The amount of connections you have on any social network can be overwhelming and chaotic. If you are like most people, you may have amassed hundreds of even thousands of LinkedIn connections.
So how can you help to make sense of LinkedIn and use it in a smart and intentional way to build your business?
One of the easiest ways to do this is to sort your LinkedIn contacts by tagging them.
Tags are keywords to help organize your contacts. Tags can be can be added from the Contacts page or a person’s profile. You can tag or untag anyone who’s saved in your LinkedIn Contacts.
Here is a simple how-to according to LinkedIn:
To add or remove a tag on a profile:
1. Go to the profile and click Relationship in the top section of the profile under the member’s photo.
2. Click Tag.
3. Check the box next to an existing tag or click +Add new tag to create a new one. If you create a new tag, type in the name and click Save. To remove a tag, uncheck the box next to it.
To add or remove a tag from the Contacts page:
1. Move your cursor over Connections at the top of your homepage and select Keep in Touch.
2. Move your cursor over the contact in the list and click Tag below the contact’s information.
3. Check the box next to an existing tag or click +Add new tag to create a new one. If you create a new one, type in the name of your tag and click Save. To remove a tag, uncheck the box next to it.
The tag will be visible to you on the person’s contact information and on their profile. You can click the tag in these areas to see all other profiles with the same tag. Only you will see the tags you’ve created.
Note: You can create up to 200 new and unique tags or delete old ones.
Now that you know who to tag how should you tag? Here are a few ideas of tags or keywords to use:
- Current clients
- Past clients
- Potential clients
- Referrals
- Live in (city)
- Work in (industry)
- Past co-workers
- Alumni
Have you organized your LinkedIn contacts yet? Leave me a comment below or connect with me on LinkedIn! (pro tip: don’t just click to connect with me on LinkedIn – send me a message and introduce yourself!)
If you enjoyed this article, here are two more that you may find helpful: “5 Things You Need to Do to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile” and “3 Easy Tips to Maximizing LinkedIn”.
