By Jason Alba
(Reviewed by Kevin Knebl)

I have been training on how to most effectively use LinkedIn since 2004. As of this writing, I have more than 3,500 personal connections and over 13,000,000 overall connections on the site.

LinkedIn is the world’s premier business and social networking site, with over 500,000 people registering for free accounts every week. If you’re in business, having a LinkedIn profile is essential. I know that may sound dramatic, but it’s reality. Even if you are in a niche business in some obscure corner of the world, or you’re secure in your job and have no interest in seeing what else is available, there are multiple reasons why you should be on LinkedIn. These include building credibility, increasing your online and offline presence, becoming the “go-to person” in your industry, and staying current with what your competition is doing.

LinkedIn has more than 35,000,000 profiles, and that is a tremendous database to use for many purposes in the development of your business success.

Jason Alba was “downsized”—politically correct for laid off—a few years ago. He created his own business to help others who had also been laid off and started experimenting with LinkedIn. He wrote this short book to help people understand how to use this powerful tool. The book covers the basics of how to create a robust profile and how to use some of the features of LinkedIn. This is a great resource for LinkedIn “newbies” and for those who have had a LinkedIn profile for some time. Many people have accepted a LinkedIn invitation over the years, forgotten about it, and are now saying, “I’m on LinkedIn. Now what?”

Alba does a good job of explaining how to use LinkedIn for the person who is unfamiliar with social networking and perhaps a little intimidated by the whole thing. If you’re in business, or perhaps in transition (politically correct for between jobs), learning how to use LinkedIn is mandatory. I don’t usually use such strong terms, but I’m telling you, it’s true. In this increasingly interconnected world, if you’re not LinkedIn . . . wait for it . . . here it comes . . . you’re “LinkedOut.”

Sorry, I couldn’t resist!