Eight best practices for employing LinkedIn.

AuthorHubbard, Jack
PositionLINKING THROUGH LINKEDIN

Next to voicemail or the Internet itself, LinkedIn is, for bankers, one of the most useful technology tools ever invented. Every bank should have an active LinkedIn presence. And some department within the bank -- usually marketing -- should oversee the bank's efforts to ensure that the presence remains current and consistent with the institution's philosophy and brand.

Here are eight best practices to ensure that your LinkedIn presence is achieving maximum effectiveness.

  1. Ensure that every banker has a professional photo to accompany his or her LinkedIn profile. This is important because the profile is the equivalent of a billboard for the banker and the bank. A black-and-white photo won't cut it. Nor will an informal Facebook-type photo.

  2. Have marketing take the lead in teaching every banker how to create and update his or her profile. A profile should be more than just a summary. It should contain a personal branding statement that differentiates the banker from others. One profile, for example, might describe a banker as "the person in charge of making sure that applications get processed quickly." Make it easy for viewers to contact the banker by putting his or her business telephone number and email in the profile headline.

  3. Teach bankers to personalize their communications with their network. Bankers should start by customizing their invitations for people to connect with them on Linked In. When a prospective network member receives a personalized invitation to connect, it creates an initial impression. "Here is a banker who is a little different." It may take a little longer to customize invitations, but in the long run, this practice will pay off.

  4. Create a policy for the giving or receiving of both recommendations and endorsements on LinkedIn. Recommendations and endorsements can be powerful tools, but they must be used with care. For example, laws prohibit certain professionals such as licensed security dealers from being endorsed. Bank policy may also prohibit certain endorsements. For example, if you endorse a certified public accountant (CPA), it might offend other CPAs, who might stop referring business to the bank.

  5. Encourage your bankers to join or create appropriate LinkedIn groups. In addition to joining professional banking groups, the bank can create its own groups. The institution, for example, can create a small-business group to discuss...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT