Hey guys,
I have read on other posts that networking on Linkedin with random people is not a good idea, but I don't have any connections because I do not have a family that comes from this field. So, in light of that, any ideas/suggestions?
Thanks.
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I need to address your connections comment first. Having connections isn't about having family in the field you're wishing to pursue. It's about cold emails/calls, networking events, informational coffees, etc. Most connections have zero to do with family. If you don't have connections in the field, it's because you're too unmotivated (read as lazy) to build them. There are plenty of free opportunities to build real connections, especially for students.
Now, how to build connections on LinkedIn. In my experience, there's always one thing that you absolutely need to build a connection. That is SOMETHING IN COMMON. Is that person alumni from your university? Did they grow up near you? Have you both been a part of the honor society? Are you in a similar industry? You need SOMETHING to establish a connection and give them reason to entertain your inquiry.
In my opinion, if you can't find a common factor to use, you just need to move on. Find a different firm that does have alumni.
Good luck!
Just wondering but why does one need to have something in common with the person they are networking with, why cant they just ask for their time to learn more about their role or the firm? Obviously hit rate will be much smaller and they may be less helpful but then there are way more people to reach out to.
People are more willing to help if somehow they feel a connection. This is often times why you see senior bankers carrying around bags with their business school on them. It instantly builds a connection and creates conversation, that may not have happened otherwise.
If you need to reach out to that specific person or specific firm for some reason, then yes simply expressing interest is probably the best you'll be able to do (and should do). However, I think there's always another firm, another contact, etc. that you'll have better luck with. You can use these contacts to build other contacts more organically as well. Otherwise, you can waste a lot of time trying to build connections where people feel no obligation to help.
I agree with LeverageThis. While I was networking my response rate was much higher with people that I had some sort of connection with. If you are in greek life, search "fraternity/sorority" and "investment banking" on LinkedIn, and you should find a good amount of people with a connection. I also reached out to other non target school alumni who were usually happy to speak with me since they went through the same challenges of coming from a non-target.
Networking with LinkedIn and company applications (Originally Posted: 07/14/2013)
I've been trying to break into investment banking or private equity and its been really stressful. I'm not from an Ivy league school but I have a 3.6 GPA (so im not too much of a bookworm) and I've got one internship with a boutique investment bank, and besides that I've been working at Apple retail for five years. I recently graduated in 2013 and it's tough because I've been applying on company websites for months since January (about 300+ applications) and haven't received a single interview.
I've been trying the informational interviews but that's not working either. When trying to set up an informational interview, I've been using LinkedIn with the following template:
"Dear Mr. XYZ,
I am a senior at the City University of New York studying economics. When you have the time, I'd love to talk with you over the phone about XYZ Company as I learn more about investment banking and would value the time given.
Regards, ABC"
When trying to set up an informational interview over email i use the following template:
"Dear Mr. ABC,
I am currently a senior at the City University of New York studying economics. I am very interested in learning more about the hedge fund industry and about XYZ Capital.
When you have the time, I'd love to set up a time to talk with you over the phone or perhaps over a cup of coffee about your experiences with XYZ Capital and would value any time given.
Regards, xx"
Any suggestions? Insight? Words to pick my head up from all this rejection?
I wouldn't say "I want to learn more about investment banking" if you already have an internship in investment banking. This makes it sound like you know nothing about the industry and the recipient doesn't want to spend twenty minutes of his/her day explaining to someone what investment banking is about when you can find that out on your own. The email you are sending is something I can copy and paste into hundreds of emails. Try making it a bit more personal. Do a quick search on the person you are sending it to and try to think of something interesting to stay to pique that person's attention.
Thanks. I'll try to give that a shot.
Networking Discussion Group on LinkedIn (Originally Posted: 02/27/2015)
Hi all, I created a group on LinkedIn to discuss specific networking questions, such as cold calling, cold emailing, and LinkedIn networking. I figured this would be more centralized and specific than the forum categories on WSO and would allow me to include other like-minded individuals from my school, as well as allow people to communicate in a more personal/nonymous manner.
The link is here: https://www.linkedin(dot)com/groups?home=&gid=8263546&trk=my_groups-til…
Feel free to join, spread it, and tell me what you think.
I requested to join the group. My networking needs to be stepped up big time.
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