Fostering Strong Connections: Tips for Building a LinkedIn Group
According to Jessica Faye Carter, LinkedIn groups are like forums created so that people with similar hobbies and interests can converge together and discuss the stuff they like. The only difference which a LinkedIn group has with a simple forum is its emphasis on professional discussions about businesses, careers and other relevant topics.
You’ve managed to garner a long string of connections. Why not build a group where you can all huddle and share your thoughts on the growing developments in your specific field?
Here are some tips to help you form deeper connections with your colleagues, business acquaintances and clients:
1. Personal Touch
Make your members feel at ease with you. It can be disheartening to join a group where you are not welcomed by the people on top of the hierarchy. Delight your new members with a personal note of greeting. LinkedIn provides templates you can use for giving automated responses to newbies and other people seeking to join your group. Keep up to date with the birthdays, accomplishments and commendable comments of each member. Congratulate them with a note indicating your appreciation for their continued attendance and participation.
2. Rules and Regulations to Live by
A group cannot be successful without a set of rules notably displayed to illustrate what is proper and accepted behavior. Create clear guidelines on routine activities like introduction, posting information in discussion groups and indicate which acts are prohibited (e.g. spamming and cursing). Make everyone aware of the regulations set, so clarifications can be arranged and misunderstandings avoided.
3. Good Member Relations and Diplomatic Discipline
As much as possible, involve yourself or your staff to monitor and participate with all the discussions circulating around your group. Highlight achievements and applaud notable contributions. If a member exhibits untoward behavior, be professional in admonishing them. If the rule broken is a bit grave, counsel in private and issue one or two warnings. Think hard before you ban a member. If you really need to do so, explain the issue to the member in question.
4. Promotion Pains
Some members just seek to join a group, especially a large, popular one, because they want to promote their business. Set a specific site in your group and provide proper guidelines where such members can promote their products and services. This will help them avoid putting in promotions in inappropriate areas like discussion tables.
5. Breaking News Feeds
Keep things interesting with a news feed so that members always have something new to talk about whenever they managed to talk a topic to conclusion. Maybe you can allow members to post relevant content to provide different inputs and points of view. Freshen up the feed with other note-worthy blog posts, press releases and other articles which might be of interest to your group.
6. Outside LinkedIn Gatherings
When things become fun in an online group, it is only natural for members to seek personal contact. Provide avenues where members can exchange Twitter and Facebook handles. Teleconferences, as well as actual seminars and conventions can also be arranged for everyone, so that they can have some face-to-face conversations with each other. Now, isn’t that fun and exciting?
7. Vote in Polls
One way to keep in touch with the pulse of your members is to make polls where they can make their preferences anonymously known. Get feedback on subjects like a particular subgroup. Make sure that you post the poll in your group, and not in LinkedIn’s general directory, so members will be the only people who’ll answer the polls.
8. Promote Group in LinkedIn
Gain more members by posting in LinkedIn’s general directory. Ask your existing members to recommend their colleagues, friends and acquaintances to join. This would encourage your group to grow and grow.
Interested in connecting with your fellow professionals? Create a LinkedIn group today! Visit LinkedIn.com for more information about groups.
