Looking good on LinkedIn

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LinkedIn is becoming the premier way to introduce your professional self online. Be sure that what you post and share there is the same kind of info you'd put on a resume or mention in a job interview. Achieve even greater success on LinkedIn with these tips.

Get a profile picture 
When LinkedIn suggests new contacts for me and one of them doesn't have a profile picture I 1) can't be sure it's the same person I think I know and 2) am left to feel this person created a profile ages ago and then left it to die. Let me ask you, would you go to a job interview without showing your face? Most of us would say no, unless we have a very good and perfectly acceptable reason as to why. Having a profile picture is just as important as meeting someone face-to-face.

Complete your profile with current info
Let your connections on LinkedIn know what you're about - just like you would with a resume. This is great so your connections know what skills you have and can offer, but also helps LinkedIn suggest others to network with based on the content of your profile.  

Connect and network
Ya got your picture. Ya got your content. Now get some connections! Quality connections are always worth more than quantity. So be sure you are requesting and accepting invites from people you know, trust or have a well-established reputation in your industry. TIP: When sending or receiving an invitation, LinkedIn usually creates a standard message for you. Forget that! Get personal and create your own "thanks for connecting with me" message.

Don't let your profile die!
Think of LinkedIn like a party. You're there in a room with lots of potential contacts. Don't just stand in the corner looking at everyone - or worse just staring down at the ground. Be a part of the party and chat with others. Compliment and converse to build professional relationships that will help further your career. TIP: Find ways that you can help others. This is an exceptional way to connect, make a solid new contact and demonstrate your expertise. 

Source: Social Media Today

What I learned at TEDxZurich

I could tell you so much about my experience at TEDxZurich this year, but it just wouldn't be the same as witnessing the talks yourself. But I will give you some insights on my fav talks to check out and watch on the TEDxZurich website.

I love attending these kinds of events and seeing friends and fellow business owners. Some of them being NewInZurich, Curious Courses, Bonin Communications, LoveSilence, Healthy and Safe Away from Home, Ear-th School, Steinmann International and Creation Coaching. It's great to experience ideas worth sharing with like-minded people!

So let's talk about the new ideas shared at TEDxZurich. I mean all the talks are worth mentioning, but this is just a summary of what impressed me the most. As an applied psychologist, I found talks related to these topics inspiring, but even brand new topics gave my brain something to think about.

• Jan Friden shared new research to help people who have suffered a spinal injury and are now paralized. It's not possible to take the tendon/ligament from the elbow and surgically stretch is to the hand for better contract over the thumb. 
• Lily Asquith who works at CERN with the huge Atlas detector shared a new kind of graph called a listening map. Rather than data being presented graphically, her results are presented audibly. It was the first time I had heard a "data symphony". 
• Suzy Moat decoded us and our online behaviour. Did you know that residence of countries with high GDP are more likely to search for future financial information online? When this kind of search activity increases, a stock market dip is likely to follow.
• Fellow marketer Sean Dromgoole instructed us to invite converstaion about a brand through a gift.
• Gerd Gigerenzer shared that teaching people to become risk literate would do more to save lives than investing more in cancer research. They'd actually be able to understand what the research results mean!
• Judith Simon talked about protecting ourselves online from being tracked. If "they" have the right to track, we have the right to defend, it's just a matter of knowing how! Try TrackMeNot or Ghostery.
• Rolf Pfeifer introduced us to his Roboy  - a robot with muscles instead of motors for joints. This was a concept I had never thought of before. Most robots function with motors. Roboy functions mechanically just like our muscles, bones and tendons contract and release.

And now, some impressions of the day.

Jessica Reed of ZocaloGroup and me.

Mahima of LoveSilence and Desiree of Steinmann International.

Miki Adderley performing arial silks for us.

Roboy being shy after getting a kiss from the hostess.

Pictures (mostly) courtesy of NZZ.

3 ways to make a good impression online (infographic)

Potential customers (and employers for that matter) don't just want to see that you are active online. They want to see that you are contributing something and are part of an online community. Ninety-percent of those surveyed say online interaction plays a huge role in their buying decision. Is your brand making the right impression online? Here are three ways to kick it up a notch.

1. Assess your reputation. Find out what people on blogs, social media and other websites are saying about your brand.

2. Monitor and address your reputation. Use Google Alerts for easy monitoring of terms related to your brand. If you find someone saying something negative about your brand, practice good customer service and follow-up with them. If it's an issue that can be fixed, take sets within your business to do so. 

3. Build and promote your reputation. Collect reviews and testimonials from happy customers. Shares these comments via your network.

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