Think You Know LinkedIn? Here are Five of the Most Common Myths Debunked

Do you have a LinkedIn profile? If the answer is not, what’s holding you back? In recent years, there has been a lot of buzz around the ever-growing importance of utilizing this network. Everyone always has questions about LinkedIn. Though LinkedIn is a powerful tool for busines professionals across all industries, there are still a lot of misconceptions about how it works.

In this blog, we’ll set the record straight and debunk five common myths about LinkedIn. Following this read, we hope that you too will see the benefits that LinkedIn has to offer.

linkedin myths

Myth: LinkedIn is only for people looking for work.

The Truth: LinkedIn is a great place to build your professional brand, stay up-to-date with your network, and gain insights and knowledge at every point in your career. Not only will your LinkedIn feed you content that is tailored to your skills and areas of professional interest, but your network will also share content that will aid in your personal development.

The Job Shoppe’s Tip: Keep your profile up-to-date even when you’re not looking for a job so opportunities can find you. By staying current with your network, you can make sure of those connections when you need them. By following the right content and engaging in conversations with your network, you can find potential business opportunities that you hadn’t thought of before.

Myth: You can only message people you are connected to.

The Truth: Beyond your network, you can also message member who are in the same groups as you are in or by using Premium InMail. If you have LinkedIn InMail, you can message 2nd-degree connections without being connected.

The Job Shoppe’s Tip: Join groups that are relevant to your business, industry, or areas of interest and expertise. Use groups to share your knowledge, gain insights, and build relationships that can help you achieve your goals on the platform. In these groups, you can find people to connect with that can mentor or even provide employment for you.

Myth: Recruiters will be knocking down my door.

The Truth: Although recruiters may request to connect with you and share opportunities that are currently available at their firm from time to time, this doesn’t happen every hour on the hour. In most cases, it isn’t even a daily occurrence. Regardless, you can pick and choose who to respond to based on your comfort level.

The Job Shoppe’s Tip:  Take ownership of your professional network. If someone requests to connect with you and you’re not interested, hit the ignore button. They will not be notified of your decision and you shouldn’t take it personally.

Myth: LinkedIn profiles are basically online resumes.

The Truth: Yes. And no. LinkedIn is a great place to build your professional brand, show a bit of personality, and contribute to the posted content. Remember to take advantage of media, LinkedIn Live, and professional and cause group membership within your profile. This will give you an opportunity to invite a call to action for those who view your page to move along their sales funnel.

The Job Shoppe’s Tip: Think of LinkedIn as your customized online website or portfolio. By doing that you can show people who you are what makes you great, all with the aim of getting them to want to know you. Your summary is like the ‘about’ page of your website. LinkedIn also allows you to integrate images, reports, slide presentations, and videos into your profile so you can show people the value you describe in the expertise section.

LinkedIn is a great tool for professional at any level of their career to connect with potential collaborators or prospects. It’s easy to get started or just level up your LinkedIn profile.

Simply create a profile, upload an amazing headshot, and start making connections. The more you engage on this platform the stronger your personal brand and network will grow which will open the door to more opportunities.

Myth: I should only post content about my company and industry.

The Truth: You should share anything that feels like a representation of you and your professional brand. A great and simple question to ask yourself before posting something is, “Would the people in my network find this interesting?” LinkedIn is about more than just work. It’s about your skills, abilities, insights, and knowledge. You can use LinkedIn to amplify your message to a network of people and highlight the talented individual you are, as it relates to your job or not.

The Job Shoppe’s Tip: Vary the topics that you post about to keep your network engaged and wanting to hear more. Whether you’re posting your own content or reposting something that you read in the news, sharing is a great way to build relationships, showcase who you are and your interests, and stay top-of-mind with your target audience.

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