LinkedIn and Branding: networking your way to success

LinkedIn is not just a place to post your resume, but instead, a conveniently accessible community that fosters networking and more opportunities for all.  In more detail, it is a channel for both job and employee seekers to more quickly and easily find what they are looking for. One can simply search for certain key words to have a wealth of relevant search results at his fingertips.

LinkedIn is a playground for professionals to stay in touch, to go beyond the scope of their own resumes. It is a place where a professional can build and improve himself based on different exposures too.

This online professional profile site provides a wealth of tools for the user. For example, if a job seeker wants to be introduced to someone his colleague knows, he can simply request his colleague introduce him to the third party. Another great aspect of LinkedIn is the fact that users can distinguish what the goals of fellow LinkedIn members are interested in – and are therefore able to ask and discuss relevant questions and topics, respectively. The user not only has the chance to post facts about his work history and education, but has the opportunity to flash a little personality, which provides a better picture of himself as a whole. Overall, LinkedIn is the gateway for one to truly network, connect and keep in touch with important professional opportunities helping people promote themselves as brands. 

QR Codes: Deserve more attention than they’ve been getting

This cool-looking QR code links users right to my Blog.

What is a QR code? For those who know what it is how many of you have seen one around and recognized it? Among those who recognized it, who knew that they needed a smart phone and a special app just to scan the code?

For those who don’t know, a QR code is a 3D barcode (just like the ones you find on products in stores, but square and 3D) which stands for an alphanumeric character set instead of just a numeric character set. So, as you can imagine a QR code is the easy way to “type” a select amount of information (letters and numbers) into a scanner, and do something with that information. A classic example would be scanning a QR code which contains a website’s URL and takes you to the website. They are very useful, but haven’t been promoted enough yet.

These are today’s problems with QR codes. The technology is genius; however the utility is diminished due to difficulty of use. The posters, billboards or websites which proudly display these barcodes of wonder don’t even suggest an application with which to scan the code! I do not believe any of this will stop QR codes from ruling the marketing world in the near future, however I do believe that these reasons are a large part of why they have taken so long to catch on. “It doesn't stop there - a QR Code can also contain a phone number, an SMS message, V-Card data or just plain alphanumeric text, and the scanning device will respond by opening up the correct application to handle the encoded data appropriately courtesy of the FNC1 Application Identifiers that are embedded in the encoded data.” (*) So I say "use 'em everywhere", because there's a lot of free marketing to be had from these things!

(*) http://www.qrstuff.com/qr_codes.html

Img courtesy: http://www.beautifulqrcodes.com/index.php?

Social Networking and security... or lack of when promoting your brand.

All brands need promotion in order to keep their name known. There are many ways to promote your brand these days, whether it's a poster on the front window of a business or a more widespread method like using social media for brand promotion. Social media has proven itself as one of the most cost effective ways to promote your brand or business in today's age of technology. Social media, however, has recently been known to have a few down comings for small businesses if not used correctly. 

Security shortfalls have been one of the major worries for smaller to medium businesses promoting their brands through social media.  Although they are one of the best low-cost online marketing tools, the malware involved and the lack of a clear list of rules for employees to follow oftentimes conflicts profitability. According to Panda Security’s Social Media Risk Index for Small to Medium Sized Businesses: “Panda conducted a survey of over 1,000 small to medium businesses and found that 35% of small to medium businesses had suffered a financial loss due to their involvement in social networks, with 35 percent suffering losses in excess of $5,000.” (*)

The general advice to maintain profitability involves creating a clear policy of expectations or guidelines that your employees need to follow. The first and most important is to protect your sensitive data. Be careful what your employees post about the inner workings of your company. It is very important to keep your reputation high, because as we all know reputations are easier to destroy than they are to make. Talk to your employees about how much time they are spending on these social media sites, because spending too much time on these websites can be counter-productive. Last but not least, Social networks are infamous for spreading viruses and malware through downloads and links from “people in your network”. It’s a common fallacy that links or downloads on social networks are safe, they’re oftentimes not. Be careful what your employees are doing online while they are at work! Most importantly, have a plan in case something goes wrong! Don’t get caught in the rain without an umbrella.

(*) http://www.socialbiznow.com/2010/09/social-media-in-the-workplace-the-top-5-security-issues-for-small-business/#sthash.0McpyG03.dpuf

img courtesy: www.hannity.com