Do you use LinkedIn?

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The question is self explanatory

Do you use LinkedIn? I'm just wondering if it does provide any benefit and if anyone has ever experienced any use out of having their name and employment details splattered all over what is a public website?

 

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Depends on what you do and reasons for being on there.

Can help when finding a job, making contacts in industry, raising your profile etc.

If you're in sales it's another contact point for your customers and used to hound new ones ;)

It's been useful in my roles, but depending on circumstances it may not be for others.

 

I am on linkedin, and it's got it's pro's and con's... I have found that companies sales teams go through the site looking for potential future contacts at a company and then ring up your workplace asking to speak to you to sell you something... but then the other side of things is that I think it can help for companies looking to hire someone by seeing what your skillset is prior to you ever knowing the job was out there or having sent in your CV.

Personally, I haven't got myself a job due to LinkedIn, but I do believe it can help others.

 

I only started using LinkedIn when I joined the IT field. I wouldn't go as far as subscribing to the premium service, well not at the early stage of my career anyway. However, I have found LinkedIn very useful in building contacts, documenting my achievements and getting valuable information by joining some of the groups. I have had quite a few recruiters add me and call me up related to work opportunities.

 

Seemingly nothing but good responses for it here

So I guess it won't hurt

 

I use it not just for the contact side of things but the groups on there can be really informative as well.

 

I don't use linkedin

cause I do not trust the public with my information.

 

Well that's a tad blinkered in my opinion, you can put as much or as little detail on the site as you like and it's great for group chats.

You're missing a lot of great potential contact and information from not partaking.

 

I use it all the time... Great tool for networking. But just be careful with who you connect.. some people like to spam. Same can be said about groups. I actually have a Premium Account.

 

Just trying it out for a free 30 day trial.. but haven't seen much difference to be honest. It's good for people who are looking for jobs or recruiters... I think I'll most likely cancel it by the end of the month. Not worth the 30/month for me.

 

I'm on there, mainly for keeping track of professional contacts in a cleaner environment than Facebook, couple of good groups but I find a lot of them end up with very basic questions posted that are easily answerable with a few minutes online searching. I'll be taking their premium off up some-point over the next couple of months when I ramp up the job search.

 

LinkedIn, like any site, has its risks if you're worried about privacy. Those risks are fairly obvious, and you have to decide for yourself whether you're comfortable posting information about yourself, even if only your friends can see it. That said, it's hardly more "dangerous" than Facebook or other sites, and it's unlikely that someone will be able to raid your bank account by finding out where you worked six years ago.

As for the benefits, they are pretty great. Connecting with colleagues, peers, and past, present, or even future coworkers is a fantastic benefit. The users don't (usually) treat it like Facebook or Twitter where there are many personal items floating around that don't tend to matter. It's very much a community that speaks and behaves in professional terms, and you'll learn a lot about your job and your industry by connecting with people in similar spots.

Until recently, it hasn't actually been THAT useful for job hunting, however. It's best for meeting people who you might one day want to work with, and many hirings happen very organically that way. This is why recruiters love it -- they get pseudo-referrals and known quantities out of their networks, which is a lot better than sifting through a stack of faceless resumes. I say "until recently" because LinkedIn finally did up its game for job searching. Now it presents you with extremely relevant job recommendations, allows you to save a list of jobs if you're interested, and if you're a premium member, it lets you see how many other people applied and how you compare to the other candidates (which is fascinating).

That's my two cents. Personally, I enjoy it, and I use it more than Facebook. But to each their own!

 

Nope, I have privacy concerns.

 

The more you become known in the industry, the better off it is being on places like there and Twitter.