You may have heard of the term LinkedIn LION
This stands for LinkedIn Open Networker. LIONs are open to networking with people who they have never met before, and this is potentially one way of increasing your network to large proportions. I'm still deciding if I'd like to become a LION, as it does directly go against LinkedIn Terms and Conditions which we all agreed to when creating our profiles.
The success of many LION's on Linkedin is very clear, they have 1,000's of connections, but is it just a numbers game or are these LION's actually using their connections to their advantage?
What is a LION?
In general, a LION will accept invites from everyone and anyone and ‘hopefully’ will not mark your invitation as “I Don’t Know”. It’s fairly low risk connecting with a LION you’ve found on an Advanced Search into your network, but the risk is still there.
A lot of LION’s believe opening up their personal Network, enables them to connect with people they may never have had a chance to in the first place, as they are unable to predict the value of a connection and what they will be able to offer each in the future.
The General Rule is a LION will accept invitations from anyone.
Becoming a LION
Before I decide to become a LION, I will need to ensure I have increased my current number of connections to at least 1,000. And, most importantly do I have something to offer other Linkedin Members? This will come in the form of actively posting interesting and thought provoking content on a daily basis, becoming active in group disucssions and sharing, liking and commenting on my connections content. Not forgetting to actually meet face to face with and network with a portion of my connections.
Do I have something to offer other LinkedIn Members?
Connecting with LION’s
I would still encourage you to use the best practice rules when deciding on who you’d like to invite to you network, even if this person is a LION;
Review the individual's profile and determine if they are a valid connection for your industry
Double check how the individual prefers to be contacted (ie, email, Inmail, etc)
Personalise your connection message
Finding a LION
To find LION’s, simply type in LION in the title field on Advanced search option.
What LinkedIn Have to Say about LIONS
LION is not a term endorsed by Linkedin, check out LinkedIn’s article “Definition of a LION” to find out more. And don’t forget Section 11 of LinkedIn's User Agreement.
“As a condition to access LinkedIn, you agree to this User Agreement and to strictly observe the following DOs and DON’Ts: Don’t – Invite people with whom you have no prior relationship to join your network.”
