About 3 months ago LinkedIn introduced LinkedIn one-click endorsements.  To be honest at first, these one click endorsements felt rather false and contrite. After all, who was really going to bother and look at your endorsements. So, like most people, I played around with the endorsements and then started to see the power and big picture with these. In this blog post, I will explain why you need to bother with LinkedIn endorsements, and why these need to be part of your daily LinkedIn routine. 

1. They give a quick snapshot of what your network rates you for

One endorsement doesn’t mean diddly-squat. However, when you have about 10 or more endorsements for a skill, it starts to add credibility to you and the skill set you are claiming to have. Many people in your LinkedIn network are not going to write a recommendation for you, but they will endorse you with one click. LinkedIn endorsements are just another way of getting external verification for you and what you do. Next time you are checking out some CVs, compare their LinkedIn endorsements to what they are claiming they are good at. Do these match up?

2. They allow you to choose the ‘best side of you’

I was looking at the LinkedIn endorsements for someone in my network who is the ‘go to expert’ for virtual productivity tools. However, nowhere on his skills had he put these down, consequently his network was not endorsing him for this skill. If you then looked at his LinkedIn profile, there was for me, a glaring disconnect between his reputation in the marketplace and his LinkedIn profile. Are you helping your employees to use LinkedIn endorsements to showcase the firm’s credentials and skill set?

3. They allow you to ‘stay-in-touch’ with your network

Maybe I am being slightly sentimental, but I get a good feeling when I endorse someone I know and rate for their skill set. It person brings me to the attention of my network. (They often reciprocate, as well) Just that simple act of endorsing someone can prompt a conversation, or a little bit more profile for you – who knows where that can lead? However, if your employees leave their skills section blank, then they (and your firm) are missing out on an opportunity to get external verification and credibility for what they are good at.

4. They show how pro-active you are

So many potential new hires, claim that they are innovative, ‘ahead of the curve’, forward thinking etc etc etc. (You’ve probably read more CVs than me, so can tell me all the buzz words. LinkedIn endorsements are a relatively new feature. To generate endorsements on your profile, you need to be fairly active on LinkedIn. If your potential new recruits have a low number of endorsements, it doesn’t bode well for them as someone who is forwarding thinking and engaging with new technology…