Reid Hoffman

Google “Reid Hoffman” and you might be surprised to discover that not only is he the CEO and founder of LinkedIn, but he is on the Board of Directors for Kiva.org.

Not surprisingly, Hoffman was named as one of the “Top 50 People Who Matter” by CNN Money.  It’s not his undergraduate degree from Stanford, his graduate degree from Oxford, or his Board level position at Mozilla, Facebook, Technorati, and Six Apart that matters the most however.(though a resume like that is sure to weather even the worst economic downturn!) To exactly 449 people across the world, Reid Hoffman is an answer to prayer – empowering them with a small loan to lift themselves and their family out of poverty.

Fazil Khuseinov

One of Hoffman’s first loans was to a man named Fazil Khuseinov from Baku, Azerbaijan.  Fazil is a Displaced Person from the occupied Agdam district of Azerbaijan. He fled to Baku in 1993. He is married, and has two children. He started his business in 2001.  On April 26, 2007, Hoffman loaned Fazil $1,200 (through Kiva) to expand his textile business.  The 12-month loan has been repaid in full, and since then, Hoffman’s generosity has been recycled time and time again.

Reid Hoffman loans because, ” We should approach the future with hope and optimism. Entrepreneurship helps build our future. Help good people; it improves the world.”

Why do you loan? check out www.kiva.org

Currently, there are a limitted number of LinkedIn applications, some of which include a reading list by Amazon, blog linking applications, file/document collaborating applications, slideshow applications, as well as a couple others.  There may be a benefit to using these applications, but how would you use them to make your LinkedIn profile more appealing.

There are many reasons that LinkedIn applications have not made a buzz in the online world.  First of all, LinkedIn was one of the last popular social media website to adobt an application development program.  Second, the applications have to be approved by LinkedIn and have too demonstrate a “clearly compelling value.”  Some people may have a great idea for an application that niche markets may be able to use.  Judging from the list of available applications, LinkedIn will not approve applications that fill a niche market…it will only approve those capable to add value to all users.

MoreLinkedIn applications may bring in more users with different needs, but how can we use the current applications to improve our profiles?  Jason Alba suggests a brilliant idea of using a slideshow application.  He suggests that we create a slideshow focused just on you.  Make the slideshow to compliment your profile and attract viewers to your page.

I gathered some tips and ways to take your LinkedIn profile up a level. Here are a few of them…

1.  Change the standard URL from linkedin.com/in/13?3a&3d  to a “vanity URL” so instead change it to this style: linkedin.com/in/blakeimeson This will allow you to rank for your name in the SERPs.

2. Use keywords you want to show up in LinkedIn search results for. Use these keywords naturally in your “summary” and list them in your “specialties”.

3. Great tips from Chris Brogan: For your summary…

• Lead with what I do most.
• Lead with the type of business I want to do.
• Move into the reasons why you’d do business with me.
• Move from there into all the nuances of what I do.

4. Put your LinkedIn URL in your email and forum signatures…

Cross-posted > Finish reading at blakeimeson.com -21 LinkedIn Hacks, Tricks and Ways to Make Your Profile Better

In today’s age, there seems to be such a large desire to be able to communicate with anyone at the drop of a hat. With facebook taking over the younger generations, this leaves older folk wanting something for themselves. Of course why would they want something that merely serves as a form of communication though, when they can use so many facets of the internet to help them out.

This is where LinkedIn comes into play. This website is like other job search websites in that it is an easy way for employers to find employees, but it offers so much more. You are able to connect with others that you may know, and the more people you know, the more job opportunities are available to you. At the same time though, you are able to communicate in many of the same ways as are offered by facebook.

This is a much more practical social networking website for older generations, and I predict it will become much more commonly used in the near future.

Business professionals are starting to turn to LinkedIn for networking and other business needs.  But how did LinkedIn start, and what were some of the goals of founder Reid Hoffman?

According to an interview conducted by Nathan C. Kaiser, Hoffman had previously started a company called SocialNet, which was a dating, professional networking, activity, and roommate search website.  Over time, Hoffman realized why the professional aspect of SocialNet did not succeed and he decided to start a new company.

The original idea behind LinkedIn was to link people who had jobs and money with the people that lacked jobs and money.  Having both types of people join the site was key to the success of LinkedIn.

LinkedIn.com says that it was founded in Reid Hoffman’s living room in fall 2002, along with co-founders Allen Blue, Jean-Luc Vaillant, Eric Ly, and Konstantin Guericke.  Hoffman metaphorically describes the differences between social networks by saying that LinkedIn is the social media’s office, while Facebook is a barbeque, and MySpace is a bar.

To get a better picture of Reid Hoffman, watch the video below.

To sum up Hoffman’s personality, he seems like a CEO that understands how businesses work.  He is completely down to Earth and has a witty, sarcastic humor.  He knows his product and has clearly defined long and short-term goals.   His idea of connecting the two types of business people has worked very well through the creation of LinkedIn.

In his book, Effective Networking, Michael Hughes says the first five seconds of meeting someone new is the time when each party forms the most important perception about the other. The first impression is crucial to successful negotiating, interviewing, and networking.

What would you do differently to make your first impression a good one?

You can make a good impression prior to arriving; forming your brand image begins before sitting in the interview chair and even prior to the all-important handshake. Give important appointments a chance to view your personal page at LinkedIn or read your blog. The first five seconds is still critical, but social media tools can relieve some of the pressure.