Leveraging LinkedIn: Recommendations

Your Reputation Precedes You…NetClarify Can Help!

In part two of this blog on effectively using LinkedIn, I am going to focus on the ever-elusive LinkedIn “recommendation.” People get cold feet or nervous all the time about asking for recommendations from colleagues or bosses. The right attitude is to get the recommendation while your work is fresh in the recommender’s mind and while they are happy to have worked with you or had your services. Additionally, the importance of the format and content of the recommendation can’t be stressed enough, and I will address those issues as well. 

Asking For The Recommendation

Obtaining valuable recommendations when you first create a LinkedIn account involves using the LinkedIn system to request recommendations from past employers, supervisors, and coworkers. Obtaining recommendations as you work with other individuals is as easy as informally asking them and then following up with the formal request in the LinkedIn system.

Another good way to get recommendations is to make recommendations. Reciprocity is common amongst LinkedIn recommendations, and if you write a great recommendation, with specific details about the individual, then the recommender will likely use your recommendation as a template. Thus, you will get a high quality recommendation in return.

However, even if the person does not reciprocate on his or her own, that does not preclude you from asking for a recommendation at a future time. Regardless of these future actions, you have created good will without being asked, and that is a favor that will be remembered and appreciated for a long time to come.

Reviewing The Recommendation

When going through the process of getting a LinkedIn recommendation there is an opportunity to read a draft of the recommendation before publishing it on your profile. This is the time to provide the recommender with reminders of your performance and specifics you want them to include regarding your abilities.

While it is not always appropriate to ask for a rewrite, if you are sure the recommender won’t mind, you’d rather not post the recommendation without the change or the recommendation NEEDS this information, you may respectfully suggest changes to the writer. If you do ask for such changes, speak plainly about what you want so they do not have to guess what you are asking for.

In sum, a great recommendation should be succinct, specific, and portray you in the most positive light. Obtaining a wide variety of recommendations on your LinkedIn profile can only help employers make a positive decision regarding your employment prospects. 

To sum all this up: remember to make an effective and professional profile that is kept up to date, obtain solid connections through your network, and don’t be shy about asking for valuable recommendations.  Good luck in your development of an effective LinkedIn profile and in using it to further your career goals!

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