8 LinkedIn tips for Singaporeans this holiday season

Before we get carried away with all the glitz and glimmer of the silly season in Singapore – now is the best time for you to work on filling up your pipeline ready for the New Year.

LinkedIn is a powerful and essential business and relationship management tool – and if used effectively, LinkedIn can you help generate real business and career results.

Whilst corporations are getting ready to shut down over the weeks leading up to Christmas, SMEs and working professionals can use a few tips to fill up their pipeline so they can have a successful head start in the New Year.

Here are 8 top tips that I generally recommend for my coaching clients:

1. This is the time for Christmas soirees, lunches, dinners, parties and gatherings galore! If you are invited to a networking function or event at this time of the year, say ‘Yes’ – reconnect with your existing networks, familiar faces and use it as an opportunity to make new ones – you’ll never know who you’ll meet.

2. If you’ve met a few people and wish to strengthen that business relationship further, grab their name card and ask if you can connect with them on LinkedIn. Remember when you connect, to send personal connection requests and follow up with them after they’ve accepted your request – don’t just connect and disappear.

3. Since it’s a lull time for many of you, have a scroll through your existing LinkedIn connection list and go through a few of their profiles to get updated on what some of your networks have been up to. Think who you can introduce them to or who can you refer their business to – contact them to catch up, swap updates and see how you can help each other in the New Year.

4. Take the time to update your own profile on LinkedIn – make it professional and have a clear message about you and what products/services you offer, what opportunities you seek and how people can get in touch with you. This takes a while to do correctly, however your efforts will be rewarded through LinkedIn. There shouldn’t be any excuses when the clock ticks over to 2014.

5. If you don’t already have one, go out and get a professional photo taken to upload you’re your LinkedIn profile – having a professional photo makes you appear more trustworthy as well as helping your profile to being seven times more likely to get clicked on.

6. Do something nice for your network by writing them a recommendation for their products or services – your Printer? Accountant? Lawyer? Coach? Book Keeper? Broker? Manager? Team Leader? Do something nice for others, they will love you for it and good karma will come your way!

7. Send your networks personal greetings, messages, written cards, phone calls or even take them out for a coffee this holiday season. Re-kindle your relationships with your LinkedIn network – if they are your clients – send them a ‘thank you’ note to thank them for their support throughout the year. Keeping your connections alive and warm are the best ways to build a solid referral-based business.

8. Create your own end of year event/bash. Leverage your time by pooling your best networks/clients/connections together in the one place for a few hours. Introduce and connect them to those that you think could be a mutually beneficial business relationship. They’ll appreciate you organising it as well as the opportunity to meet new people who may help make 2014 the best year in business!

Naturally LinkedIn – like in life, people want to do business with people they know, like and trust. Think about how you can help your networks, how you can make them feel good about their work or their business or what you can do for them and naturally your business will flourish with good returns.

Let the good times begin!