How do you explain Linkedin to people who never heard of it (yes they do exsist) all in one sentence please.

Client: No I never heard of Linkedin – What is it exactly? How do you spell that?

Me:“ Its like facebook but for professionals only”

or “Linkedin is a worldwide jobboard”

Thats how I try to explain what Linkedin is to people who have never heard of it.

Clients that aren’t sure or never heard of Linkedin often ask me – What is it? How do I spell that? (no joke) Yes these people do exist. (just like recruiters out there that never heard of recruitingblogs.com) With Linkedin soon reaching 100 Million members it hard not to be part of it. Up here in Canada Linkedin has a very aggressive growth strategy, adding 120K new members a month , that is 2.8 people per minute, equal to 10% of the population and pursuing 50% of white collar workers by mid 2011.

So Im just curious - How you do you describe Linkedin in one sentence to someone who has never heard of it?

Comment by Valentino Martinez on October 28, 2010 at 2:18pm: Valerie summed up LinkedIn in a precise, functional way.

One sentence - "LinkedIn is an active, engaging, rewarding, real-time platform for professional exchanges between working and soon-to-be working people via one-to-one and/or through groups--each with mutual interests and interesting subject focus."

Comment by Mia Hirschel on October 28, 2010 at 2:20pm: I explained it yesterday to someone! "LinkedIn is an online, business networking site."

Comment by Nigel Corneal on October 28, 2010 at 2:30pm: I realize that this is recruitingblogs.com but I think that too many seem to be explaining LinkedIn strictly in terms of jobs/recruiting. LinkedIn is so much more than a job board or resume data bank and offers so many other features and benefits that describing it only in those terms is truly a disservice to both the person being introduced and to LinkedIn. I'm also of the opinion that this classification would diminish it's attractiveness to, if not completely turn off, those who've had limited or no success with job boards, be it as a business, recruiter or job seeker.

Comment by Doug Kerken on October 28, 2010 at 2:34pm: Linked in is a good place to see the words "Thinker" and "Maven" a lot while reading about how great people are or how great others think they are, and it's one hell of a place to dig up sales leads.

Comment by Jennifer Scott on October 28, 2010 at 3:28pm: LinkedIn is a powerful tool to be used for professional networking and building a personal sphere of influence. It's also a great way to get people to know about you!

Comment by Jay Perreault {DCTechRecruiter} on October 28, 2010 at 3:50pm: Amos,

I still come across those people (who are in the dark) as well at networking events and at job fairs all the time. It’s kind of hard to believe. “LinkedIn is better than your resume since it is SEO friendly, you have a chance to promote your personal brand as well as your achievements.” Happy connecting/hunting!

Comment by Sylvia Dahlby on October 28, 2010 at 4:19pm: LinkedIn in one sentence: Online business networking community.

Depending on who I speak to, sometimes I compare it to "an online chamber of commerce networking group" or "an online business directory for identifying key people within an organization."

Comment by Ben McGrath on October 28, 2010 at 4:39pm: I describe it similar to previous posts in the following way. LI is a professional social network where one can gather information and connect with a variety of professionals who are generally more than happy to share thoughts and help in varying capacities. A good place to connect with like minded people in many industries and learn.

All the best,
Ben

Comment by Tony Palm on October 28, 2010 at 5:06pm: LinkedIn is like going to a business after hours event on line.

Comment by Paul Alfred on October 28, 2010 at 6:20pm: I wrote a blog on LinkedIn earlier in the year - "LinkedIn is an SM Portal that allows one to connect to a Professional's Trusted and not so Trusted personal network for a whole host of reasons."