LinkedIn has more than 300 million active users, at least
as of May 2014. (That’s more than Twitter.)
One report found that 13% of these 300
million users log into the site at least one time per day. It’s safe to say,
then, that this popular professional networking site should be taken seriously.
But how seriously should we be taking the recommendations
feature?
If you have a LinkedIn profile, you
have likely been asked to give a recommendation or asked for one yourself. So
just how valuable are these recommendations on your profile? Well, that depends
on how you go about them.
Recommendations
vs. Endorsements
Before we explore the value of recommendations, we need
to define the term as LinkedIn defines it. The site offers two ways
for your connections to offer feedback on your qualification: recommendations
or endorsements.
Recommendations are written by other LinkedIn
members as a way to recognize or applaud a business partner or colleague.
Meanwhile, endorsements are less specific.
These are more vague virtual thumbs-ups that your connections can give you to
supposedly authenticate your experiences. Surely you have logged into
LinkedIn and received popup notices asking you about a connection’s skills set,
such as: “Does Bill Faeth know about financial management?”
Your response is probably something like, “Well, I
know Bill owns his own business, so I guess he knows something about
financial management. Sure, I’ll endorse him for that! What the heck?”
In my opinion, these endorsements don’t carry much weight
(although LinkedIn bills them as great ways to build your personal brand). By
contrast, recommendations are more reputable than endorsements because a
connection actually has to write something about your professional
qualifications. Including recommendations on your LinkedIn profile can add
value, especially if you are job hunting.
How To Request
LinkedIn Recommendations
To request a recommendation:
Hover over your profile photo in the top right corner of
any LinkedIn page.
Choose “Privacy and Setting” from the drop-down menu.
Under the “Settings” header on the “Profile” tab, select
“Manage Your Recommendations”.
Click the “Ask for Recommendations” tab at the top and
follow the prompts.
Including recommendations on your LinkedIn profile can
add value and serve as a testament to your skills and abilities. Many corporate
recruiters turn to LinkedIn daily to find qualified candidates to fill open
positions.
In fact, LinkedIn states that
hiring managers prefer to work with someone who has been recommended. So,
including recommendations can be a valuable asset. Although some studies have
shown that not having a recommendation won’t hurt you, having the wrong kind of
recommendation could hurt.
Creating Value with LinkedIn Recommendations
If you plan to include recommendations on your profile,
you need to make sure that what your colleagues post about you enhances your
virtual resume. If you want your recommendations to be meaningful and avoid the
“Sure, why not?” scenario common with endorsements, you need to make sure the
person writing your recommendation can actually speak to your skills, work
ethic or experience.
Below are 5 best practices to employ when requesting
LinkedIn recommendations:
Make Your Ask
Personal
You are much more likely to get a prompt reply and a
quality recommendation if you ask someone personally. LinkedIn offers you the
opportunity to send an auto-generated email prompt requesting a recommendation.
However, your response rate will increase if you rewrite the email and make a
more personal request. Which leads me to my next point…
We all love to read glowing remarks about ourselves, such
as “Susanne was such a pleasure to work with. Her smiling face and enthusiasm
lit up our office every day. I would definitely recommend her to anyone who
wants to hire her!” This makes us feel good, right? But, to a hiring manager,
reviews of this nature add little value. You are much better off asking a
colleague to recommend you for a specific skill set or qualification.
Request Specific
Details
Did you work on a specific project to relaunch your
company’s website? Ask a team member to recommend you on your attention to
detail, your ability to meet deadlines, or your coding skills.
Did you step up and fill in a vacant position? Ask
your then-supervisor to write about your ability to take on additional
responsibilities while still completing your assigned tasks. Make sure he or
she elaborates on your team-player attitude as well.
Ask a Teammate
Sure, it may look good on your profile to have
recommendations from the presidents and CEOs of every company you’ve worked
for. But unless you worked directly with those individuals, your recommendation
may not mean much. When asking colleagues to write a recommendation for you,
make sure to ask people who can actually speak to your experience. Typically,
those who serve with you on a task force or work with you on a specific project
have great insight into your skills and abilities. Plus, they can attest to
what it is like to work with you, which is a critical factor for many
recruiters and hiring managers.
Collect a Variety
of Recommendations
You want to have several different recommendations that
speak to your different abilities or experiences. Including feedback from
former managers or from those whom you have managed will give readers of your
profile a more comprehensive view of who you are as an employee, a manager and
a person. Be careful not to ask for too many recommendations, though. You don’t
want to have so many different opinions that the feedback becomes watered down.
Look Outside the
Workplace
Recommendations don’t have to be limited to professional
experiences, either. Those teammates and colleagues you work with in
professional or civic organizations can make great references as well. And
sometimes, these individuals can speak to your skills sets even better than
your supervisor or cubemate. These types of recommendations, such as your
ability to manage volunteers or lead a committee, can be especially valuable if
you are looking to make a career change.
There you have it. Five ways to make LinkedIn
recommendations work for you. Next time you log in to the site, consider
sending a few recommendation requests to former or current coworkers. And make
sure to return the favor! If someone asks you for a recommendation, have the
courtesy to complete one in a timely and professional manner. Maybe that’s the
start of another blog post…
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