what it is and what is it for

When it comes to professional social networks related to "seek and offer jobs," no wonder that LinkedIn is to become the main protagonist. The well-known network, active since May 2003, and developed in 19 languages is the 23rd most visited website world.

Among the marketing tools available online, for the real estate agent is essential to use the services that LinkedIn provides . LinkedIn is the digital alternative to the paper resume or business card: it is an online space where professionals can publish education, current position and professional experiences. And there's even more!

As reported by Wikipedia "the main purpose of the site is to allow registered users to maintain a list of persons known and deemed reliable in the workplace." The people in the list are called "connections" and can be enhanced by inviting the contact.

The objectives offered by LinkedIn are many: 

●        Find jobs, people, business opportunities with the support of someone inside of your contact list or network

●        Get to be introduced to someone you want to know through contacts

●        Employers can post offers and search for potential candidates 

●        People looking for work can read the profiles of recruiters and finds out someone to put them in direct contact with them

LinkedIn does not just put people in touch. It offers powerful research tools and help to create a good network of contacts as well.

Once registered, you must identify and focus your profile according to your employment status.
From your address book, you can invite your knowledge in your network.  Consequently, each opens his book contacts to other relationships.  It is interesting to see how easy it is to search and discover other interesting people in your network. Though sharing may bring many misgivings, LinkedIn offers a well thought out system suggestions and non-intrusive. 

Indeed, it is impossible to get in touch with someone you do not know personally. It is necessary to go through a direct intermediary (e.g. A common connection) so that it decides whether to forward the request. LinkedIn is then used to discover new business, to expand its influence, organizing  current work profiles and inform its activities to a wider network.

It is certainly a resource that we cannot afford to ignore. Even companies that follow you on LinkedIn could all be potential customers or partners. Hence if your employees are using LinkedIn, your company will be present in the database. Targeted businesses listed on LinkedIn now have the opportunity to distribute relevant content to the right audience. This means that messages will be targeted to users based on specific criteria: company size, industry, function, age, or geographic location.

The statistics of Followers enable companies to examine and evaluate those who follow their updates, and the relative degree of engagement. It will be easier to identify an opinion leader who may serve as evangelists for your brand, and expand the company on the basis of population. So why not make your presence online through Linkedin, the most popular business social network available today? In this book, we’ll provide you with some basic tips and ideas to help you make the most of this brilliant social network.