13 Ways To Generate Massive Success On LinkedIn

by Lewis Howes | December 18th, 2008 | 48 Comments »


Your personal brand is your most valuable asset. Generating success on LinkedIn has everything to do with enhancing your personal brand.  In fact, Gary Vaynerchuck talks about the importance of building your “Me 2.0″ equity within the social media landscape during this motivational video below:

If that video doesn’t charge you up and teach you the importance of doing what you love and are passionate about, I don’t know what will.  Without an identity on LinkedIn, your personal brand will suffer tremendously, so please consider this as I lay out my 13 ways to generate success on LinkedIn:


1)    Take Control Of Your Personal Brand:

This is the most important aspect for me, and why I included the video with Gary.  The best way to take control of your personal brand on LinkedIn is to fill out your entire profile and write concise, compelling, value driven content.  If you type in your name on Google, and you don’t have an active blog or produce other content on the web, I bet your LinkedIn profile is one of the top five pages that show up.  Control what others view about you by completing your profile, and add to it amazing value.


2)    Connect With Your Niche:

There are thousands of groups on LinkedIn; connect with the ones that fit your interests or industry.  The more you reach out to those who are targeted in your area, the more powerful you become to that niche.


3)    Add Everyone You Know (and don’t know):

I know there are some of you who like to click the dreaded “I don’t know this person” button if you have never seen an invitations name before, but you are only doing a disservice to yourself.  If you think about it, the more people you connect with, this expands your searching capabilities, even more importantly, expanding your reach for others to FIND YOU!  Don’t limit yourself, expand your reach and let some of the major players find your profile.


4)    Ask Compelling Questions:

That’s right.  Actually get on LinkedIn and ask a few questions every now and then… is that so hard?  I asked two questions that took me five minutes of my time and received over 50 helpful answers in return.  Just make sure you ask the right questions and you tag it in the right places.


5)    Become An Expert:

You don’t become an expert by sitting on your rear all day, you become one by answering questions attached with insane amounts of value.  The more value you give away, the more people will begin to reach out to you as a consultant, hire you for a full time position, or contact you for future opportunities.


6)    Host Your Own Event:

You would not believe the energy and enthusiasm created by attending a live LinkedIn networking event.  The benefits are many, and the time you work on it is well spent.  Just check out my images from my most recent event below, watch my video about how I utilize LinkedIn groups, or learn about the benefits of hosting your own LinkedIn event in this post.



7)    Say Thank You:

In the real world, people love it when you say “Thank you”.  It really solves a lot of problems and encourages positivity.  Be sure to say those two important words every time someone does anything for you… makes a recommendation, comments on your status, makes an introduction, or answers your questions.  This will continue the good karma cycle, and more success will flow your way.


8)    Become Transparent:

It seems as though the only way to be successful online these days is to become completely transparent and put yourself out there.  The more you try to hide something, act like something you are not, or stay too generic, others will see right though this and will never think twice about you.  Seth Godin says that being remarkable is nothing more than having others remark about you.  Take this advice into account as you go along your LinkedIn ways.


9)    Enjoy The Party:

If you are attending a “real world” party or networking event, I hope you are going to this party to enjoy it.  Who goes to a party and acts like a stiff?  Those are the ones who lose in the end that night and go home miserable, right?  Don’t be a stiff, take everything with a grain of salt and have fun.  Show some personality, be a character if that’s who you are, and enjoy the ride.  The more you do this, the more others will want to party with you!


10)    Make Recommendations:

I know Jason Alba, Chris Brogan, or Scott Allen have probably said this in blog posts before, but it holds true with me also.  Making a recommendation does a few things:  When you write a recommendation for someone else, they usually will return the favor which helps build your street cred.  The next time anyone views a profile you recommend, then that adds a link back to your profile as well, which increase your chances of being found.  You can’t beat that.


11)    Add Your Links:

I was amazed when I recently saw that a friend of mine did not have a link to his website on his LinkedIn profile.  He has a multi-million dollar search engine optimization and website marketing company, yet he forgot to add his company site (or any site for that matter) to his profile.  He wanted me to help him generate more leads for his company from using LinkedIn, and I told him all he needed to do was add his company link and his service would speak for itself.  Since then he has gained new business, go figure :)


12)    Don’t Be A Stranger:

If you never call or e-mail people, or go out to networking events and gatherings, then how do you expect to stay connected to those you know, and build a network with those you don’t know?  Follow up with all of the messages you receive in your inbox, and continue to get online and network.


13)    Use LinkedIn Applications:

There are many great applications on LinkedIn.  I used LinkedIn Events to promote my live networking event and I had over 350 people show up.  A friend of mine added the Amazon Book application and included his personal book to his profile and his sales doubled in a month.  By adding a few applications that are right for your needs, you’ll be sure to succeed.

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I left out about 100 additional ways to generate success on Linkedin for a reason… I want to hear ways that YOU generate success as well.  I am a co-author of a book entitled “LinkedWorking” that shows you how to achieve any professional goal you have by using LinkedIn, and Ill be sure to add more posts leading up to its release in late January.  In the meantime, I would love to hear you thoughts on how to create amazing success on LinkedIn.

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11 Positive Outcomes From Hosting A Networking Event

by Lewis Howes | November 4th, 2008 | 7 Comments »

St. Louis Networking Event

One way to expand your reach in the sports industry, or any industry for that matter, would be to host your own networking event.  It would be great to host a large industry trade show like the National Sports Forum, a Sports Business Journal Event, or the U.S. Sports Film Festival, but for most of us this would be a daunting task.  However, it would not be that difficult to host an event for sports professionals in your own city.

Think about it; if you live in a decent sized sports town there is a good chance you have a professional sports team, a few universities and high school athletic departments, sports agencies, sports marketing/PR/advertising companies, and other freelancers who work in the sports industry.  There is potential for a few hundred or even a few thousand sports professionals in your 50-mile radius.

There are many benefits for hosting a networking event, but first you want to complete the prep work upfront to ensure the event is a success.  Here are my do’s and don’ts for throwing an event:

Do: Make sure it is well attended: Send out e-mails and press releases, make phone calls, create events on social networking sites, and tell as many people as you can; Do whatever you need in order to maximize the crowd and build your trust in others.

Don’t: Come unprepared: Make sure you have food, drinks, name tags and banner, a sign up page or place to drop your card, and proper space in a central location.  If it is more of a trade show event, have tables ready for your sponsors.  If it is a symposium, make sure all panelists have what they need and your sponsors are properly displayed.

Do: Have an assistant: I thought I would be able to run the registration booth alone in my last event, but soon found a cluster of 30 people jammed by the door waiting to get a name tag.  Make sure you have a few registration tables and at least one assistant to help move the traffic along smoothly.

Don’t: Become isolated: If you throw an event, make sure you go around and shake everyone’s hand.  Listen to what the careers, goals, passions, and interests of your attendees are.  Don’t spend too much time with one individual or group of people, but be gracious and listen to as many people that you can.


I recently hosted an event for LinkedIn professionals who live in the St. Louis area (view the images above).  Many of the attendees said it was a great event because it was well attended.  There was free food (although I heard it was a bad selection; sorry guys!) and people made quality business contacts.  Your attendees can’t ask for much more than that.   Throwing an event is an accomplishment in itself, however, there are additional reasons why hosting a successful event will pay dividends in the long run:

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1.    New Relationships: Nearly 300 people were in attendance at the St. Louis networking event and 290 of them were new faces to me.  This gave me the opportunity to expand my connections and build quality relationships.

2.    Filling a Niche: What are you passionate about, or what is your field of interest?  I am passionate about building relationships and using LinkedIn.  This led me to throw a party to fulfill those passions in St. Louis, a city I lived in for seven years.  Figure out what you are most interested in, and throw the event around that niche.

3.    Building Your List: If you have a newsletter, websites, or magazine then this is a great way to grow your audience.  Make sure everyone drops their card in a fish bowl or have them write down their contact info.  Don’t miss out on the opportunity to add these individuals to your database.

4.    Personal Brand Awareness: Dan Schawbel runs PersonalBrandingBlog.com, a resource that shows you how to build your personal brand to ensure your professional success.  Read a few articles on his blog and you will see why hosting an event helps build your personal brand, and why building You, Inc. is important.

5.    Credibility: I recently attended the U.S. Sports Film Festival in Philadelphia and was wildly impressed with the way the event was produced.  Stephan Hartman was the founder and put together a great cast of directors as the chairman of the board.  Before the event I had never heard of Stephan, but since the event he has gained a lot of credibility and is on my radar as a mover and shaker in the sports industry.

6.    Extra Income: Unless your full time job is to host events, this is not a way you will get rich.  However, depending on your event format (cover fee, sponsorships, or taking a cut from the bar) you may come away with a few extra dollars in your pocket.

7.    Consulting and Jobs: Depending on what your objectives are, you may be looking to find new clients for your own business, or seeking out a new career.  Putting together a well-attended event should help you in achieving these objectives.

8.    Product Sales: Do you have a book, CD, or other products you are looking to sell?  Why not put your products up on the front table and offer a discount to all of the attendees?  If the product provides compelling value and is related to your niche market it is likely to sell.

9.    Press Opportunities: Any event is worthy of at least a brief mention in a local newspaper or online publication.  MySolutionSpot.com featured me after my event, and another newspaper said they would run a feature before my next one.  Send out a press release to a few publications that might share some interest and be prepared to put on your game face for interviews.

10.     Happy Venues: You can never become familiar with too many restaurants or venues.  By giving them the business and brand awareness to an audience, they will always be grateful and willing to help with future events.

11.     Connecting Others: It’s a pleasure for me to help others connect and mutually benefit from creating a relationship.  By bringing a large number of influential people together, it is only a matter of time that the right people will be introduced to one another, businesses will grow, and lives will change.

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Did I miss any other Do’s and Don’ts?  Are there other positive outcomes from hosting your own networking event?  Please let me know in the comments section and feel free to add anything to the list.  Did you like what you read?  Then subscribe to my monthly newsletter and receive the latest networking features in the sports industry scene.

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