How I leverage my 9000+ connections on LinkedIn to find prospects

James Finder

Intro

• Owner of Promethean Learning Experience Design LLC getplexd.com

• Pursuing a Master’s in Instructional Technology at University of Wyoming via Online delivery

• My portfolio link: http://jrfiteceportfolio.strikingly.com

How’d it start? With sourcing…• First started growing my network in 2008• Currently I have 9,650 connections

• Shout out to Jonah Manning who taught me “The Method” of sourcing for recruiting.

• In short- “The Method” was breaking down a job requirement down to brass tacks. Completing a competitive analysis of the industry for a recruiting requirement.• Find the keywords in the requirement• Find the competition• Send A LOT OF MESSAGES

Things have changed

• My network growth was significantly curtailed in 2015• LinkedIn restricted Basic search in 2015 (

Chris South’s blogpost here explains a lot)

• In response, I purchased a year of LinkedIn Business Premium in late 2015.

How do I do it?

Links

• Prophet (Free BETA)• Rapportive (Free)• LinkedIn Autopilot (~$500 for a year)• LinkedIn Premium (~$500 for a year)

What search strings do I use?

• Looking for people similar to me. • Why?• They’re looking

for talent.• They know

someone.• They’re in the

same boat.

Workin’ it; Step-by-Step

1. Run LinkedIn Autopilot2. Look at who has viewed

me.3. Message them on

LinkedIn. • This is the message I

use word for word;• Thanks for checkin' me out!

Was there a person you needed some help connecting with or a project you needed some extra hands on? Let me know how I can help you out! Cheers, James @getplexdesign

Workin’ it; Evolution of the Message

What’s Changed?• Made it much more

personal and informal.

• Eliminated Jargon. Get to the point.

• Give them another way to connect with you (Twitter handle)

Workin’ it; What’s Worked/What Hasn’t?

What’s Worked?• Connecting my

Twitter to my LinkedIn.

• Being “Real”.• Commenting on

status updates is key.

• “Reducing” the size of my network (Interact with leaders and people will follow).

Workin’ it; What’s Worked/What Hasn’t?

What Hasn’t?• Getting people to

read my posts.

What’s Next/Upcoming Decisions?

• Will I purchase Premium and Autopilot again? • Possibly. –Depends on how much work I have in the

pipeline.• I’ve found the ability to inMail and search so many

profiles per day an amazing way to market myself.