Warning

…there will be a little bit o’ rock & roll here like all things Rock The World^TM.

Technology professionals have it both good and bad on LinkedIn. For the good, there are all those great people that can provide the opening to the next client, the next job, the next friend. LinkedIn is loaded with peers and clients for technology people. Lots of great music out there, you could say.

The bad part of LinkedIn for technology professionals is that everyone and his uncle is out there on LinkedIn and it is harder than ever to STAND OUT. How many people need a T1 nowadays? One call can get you 20 bids! It’s a tough business.

An irresistible tip right from me – “Fit In and Stand Out”. If you must wear a tie, make it a Jerry Garcia tie and a colored shirt. Make sense? Read on…

LinkedIn Recommendations Set You Apart

For the bad, there are so many people just like us out there that it’s easy for us to get lost in the shuffle. There are so many bands that all sound the same.  The LinkedIn Profile and specifically, the LinkedIn Recommendation can help a LOT. It can help show the Rockstar that you are in your line of work.

You don’t have to be a LinkedIn Rockstar to understand the importance of LinkedIn Recommendations. Chris Brogan (@ChrisBrogan) did an excellent write-up in a recent Blog Post.  See the post. Some of our readers have reached out asking for my to jump in on the conversation, specifically since the topic has great application to my fellow technology professionals, whom I now train to use LinkedIn. Why?

First of all, a recommendation shows that you were there, it is proof that you DO the things that you SAY you do. It is a way to “Back it up” as Kid Rock might say. A good book is like a good album isn’t it. Songs are chapters.

We were in the studio cuttin’ a record, oops I mean writing a LinkedIn book, and it came out pretty good.  Rock The World with your Online Presence is 188 pages devoted entirely to LinkedIn Profile development and SEO optimization. Over the last year, readers have contacted me and suggested that I share some of the material and the LinkedIn Recommendations part was suggested. I couldn’t resist the request, so here is the single best LinkedIn Recommendation tip we talk about in the book.

This tip is particularly well suited to technology professionals with whom I most closely relate, but it really works for just about everyone. One should speak from what one knows and you can see that 250 LinkedIn Recommendations (from real customers, co-workers and partners) can show you a nice array of what this looks like in action. Notice that they are spread out so that they paint a broad, yet detailed picture.

I suggest that most business professionals have 10-20 LinkedIn recommendations from customers, partners, co-workers and maybe even investors. This is your 3rd PARTY VISUAL PROOF. Spread them out.

My Best Recommendation advice…

…for technology professionals: Ask others to describe projects you worked on together and say some nice things about the result of your contribution. Ask them to use numbers where it makes sense.  It paints a picture of what it is like to work with you in business. LinkedIn is about business after all.

The LinkedIn Rockstar

A recommendation that is not specific has deflated value. Should it say: “I really like their music” or: “Once I heard that 7-minute guitar solo on Free Bird, I had to go to the show, get the album, join the fan club, play it for all my friends”. You decide!

Describe Project Results

LinkedIn Recommendations cater especially well to projects and that is where technology professionals can benefit especially well. An example:

“Franklin and I worked on a 20-city telecom roll-out. He helped us design it and was with us all the way through the turn-up including the ribbon cutting ceremony. This project was a success because of Franklin. I suggest you reach out to him!”

The advice of friends

Sales professionals everywhere know the power of testimonials. For those in sales roles, we suggest you check out our partner Townsend Wardlaw’s wisdom on the subject - Top 10 ways to Use LinkedIn for Sales Success. Townsend rocks the sales world but he’s into a bit more modern music than the “analog-driven” vinyl-recorded LinkedIn Rockstars.

About me and why I can write this particular focus

I spent 20 years in technology sales and started training on LinkedIn over 4 years ago, showing others how to become accomplished with LinkedIn by following our LinkedIn Business Methodology.

I lived the technology sales life: I carried a monthly sales quota, went to President’s Club, worked in a cube at a branch office, worked at Corporate HQ, home-officed, VPN’d in, got LAID OFF (more than once). I did it all.

Networking for me was Twisted Pair, DS3, Servers. Now my networking is all LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, WordPress, Meetups and everything that goes with it.  You might call what I do now Layer 8 networking.

Life at #20 in the world on LinkedIn is different. Little things that for most load up in a few seconds can take minutes and even time out. You receive this message:

“Your LinkedIn InBox is currently unavailable. You can continue to use all of LinkedIn’s other great features”. I guess the massive network taxes their servers a bit. I get it.

I had been to the heights of 29,990 connections on LinkedIn several times before, but never all the way to 30,000. In fact, I have removed over 1,500 (fake or real) people from my network before getting to this point.

This time I wondered what would happen if I actually hit it.  Well, I have news to report.  First though, this is what 30,000 looks like:

Here it is in another place:

But wait, that’s 30,048 and 30,001. The LinkedIn Limit is 30,000.

Well, it appears as though there is a math bug in LinkedIn that few would ever know about, then again notice.  This is what it really is:

So, what happens if you have 30,000 connections and try and accept an invitation? It just keeps refreshing the screen. No message, just a continual refresh until you delete at least one connection.  That’s the real scoop from the very front lines of LinkedIn.

I just deleted another 200 so I could begin connecting with others, people that are CURRENT in my business life. Who was #30,000? It was none other than the CEO at Jeffrey Gitomer’s TrainOne, Noah Rickun. Jeffrey Gitomer, whom I have seen perform live, is my mentor along with the likes of Chris Brogan, Joel Comm and even Steve Jobs. Noah is also an accomplished Social Media speaker, appearing often around the country (around the world actually).

In the work that we do here at Integrated Alliances, training on LinkedIn and speaking on Social Media, we do a lot of R&D and this is an example of the depths of our R&D. For another great looking network, look at LinkedIn’s #98 in the world (#8 woman) Lori Ruff.  Lori is one of the worlds foremost authorities on LinkedIn, Social Media and SOCIAL MEDIA PRIVACY.

The LinkedIn Rockstar is on a trek to San Francisco for Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp with Dickey Betts of The Allman Brothers Band and past and present members of Aerosmith, Ozzy Osbourne, The Wallflowers and even KISS.

I am there to learn to create, play and record classic rock music from real rock stars. These are the individuals that write the biggest songs, lay them down and then hit the road to play in front of huge sold out crowds.

The Rock Stars are called “Counselors”.  I am a “Camper” and I am in for one heck of a weekend.

More on that as it gets closer but the festivities peak with a performance from the Rock Stars and the likes of me on stage on Sunday night, Nov 7.  Tickets are available.

Here is the line-up of real Rockstars that will be teaching The LinkedIn Rockstar the art of crafting, recording and playing live classic rock  music, all in a weekend!

I am looking for inspiration and ideas to be a better LinkedIn Rockstar when I speak or train on LinkedIn and Social Media on our Rock The World tours.

My first homework assignment is to get to know the songs we will be learning and playing at the Camp. I had to hunt them all down.  Have one only on vinyl (The Ocean from Led Zeppelin)

Beginner:
Surrender – Cheap Trick
Mississippi Queen – Mountain
I love Rock and Roll – Joan Jett
Pretty Woman – Van Halen
Rock and Roll All Night – KISS
Who Do You Love – Bo Diddley
Brown Sugar – Rolling Stones
Livin After Midnight – Judas Priest
You Really Got me – The Kinks

Intermediate:
Shook Me All Night Long (AC/DC)
White Room – Cream
My Hero – Foo Fighters
Schools out – Alice Cooper
Day Tripper – Beatles
Bad To The Bone – George Thorogood
Vertigo – U2
Call Me – Blondie
Here I Go Again – Whitesnake
Sweet Child – Guns N Roses

Advanced:
The Ocean – Led Zeppelin
Livin on the Edge – Aerosmith
Foot Stompin Music – Grand Funk Railroad
More Than a Feelin  – Boston
Headed For A Heartbreak – Winger
Highway Star – Deep Purple

It’s different listening to a song when you know you are going to be learning how to play it.  There will be lots of great business and social Media parallels to be learned.  Stay Tuned!

Social Media is really good at getting your identity out there. Simply existing does some of this, engaging in activities does a lot more. Either way, this “Digital Footprint” is what people will see when your paths cross (and visa versa in most cases).

In our LinkedIn book entitled “Rock The World with your Online Presence”, Lori Ruff and I focus on Digital Footprint as well as super-optimizing LinkedIn Profiles, LinkedIn Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and visibility.

We go through your LinkedIn Identity, section by section, optimizing each component and each LinkedIn setting for maximum effect.

Focusing on LinkedIn, there are 2 main elements to the Digital Footprint. This carries forward into Google, Bing and elsewhere of course.

Your picture is the first. In LinkedIn this should be a headshot just of you. A white background is best. The stiff professional shot you see in newspapers works for some, for others it is a polo, for some it is a Concert T. Still, it has to be a picture.

I once used this picture from the cover of our Rock The World book as my LinkedIn picture. Then, one day it was just gone. LinkedIn had pulled it.

The second part of your Digital Footprint is your LinkedIn Headline. It’s the centerpiece to your Digital Footprint actually. Show up in a list, send a note, participate in a discussion, they all display THIS INFORMATION as well as your picture.

Here is an excerpt from the Rock The World with your Online Presence, a 188 page LinkedIn Profile and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Guide for LinkedIn and Google.

To get the whole scoop and to get really cranking in business as a result of LinkedIn, check out the Rock The World books. “Rock The World 1″ on LinkedIn Profiles and SEO is only $19.95 and its available at Amazon.com. Learn about the next book in the series, Rock The World with Social Media, (Rock The World 2), The Ultimate Social Media Guide for LinkedIn Users.

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Rock The World with LinkedIn Radio Show

From Page 48 in the book – The 70′s Rock Band KISS says “Shout it out loud!”

Your LinkedIn Headline is where you want to focus your greatest attention, especially on a “per-character basis.” You need to leap off the page with your “wordsmithing.”

If the song coming across your radio doesn’t catch you in the first few chords, you might just go on to the next station. The same thing holds true for LinkedIn. The Headline is of particular importance, as it shows up in search results. A good one will attract people to look at your full profile.

The Headline is the first area encountered by a viewer, even before they see your Summary. It is brief (only 120 characters); an ever so important blurb that states what you do and what you are looking for. This is a VERY important area to nail down and take advantage of.

Why is the headline so important? Beyond your name, current company and current job title, it is the text that others see when you show up in search results. If your headline looks interesting, they may click through to your Profile to see more. If they do not find it appealing, it is off to the next person. Use as many of the 120 characters as possible.

TIP – If you type too many characters in any form field, LinkedIn will reject the change, indicate how many you are allowed, and tell you how many you have total. This is a nifty feature that keeps you from having to guess how much to trim.

Here are some examples of “short” headlines:

– President, Strategic Systems LLC
- Business coach helping Entrepreneurs
- Sr. Sales Manager, MCI
- Branch Manager, Phoenix, Cbeyond
- Executive Recruiter specializing in IT

Now, here are some more advanced headlines. Notice the difference:

– Public Speaker, Entrepreneur and Author of “The Total Idiot’s Guide to Yahoo”
- CEO, CommonCraft Ventures LLC, investing in green energy concerns
- Sr. Development Manager, INFO for The Go, developers of mobile applications for the Oil and Gas Industry
- V.P. Sales, Sprint, covering West Coast Operations
- Chief Operating Officer (COO), Managed Hosting PLC, managed data center solutions for streaming media

Some might get even more advanced. Here are real headlines from real experts (found by searching on the LinkedIn keyword “expert”):

– Key Expert Work Injury and Rehabilitation at EU China Social Security Reform Co-operation Project
- EDI/B2B Process Expert, Business Development, Product Management and Wireless Mobile Computing Professional
- On-Air Talent, Lifestyle and Trend Expert, Author, Guest Speaker, Stylist
- SharePoint SME, Workflow Architect at John Wiley and Sons

Here is Mike O’Neil’s headline:

LinkedIn Trainer | Social Media Authority, Speaker, Author | Evangelist, Entertainer ♫ The LinkedIn Rockstar ♫ 29,000+

Here is Lori Ruff’s Headline:

The LinkedIn DIVA, Social Networking Master | Social Media Speaker, Trainer, Author | TopLinked.com | #9 LinkedIn Woman

More on the Importance of your LinkedIn headline

Rock the World with Social Media

Rock The World with Social Media is written by two of the industry’s foremost LinkedIn & Social Media authorities, Mike O’Neil & Lori Ruff.This couple authored the books predecessor, Rock The World with your Online Presence, a LinkedIn Profile and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Guide.

This new business strategy book is for LinkedIn users stepping into the world of Social Media. That move is simplified when following Mike & Lori’s methodologies to help readers integrate Social Media WITH LinkedIn. Major platforms and tools are covered along with strategies for implementing them individually and in harmony – facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Blogs, YouTube, Meetup and a dozen others.

The book is akin to a Social Media Rock Opera featuring the work of the popular rock band Pink Floyd and their Dark Side of the Moon album in particular. Mike & Lori take on the persona’s of Pink and Floyd to shed light on the topics and add an analog, vinyl record look and feel to the book. It entertains, fascinates and EDUCATES all at the same time. It really will ROCK your world!

Rock the World with Social Media

Mike O’Neil & Lori Ruff

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We just delivered our second book in the Rock the World Series…

Rock the World with Social Media: The Ultimate Social Media Guide for LinkedIn Users

Rock The World with Social Media is written by two of the industry’s foremost LinkedIn & Social Media authorities, Mike O’Neil & Lori Ruff. This couple authored the books predecessor, Rock The World with your Online Presence, which is a LinkedIn Profile and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Guide.

The new volume is a business strategy book is for LinkedIn users stepping into the broader world of Social Media. That move is simplified when following Mike & Lori’s methodologies to help readers integrate Social Media with LinkedIn.

Major platforms and tools are covered along with strategies for implementing them individually and in harmony – facebook, Twitter, WordPress, Blogs, YouTube, Meetup and a dozen others. And, true to our first book, it also includes specific tips for preparing your profile on each of the major platforms.

The new book is akin to a Social Media Rock Opera featuring inspiration drawn from the work of the popular rock band Pink Floyd and their album, Dark Side of the Moon. Mike & Lori take on the persona’s of Pink and Floyd to shed light on topics and to add a vinyl record look and feel to the book. It entertains, fascinates and EDUCATES all at the same time. It really will ROCK your world!

Find out more and pre-order at www.RockTheWorld2.com. $21.95 gets you a Signed First Edition copy.

Lori Ruff and I have been a part of CouchSurfing.org now for almost a year. In the last 6 months we have ramped up to the point where we had three individual Couchsurfing visitors at ONE time this week.

Couchsurfing.org has a process to certify individuals in the program and it costs a nominal amount to get setup in the system. Check it out!

If you’ve seen the movies “The Big Chill” or “The Breakfast Club”, you know how strangers are not strangers for very long when couped-up with one another. Such is the case here.

You never know who you might have request to “crash at your pad” or where you might stay. Here’s who we’ve met: a Guatemalan diplomat, a German filmmaker, a family from Poland, a National Geographic scale photographer, global travelers, an IT manager, those in town for the Widespread Panic concert, those considering a move to Colorado (a good idea).

It is a bit like a Grateful Dead concert where you don’t actually go in to the show – you just explore “The Village” outside for hours and hours, meeting people every few yards. Lori Ruff and I did just that in 2009. It is a highlight of the concert year for both of us. You meet the darndest people and some you would just NEVER expect (i.e., a high school football coach).

I felt this was such an interesting and powerful series of experiences that I actually put it on my LinkedIn Profile as a current position – Couchsurfing Host & Guest at IA Social Media. A quick LinkedIn search on the Boolean search term “Couchsurfer OR Couchsurfing” yielded over 800 hits just now!

See Mike O’Neil’s LinkedIn Profile with Couchsurfing listed: http://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeoneil

Want to see the AMAZING work of our German Filmmaker friend Chris Dahm ( @crisdahm ) before he completes his documentary-style footage of Lori and I?

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At Integrated Alliances HQ                                With Lori                                        With Mike

See Cris’ Video Diary as he travels the world – WOW!

www.youtube.com/user/crisdahm or  www.crisdahm.com

One last thing before I leave you today…

We just finished up our second Rock The World Social Media book, Rock The World with Social Media. It’s “The Ultimate Social Media Guide for LinkedIn Users”.

Find out more and pre-order at www.RockTheWorld2.com. $21.95 gets you a Signed First Edition copy.

Carolyn Howard-Johnson’s new book “Frugal and Focused Tweeting for Retailers: Tweaking Your Tweets and Other Tips for Integrating Your Social Media” is for everyone – not just retailers – who wants to use Twitter more effectively to promote a brand, book, cause or business.

Carolyn’s years of experience as a writer and retailer make this book a cornucopia of information on how to use Twitter to promote a retail store – and by extension the examples can apply to almost any endeavor.

This book is an excellent addition to Carolyn’s How to Do It Frugally series of books – and it is an excellent resource whether you are a beginner or a pro on Twitter. Carolyn has included in one easily readable book all the beginning information as well as the advanced techniques that can help you effectively use Twitter.

(Trust me, I have read several books on Twitter and am on my fourth three-ring-binder of Twitter information I’ve read – and in this book I learned things I didn’t know.)

The thing is, the “simple” Twitter microblogging platform actually leaves room for all kinds of innovative uses. And as Twitter continually makes changes, new opportunities arise. Or, sometimes, as in my case, one forgets about some of the techniques one has used and a refresher comes in handy.

FYI – Here’s one of the opportunities that I personally needed reminding about:

RSS Feeds …. is a tool letting your Tweets be seen in many different places on the Web. All you need do is copy and past the HTML code that you find when you click on RSS Feeds link into your Web site, your blog, your other social networks. Like magic your Tweets will appear there.

If you want to ensure that you are getting the most you can out of participating on Twitter, get this book right now! You’ll be glad you did. (And, yes, this is an affiliate link for Amazon – I highly recommend this book!)

© 2010 Miller Mosaic, LLC

Phyllis Zimbler Miller (@ZimblerMiller on Twitter) has an M.B.A. from The Wharton School and is the co-founder of the social media marketing company Miller Mosaic Power Marketing, which has launched the Miller Mosaic Inner Circle mentorship program.

I just attended an amazing webinar put on by Cisco WebEx that featured legend Guy Kawasaki. He’s a bold dude and I love that about him.

This is paraphrasing a bit but“If your’re going to push the envelope, to be bold, some people are just going to get offended.”

He used amazing examples of companies like Kosi BBQ, tools like StumbleUpon and loaded it with lots and lots of inspiration.  Whereas Jeffrey Gitomer is still my main influence (yep, he’s out there too), Guy and his approach are forever ingrained in me now. 

I wanted to know about Guy and what he stands for.  This is where I found some more good stuff.

www.GuyKawasaki.com  www.twitter.com/GuyKawasaki

This is the approach we use in our Rock The World LinkedIn book.  Check it out.

We are trialing 2 designs for our Rock The World North American Tour 2010 T-Shirt design.  Can you help us with your comments?  Tell us what you like, what you don’t like, which you prefer, things we might not be thinking of, etc. Estimate price point is $20.

                  Option #1                                             Option #2

These shirts will be available along with our book, Rock The World with your Online Presence, as we inspire, educate, and entertain professionals on LinkedIn and Social Media across North America. They will also be available for online ordering in May.

The current published dates for our IA LinkedIn Roskstar Profile Clinics^© thus far (dozens more to come):

Denver, CO April 21 – Info and Registration

Chicago, IL May 5 – Info and Registration

Charlotte, NC May 15 – Info and Registration

Atlanta, GA May 21 – Info and Registration

Interested in bringing the tour through your town or for a private speaking/training opportunity?  Call us at 303-683-9600.  We are planning the remainder of 2010 NOW, before we take this  tour International in 2011.

Want a Who shirt like Mike’s?  The Hard Rock Cafe has them available as a charity fundraiser.  Sorry, Lori’s Def Leppard was at the concert only!

INFO/ORDER

Like many people, I started out on WordPress.com for my blog, it was sometime in 2008.  Built up a business blog too, also on WordPress.com.

Now, most people in the know think of WordPress.com as the “poor man’s” WordPress. They are not wrong. It is WordPress.org where things get interesting. You have to become a bit of an IT Manager, but it is worth it. Some people hire a vendor – even better idea. WordPress provides a basic migration tool that brings much of what you have created over to the “other side”.

Now for the interesting part…

The OLD blog site is still there and is still being found by search engines, by others.  It makes you look REALLY bad, and amazingly bad if you are in the Social Media business like us here at IA.

I had just such an incident happen yesterday so it hits real close to home. We actually had 4 old WordPress.com blogs out there that were like abandon cars. One very insightful individual did the most logical thing in thinking that it was the live site, even though the concert dates on the calendar were all really old.

There are always issues in shutting anything with a URL down.  We still have some hooks pointed back there so this is what we did to solve the problem:

1. For every Page or Post that you think you need to leave a link in place for, do so by making them Drafts and/or Private. The links still work. This might be a time to change/update the Post/Page a bit.
2. Simply delete out the other pages so long as you think their is no linking to preserve.
3. On the Home Page, have links and text and even a graphic to redirect them to the new site.
4. This is a conservative approach.  You can just shut them down if you like as well.

Here is an example of an old site that redirects to the new site.

So – here’s the hard-earned lesson:

Anything that you create – a profile, a blog, a web site, will be there until you do something to explicitly take it down. Be thinking about what YOU might have hanging around out there…

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