Do you need recommendations on LinkedIn?
LinkedIn recommendations are an important part of your professional profile. Good recommendations can have a significant impact on your reputation, open up networking opportunities, and even your chances of getting a new job. They are a kind of confirmation of your skills, experience, and professionalism by your colleagues, managers, or clients.
Why are LinkedIn recommendations so important?
- Recommendations add an element of trust to your profile. When potential employers or partners see positive feedback about you, it increases your credibility. People trust the opinions of others more than just the information you provide about yourself.
- Recommendations confirm your skills and achievements. This is especially important in a competitive environment where many people have similar experiences. When someone else talks about your strengths, it makes you stand out from the crowd.
- The process of asking for references strengthens your professional network. When you ask your colleagues for recommendations, you are communicating, reminding them of yourself, which can lead to repeat business for collaboration or even new large-scale projects.
- Profiles with recommendations often get more views. This is because LinkedIn algorithmically promotes profiles with activity, including recommendations, which makes them more visible to other users.
- Recommendations increase self-esteem. When you receive positive feedback about your work, it increases your motivation and job satisfaction.
How to get recommendations?
- Before asking for a recommendation, think about who can best describe your experience and skills. These could be your colleagues, managers, clients, or even participants in projects you've worked on.
- When you ask for a recommendation, do it in person. Write a short message explaining why you are reaching out to this particular person. Mention specific projects or situations where you worked together to remind them of your work together.
- If you are asking for a reference, be prepared to offer your help in the future. It could be your recommendations for them or support in their projects.
- If you have specific skills or accomplishments that you would like to see mentioned in the recommendation, don't hesitate to say so. This will help the person to formulate a more accurate and useful feedback.
How do I write a recommendation?
A good recommendation usually has three main parts:
- introduction (who is writing the recommendation and in what role they know you);
- body (description of your skills and achievements)
- conclusion (general impressions and the recommendation itself).
Recommendations should be clear and specific. Avoid general phrases, such as “he/she is a good employee”. Instead, it is better to say “He/she demonstrated outstanding leadership skills while working on project X”. The recommendation should be written in a professional tone, but not too formal. It is important that it sounds natural and reflects the style of the person writing it.
After the recommendation is written, check it for grammatical errors, typos, and stylistic inaccuracies. Mistakes in a professional recommendation are unacceptable.
LinkedIn recommendations are not just a formality, but an important tool for building your professional image. They can significantly impact your career by opening up new opportunities and improving your visibility among potential employers and partners. Obtaining quality references takes time and effort, but you'll love the results, so don't be afraid to spend some time collecting and preparing references.