I recently answered a question on Quora about LinkedIn.
The question was: "Why should I share content on LinkedIn?"
After posting my response, I began to think about my marketing students and the course requirements for their use of LinkedIn.
My answer on Quora should have been longer.
Much longer.
You see, while my students go all-In and share content about their career focus as part of the LinkedIn element of the course, unfortunately, when the semester's ended, very few of them continue with their social sharing on the platform.
In fact, of the 500+ professional connections I have on LinkedIn, fewer than 10% are active in social sharing.
Out of sight, out of mind, and, easily forgotten.
Don't let LinkedIn be a place where your resume goes to die.
Inactivity on LinkedIn is a Missed Opportunity
Here are a few reasons why you should regularly share content on LinkedIn:
1. To be quickly recognized and easily remembered
It's easy to be forgotten on LinkedIn.
While some of your connections may have checked out your profile as a precursor to the connection process, why would they remember you afterwards?
Regular social activity on LinkedIn can remind your connections of your existence.
What you share as an update to your connections is what your connections see in their LinkedIn updates stream.
What you share to a LinkedIn Group is what other group members (even non-connections) see in their conversations stream and is repeated for your connections to see in their updates stream.
Eventually, through social activity, your name and thumbnail photo will be quickly recognized and remembered in your LinkedIn updates and your groups activity.
If consistent and authentic, you may also be more easily recognized across other social media and when physical networking.
Why is this important?
Out of sight is out of mind - and potentially out of luck for referrals and job and client opportunities.
As an example, when potential employers ask me for student or recent grad referrals or recommendations for internships or jobs, my first thoughts go to current and former students that remain visible in my LinkedIn updates stream. Rarely do I search through all my connections to find someone to recommend.
2. To amplify the visibility of your personal brand and confirm your career focus
Equally important to being remembered is to be remembered for something.
That something is your personal brand identity - how you want others to see you.
If done with career focus and interesting or helpful content, each social share can reinforce and build your personal brand.
You are what you share - if you primarily share the minutia of your life, then you're a narcissist. If you primarily share about you (self-promote), then you're an egotist. If you primarily share random career related content, then you're a generalist.
However, if you primarily share content on your career focus, then you're making a strong impressionable confirmation of your personal brand identity and how you want others to see you.
This also strengthens your personal SEO for when a potential connection or employer is doing a keyword search on LinkedIn.
For example, on LinkedIn I primarily share content that's more about the use of social media marketing for personal branding, job search, and career development. I make lots of new connections with those I don't personally know, but with whom I share a career-interest and who have found me via LinkedIn search.
Why is this important?
Sharing career-focused content affirms your career focus to potential employers, adds value for your connections, and gives others a reason to connect with you (especially those that find you in a LinkedIn or Google search).
3. To show others what you are learning
Continuing your career education and self-learning is essential for career advancement, and LinkedIn can play an important role in your on-going education as a personal learning network (PLN).
When setting up their LinkedIn profiles, my students are required to begin with: (1) a minimum of 20 connections; (2) follow 5 influencers, 5 news sources, and 5 companies; and (3) join 5 career focused groups. This requirement jumpstarts their LinkedIn PLN by filling their updates stream with industry news and trends, career-focused content, and an audience for their own social sharing.
More importantly, it informs connections, career stakeholders and potential employers of their career interests, their willingness to learn and grow and better themselves.
Why is this important?
While a resume shows what you've learned and experienced, the content that you share and engage with shows important others what you continue to learn and want to know more about.
It may also prompt further review of your LinkedIn profile and qualifications.
4. To show others what you are thinking
Among the 10% of my LinkedIn connections that are socially active, even fewer present themselves as human, alive, and worthy of engagement or conversation.
It's easy to automate social sharing on LinkedIn - just set it and forget it. But don't. Be a human, not a robot.
If you automate your personal branding efforts, you run the risk of losing authenticity and the opportunity to connect with others as a human.
To overcome this negative aspect of social sharing, and to present yourself as an authentic human, simply requires that you add relevant comments to your shares.
Tell your connections why they should read what you're sharing, and specifically why you liked it. Yes, this takes extra time and, thought, however, quality beats quantity. Repeating the content title or saying "this is a good read" or "you'll like this" adds little to the share, adds little to your personal brand, and doesn't show others what you're thinking.
Instead, you need to sell it. Sell your shared content, while selling your personal brand, give others a reason to notice your shared content and to notice and remember you and your growing authority. Then, with each share, you're also sharing what you are learning, sharing what you're thinking, and inviting human conversation and engagement.
Why is this important?
It shows others of your growing knowledge, authority, and expertise. And more importantly, for students or recent graduates, it shows potential employers your active commitment to lifelong learning, inquiry, and career advancement.
When potential employers follow your LI profile link from your resume, they gain greater insight about you as a potential employee based on your continued learning and thinking. Adding valuable content and personal insight to the updates streams of your LinkedIn connections, builds authoritative value to your personal brand.
5. To encourage engagement and build relationships
You don't always need to share content on LinkedIn to remind others of your existence or your thought processes.
You can easily and regularly join conversations started by others - your connections, or those in the career-focused LinkedIn groups you've joined.
When you press the like button for others content, this sends that content to the update streams of your LinkedIn connections and a notification to the original poster.
Good, but not good enough.
Even a robot or a half asleep connection can jump into their LinkedIn updates stream and start liking things, and with little thought or interest in what was shared.
You make the wrong impression if all you do is like things, especially when you do so without vetting what you share. It's much better to click the share button and add relevant comment, along with thanks to the original sharer of that content.
Show your connections and others that you actually read what you social share and recommend to others, then sincerely thank the source of your read.
Why is this important?
Social engagement shows your connections that you're human and seeking a relevant online conversation that could potentially continue in the physical at a potential client meeting, job interview, or a networking event.
The Take-Away
LinkedIn's a great place to make professional connections, to make a promising digital first impression, build relationships, expand career-related knowledge, and advance careers.
It takes minimal effort to amplify your personal brand on LinkedIn - just one social activity a day, during business hours and at varying times, is enough to keep your personal brand alive and remembered.
Don't let LinkedIn be a place where your resume goes to die.
This article originally appeared on Digital Self Marketing Advantage and has been republished with permission.