LinkedIn is great for getting to know and connecting with different people professionally, but LinkedIn is great for other things to, like giving gratitude to people which is important when it comes to building professional relationships. Check out this great article from Forbes for more information on using LinkedIn to say “thank you”.
Six Ways To Use LinkedIn To Say Thanks
Expressing gratitude is an important part of relationship building, and it’s an activity that will make you feel as good as the person you thank. When it comes to expressing appreciation, you probably think of making a phone call or sending a card or e-card, but some of the best ways to say thanks are less traditional. One of my favorite ways is through LinkedIn.
Here are six high-impact ways (visible as well as less direct) to show your network some love through the power of LinkedIn.
1. Recommendations
With LinkedIn, the ultimate expression of gratitude is providing an unsolicited recommendation. This expression of gratitude lives on beyond the moment when the recipient reads what you have written. As a part of their profile, it tells everyone who visits their page that others respect their skill, and it helps them provide evidence that what they say about themselves is true – making it more credible. When you offer to write a recommendation, you’re saying, “You’re so valuable to me that I am willing to spend my time telling others about what makes you great.”
2. Endorsements
When someone has helped you and you translate that into a LinkedIn endorsement for the skills they want to be known for, you’re sending a little expression of gratitude. Although we often think this feature is silly, it is actually important. People make decisions about us based on the skills for which we have been endorsed (especially the top three skills because those are the most visible ones in our profiles). It’s a great way to be helpful when you don’t have the time to write a long recommendation. The best time to endorse someone is immediately after experiencing their demonstration of a skill. So when you return from the meeting where your team member showed she was an excellent facilitator, jump onto LinkedIn and send the endorsement immediately.
3. Use your update feed to send thanks publicly
When you thank someone in a public post, expressing gratitude and sharing why you respect, admire, and appreciate them, you’re making them visible to your network. Remember to mention them and all related people using the @ xxxxxxx. It looks like this: “I’m so fortunate to have @OraShtull as my business partner in CareerBlast. She can ideate like no one I have met, and she’s just a pleasure to work with and learn from!”
4. Thank them via the group you both belong to
If you want to focus your message on an audience of decision makers who mean a lot to the person you’re thanking, you can create a post within a group. Here’s an example: “This group has introduced me to so many brilliant colleagues from whom I have learned so much! And @xxxxxxx has been especially generous and with his time, ideas, and guidance.” When you express thanks in a group, you’re helping someone stand out in an important community.
5. Build their network for them
LinkedIn’s raison d’être is to be the world’s most powerful online networking platform. And when you help your colleagues network, you make the platform that much more valuable to them. Think about the people you have as LinkedIn connections and identify powerful partnership you could create when you connect two of your members with each other for mutual benefit. Then send messages to both of them, telling them why you’re grateful to know them and why they should get to know each other.
6. Help them improve their profile
When worded correctly, a note about how someone could take their profile from good to great is a powerful, valuable, and thoughtful expression. First identify areas where the profile doesn’t quite match the brilliance you experience in person. Then identify one way you think she could take the profile from adequate to awesome. Your message might look like this: “I saw that you don’t have any multimedia in your LinkedIn summary. That slide presentation you shared at the marketing conference was so compelling. Did you know you can create a pdf of it and add it to your profile? It’s such a great presentation! You deserve to let your LinkedIn audience see your brilliance immediately.”
All six of these options do more than simply say “thanks.” They also return the favor, empowering you to create a culture that pays it forward.