INTRODUCTION WHAT IS DIGITAL COMMUNICATION? Digital communication is the use of online tools such as email, social media, messaging and texting to reach other individuals or a specific audience in order to share-oF receive a message. Even something as simple as reading the text on a webpage is considered digital communication. Therefore, any type of communication that relies on the use’ of digital technology is called digital communication, ‘The professional world has much to gain from the advantages that digital communication brings. As Mitchell Kapor puts it, “Digital communications media are inherently capable of being more interactive, more participatory, more egalitarian, more decentralised, and Jess hicrarchicl” According to Robert Danielson, the four primary benefits of digital communication methods are: Communication is instant and fast-paced: Valuable information reaches the audience as soon as the sender hits the Enter or Send button. ‘The advantages of instant communication to a business are obvious. Communication is extensive: One message can be sent to thousands of employees instantly, effortlessly, and at no additional cost. The reach of digital communication is unprecedented and a social media post can be seen by hundreds of customers. nn is convenient: The ease of sending information with just a few clicks « Communic: encourages people to do it and ensures that the task at hand is completed. Communication contributes to positive social change: ‘The ability to work from anywhere and at any time creates flexible working hours and contributes to greater employee productivity and success. Virtual offices or WFH saves commute time and also contributes to improved air quality owing to less on-road traffic. It is these advantages that have facilitated a digital revolution in the 21st century. The digital revolution has led to the adoption of digital technologies that have changed the2 || INTERCONNECT way we access, exchange and use information. With technology becoming more user- orientated and user-friendly, individuals at all levels have become more digitally literate and have started using technology in newer ways and in an ever-increasing number of areas of their lives. By 2020, more than half of the world’s population had become active internet users. From social media to online shopping, from web applications allowing Temote working to on-demand entertainment services, these systems have largely reshaped the functioning of our everyday life, These systems maximise the effectiveness of shared resources, build reliable solutions for individual users, and facilitate communication in multiple aspects of our lives. These developments have led to an enormous amount of data being created in the digital space, propelling today’s society into what is called the Information Age, To survive and to thrive in this Information Age, itis imperative that we become digitally literate, However, in the digitised world, it is not just the content but also the medium of communication that holds significance. As media theorist Marshall McLuhan put it, “the medium is the snessage’ It is here that it becomes important to understand Media Richness Theory MEDIA RICHNESS THEORY (MRT) MRT compares all types of communication in their abilities to convey, messages, When we speak about how rich a source of communication is, we are referring to how much information is being transferred from the sender to the receiver. According to this theory, proposed by Richard L, Daft and Robert H. Lengel, different media or forms of communication have different levels of richness in the information that they provide. MRT, also known as Information Richness Theory, helps us choose the form of communication most suited to convey our message. Less rich forms of communication such as text messages and written letters do not contain the kind of information that can be conveyed through rich media such as video conferencing or face-to-face interaction, [As the form of media becomes richer, the receiver has more cues to interpret the message such a8 voice inflection, facial expression, hand gestures, body language, etc. Each form of communication has its own distinct advantages and disadvantages and its important for us to understand these so that we may use the medium best suited to convey our message most effectively. The need to select the appropriate medium arises from the context of the message being conveyed. If the message is urgent and requires immediate feedback, then we must use the richest form of medium. For instance, you have organisedINTRODUCTION || 3 4 seminar in your institution and have invited a prominent personality to deliver the yeynote. Due t0 unforeseen circumstances, the seminar has to be cancelled at the lst minute. You have to inform the keynote speaker just two hours before the scheduled time about the cancellation. What form of communication will you employ to ensure that the speaker gets the information? Will you send an email a text message, or will you make 4 phone call? Let take another example, You have designed your organisation's annual report and wish to get feedback from your colleagues before you submit the report Iris a forty-page report with graphs and tables. Will you call a meeting and read out the report to get feedback or will you print out the entire report and make copies for everyone and have it couriered to all of them or will you send an email to everyone with the report attached? ‘According to MRT, the following is the descending order of media in terms of : face-to-face, video systems, audio systems, text systems. These are also called hh, somewhat rich, lean, very lean mediums. MORE EFFEcTIve Richer Mediums A Face-to-Face a8 Video Conferencing ae Telephone = 2.Way Radio ee) Letters Written, Addressed Documents E-Mail — ae LESS EFFECTIVE Leaner Mediums [Posters] Fig. 1. Pictorial representation of Media Richness Theory EFFECTIVENESS OF COMMUNICATIONEMAIL To not have an email address is the digital equivalent of being homeless —Dela Quist Pallavi isa marketing manager at Vriddhi Software. She is working on her presentation which is due the next day. As she frantically prepares her slides, a pop-up of an incoming email from her boss shows up, asking for an immediate update on the status of her presentation, She leaves her work to answer the email. When she gets back to her presentation, another email pops up. A colleague is asking for a document. She responds again. Pallavi finds emails distracting and intrusive. She, like 75% of the email users, as per a report by Vision Critical Study, thi as hostile, boring and a waste of time. Only 25% of email users consider emails friendly, interesting and useful. What is it that Pallavi needs to learn to use emails effectively and as a valuable tool in her work life? Come, let’ find out! ks emails Email, or Electronic mail, is one of the most popular forms of digital communication It is a mode where people exchange messages, computer-stored documents and graphics using the internet. Email was first introduced in 1971 when Ray Tomlinson, a computer programmer, found a way of transmitting messages between computer systems on the ‘Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET)—which eventually became the modern internet. Email has grown to be a vital medium of communication in the last five decades and has remained so despite the rise of other digital channels, The reasons for its popularity are many. It has become one of the most universally used digital channels, According to the figures released by Radicati, a Technology Market Research Firm, there are 3.9 billion active email users worldwide as estimated in early 2019. That is more than a quarter of the worlds total population using emails. Further, emails have come to be10 || INTERCONNECT a, where messages reach the intend, Mresible. They CAM CAFTy messages cy ‘i achments. It is therefore munication Emails are ttc a contents/att on tu Gependable form of professional come ccordin Marketing Ramblings (DMR), an wenn bss te ae Ts uge only SE 0 gg is believ e, com! e the most J to Digital Is each Fig. 2. Ray Tomlinson, the computer Fig. 1.'The two ARPANET computers ‘etween which the first email was programmer who invented emails exchanged. (ilidnam, as sonosnw 2b Pos ent ee MERITS routine communication needs of an organisation: All mid-sized and mails to communicate with their suppliers, customers, ees. Much of everyday communication, such a work, happens via email. It is the chig «Facilitates large-sized organisations use © partners, as well as their employ’ delegating, monitoring and reporting of channel of routine information exchange. r customers and new target audience Email Marketing: Companies reach out to regula popularise sales discounts and using personalised emails to market their products,EMAIL || 11 inform about new launches. Its considered one of the mos efective digital marketing tools. LTR Se Ores cele CTA? OBERLO ‘The average expected ROlis $40 for every $1 you spend (on email marketing. Fig. 3. Email Marketing and Return on Investment ity: Its common in the professional world to hear people say “Put Just as in the offline world nothing is final until it is written, in the new business world, nothing is official unless it is communicated through the official Email lends vali it in an email’ channel of email. Email is a gateway to the digital world: As part of this globalised and digitalised world, an email ID is an essential identity of a person or a company. Whether it is for hunting jobs or accessing social media accounts such as Facebook, LinkedIn or Instagram, you need an email ID. Similarly, a professional email address lends a sense of credibility to any business.DEMERITS rk detractor: Sending and receiving emails ca n distract employees from. cumlaine lead tog job. According 10 2° article, “Death DY Tnformation Overload” published : 8 critica Business Reviews people took a” average of twenty-five minutes to btarts, Harvarg a after an ema interTUPtons ‘the article also quotes the results of » 10 work 3300 Intel company ting how they perceived one-third ae '¢ email a time-waster/WO Email as Jot of wasted time and effort. It ca employees, reveal messages received to De unnecessary.! ips TO DEAL WITH EMAIL INTRUSION Allocate a specific time for email processing nd look at the ones that require urgent «Make folders for different mails a dat the time allotted for checkin, 8 mail attention, The rest can be processe during your work day. «Ifyou have not opened an email from a particular source for a lon unsubscribe from that portal and if the option of unsubscribing Bete is not ther re, categorise it as spam. she sender of emails must ensure that emails are sent only whe aoa only to those recipients who need to get the message sleet) Informatiot i: eae ion — People tend to send irrelevant messages ea i 8, oe letters, or irrelevant memos (e.g. the Ce stele me . Going thr ie oro through such unwanted emails is a waste of employ otc ees: productive time,EMAIL || 13 SPAM: SHARE OF GLOBAL EMAIL TRAFFIC 2011-2022 spam can be defined as an unwanted message, usually of commercigl nature, such early 49\percent of all reent in 2021. In 2022, ‘uary—approximately 53 as an advertisement, sent to somebody via email, In 2022, emails worldwide were identified as spam, up from 46 pe the highest volume of spam emails was registered in Feb percent of email traffic worldwide: Not suited for complex and sensitive messages: People overestimate their ability to communicate via email. An email is typically suite d for routine messaging. Even when email is used for marketing, effective messaging involves simple and clear messages. Emails must be avoided for complex messages. + Overdependency on emails: There isa tendency in our workplaces to be overdependent on email for communication. Email is only one of the many communication channels available. The other popular mediums are face-to-face communication, telephone, instant messaging and intranet. Depending on the nature and urgency of the message, one must choose an appropriate channel. If it is an urgent message and a quick one, then possibly a telephone call works better than an email Similarly, complex messages involving negotiation or elaborate news, emails cannot replace face-to-face communication, when communicating ‘ussion, or conveying bad 0 THINK AND DISCUSS Read the following case of Twitter’ global vice president of policy, Sinead McSweeney and answer the questions that follow.STRUCTURE OF AN EMAIL. Emails and conventional letters can both be seen as written forms of commun entailing the ability to write using correct grammar, appropriate vocabulary, ean concise sentences. Yet, when we compare emails with a conventional letter, the ns and distinctly varies from the latter, Emails are more direct, quick, highly purpose me yet personalised communication, which facilitate quick response and even jm, action, quite unlike the traditional letters. lang Media While the mechanical elements of email are standardised, the language requireg write an email requires close attention and practice. This section will focus on he to you learn how to write different types of emails. The first step is to be familiar vite structure of an email. It has a clear logical structure usually incorporating the fllowi, elements: 1. Subject Line: Every email, whether formal or informal, should have a short subs line which specifies the content of the email. ; 2. Salutation: Much like traditional letters, emails also most often begin with a salutationDepending on the context and your relationship with the recipient, you may choose to use an appropriate salutation: j. Dear Mr./Ms./Mrs Ipshita: Highly formal and mostly used at first acquaintance. ji, Dear Ipshita: Less formal than the above. ‘This reflects some sort of familiarity between the sender and the receiver. ii, Hi/Hello Ipshita: Informal way of reerrnig to a colleague with whom you work regularly or are in the same team. In certain multinational companies, this may be the company's practice. It is always good to learn or observe the norms followed in your company/organisation in order to understand how formal/informal you are expected to be with your colleagues while writing to them, iy, Start without any salutation: This is usually done in along thread of communication where, after starting the chain of communication, you may sometimes skip salutation. 3, Opening Sentence: As emails are meant to be direct, particularly the routine ones, the opening sentence should explain the purpose of writing the message i. “Iam writing to...” Usually, this phrase is considered to be a formal way of stating the purpose of your email. ii, “Just a quick note to...”: This phrase appears in informal email messages to announce the reason for writing the message. 4, Conclusion: An email message is a popular means of professional communication because of its result-orientedness. In the conclusion one must clearly spell out the action that is desired from the recipient of the message. This action could range from noting information to sending an acknowledgement or an important document, seeking answers for an enquiry or confirming orders. The concluding paragraph must clearly mention the action that is expected. i. Examples of formal conclusions: Look forward to hearing from you, I look forward to meeting you at the venue, Kindly acknowledge receipt of the documents, Please confirm the delivery of the order,ii, Examples of informal conclusions: Hope to hear from you soon, See you at the venue, Just let me know when the delivery is done. . Closing: The language in closing also ranges from very formal to informal, incerely: Highly formal and seldom used in emails ii, Thank you/Thanks in advance: Use them when you desire to express your gratitude, particularly when you are asking something from the recipient. iii, Regards/Best wishes: Most commonly used semi-formal phrases. iv. Cheers/Best/All the best/Bye: Informal and a friendly way of closing an email, It shows certain familiarity between the sender and the receiver of the email,LANGUAGE REGISTER: FORMAL AND INFORMAL ry of language. It is the way the language used }, or interests, such as lawyers or scientists, Ty. - The Register refers to the degree of formalit f message one is writing and th 1 Person a group of people who share similar worl register of an email depends upon the kind o' sage to. A routine message, such as an enquiry of the availabity ity one is writing the me of a stock, is less formal than apologising for a missed deadline. Similarly, writing people outside your office, such as your customers or company dealers oF to Pond higher in hierarchy such as your boss or the CEO of the company, will be more formal than writing to your teammates. “| don't mind getting email from you, Stevens. But don't ever send me another smiley-face emoji.” Fig. 5 Avoid emojis in a formal emailgATURES OF INFORMAL LANGUAGE # Colloquial Phrases: When people use informal language, the ol everyday parlance, i. the language used in casual com in rows ‘you? or See ya soon ot See you soon, Y use the language used Wersation, For example, simpler Vocabulary: The words used in informal emails are usually simple than in i the formal emails. oral To To To To To inform request enquire verify assist fo tell To ask To ask To To help formal To tel os for check Abbreviations: Abbreviations such as Ra for road, info for information; use of symbols such as & % are also commonly seen in informal messages. However, there are some standard abbreviations like as soon as possible (asap), for your information (EY) which are common to both formal and informal emails « Emoticons and Emojis: Use of emoticons and emojis to convey emotions is more commonly accepted in an informal email than in a formal one. Emoticons are essentially textual portrayals of a writer's moods or facial expressions in a i of icons like :) or >:<. Emojis are small digital images to convey the writer's Sanction such as () (slightly smiling face), (22) (slightly frowning face), (5) (beaming face with a grin) and € (laughing face with tears of happiness).WRITING A SALES/PERSUASIVE EMAIL ve email is another important email which you must learn to write. In this kind of emai, the chief goal of the sender is to move the readers from an uninterested or even antagonist, Position to being an interested audience. To achieve this, you may keep in mind the following. + Knowing your readers before writing a sales letter is critical for its success. Keeping the demographic information such as age, education background, culture and geographical location is vital for framing an effective sales email, Similarly, psychographic information such as personal preference, social leanings and personal values helps you to frame your sales email more effectively. an indirect method is usually followed by .s message before making a sales pitch, Is as a specialist of their field and. Or, they highlight the + In sales emails, unlike the routine ones, first preparing the readers to receive your sale For example, a company may establish their credential before asking investors to put their money into their br: product features before asking customers to buy it. + Use the age old method of AIDA: (Catch Attention, Develop Interest, Create Desire and Call for Action): ‘Attention: Create your email with an opening/starting that catches the attention of your audience. talking about the various product ¢ Interest: Develop the interest of your audience by d validations from product users, features, Give details of the various certifications an Desire: Elaborate on the product's features to make them see how it will help them in their real life. Mould your language to show the usefulness of the product you are asking them to buy. «Action: End the email by telling the receivers what action you expect of them. Should they click a form to register, make payment or make a call!FACEBOOK “Facebook is like a garden. You have to cultivate it, nourish it, and prune it to mike it flourish” Anonymous Rubi is clearly upset today. She has many disapproving comments on her Facebook for the latest photo she has posted of herself in her new Facebook friends—who run into hundreds. haircut. Many of her have given negative comments telling her how unattractive her new haircut is. One Facebook com: ment says, “How Another one reads, “A Ruhi is affected by these negative comments and is feeling low. Ts Ruhi right in the way she is reacting tofusing her Facebook? terrible! Could you not have afforded a better hair stylist?” wvig suits better than the new hair cut!” ebook is an American company that is considered one of the workl’s leading social E cia platforms. It was founded by Mark Zukerberg in February 2004 essentially as a aimee site for students of Harvard University. Gaining a lot of popularity at Hein soon the site was opened up for other elite universities in the Boston region to oe ‘with one another, It attracted the venture capitalist, Peter Thiel, to invest in the firm and the platform had more than a million registered users by the end of the year. ‘The big innovation in the platform came in September 2()06, when Facebook added the eature of ‘News Feed’ which provided its users with a continuous up-to-date summary on ther friends’ posts and updates. This revolutionised the way people kept in touch with their friends and their lives. Again in 2006, Facebook introduced the feature to allow people to share content in terms of photos, videos and posts on their Facebook profiles. In 2007, Facebook started its first mobile site which made the platform accessible for just their cellphones. I helped them to grow the number of users exponentially, ‘The year is important as it attracted a large investment from Microsoft. It was also the year when Sheryl Sandberg joined the company. She was instrumental in shaping the userscompany’s revenue model which depended on advertising rather than user subscription, {In 2009, the ‘Like’ button was introduced to enhance user engagement on the site, Facebook continued to incorporate changes to its features and interface over years; today, users can do multiple things on Facebook such as create a personal profile, connect with friends and family, share photos and videos, join or create interest-based sours and post updates about their lives. In addition to connecting individuals, Facebook is also used by businesses and organisations to promote their products and services, communicate with customers and build online communities. Inc, in 2021, offers a range of services and including Facebook Messenger (a messaging app)» Facebook alee “| nea marketplace for buying and selling goods) and Oculus VR (a virtual real ity pl form). Facebook (Meta) also owns other social media platforms, such as Instagram and WhatsApp. Facebook has grown to become one of # world with over 2.9 billion monthly active users as o' Journal calls Facebook and Google the “digital duopoly’, i. situation where the two digital service providers (FB and Goog accounting for nearly fifty percent of all digital spending globally. However, Facebook, like all media, has both merits and demerits. products, Facebook Inc., renamed as Meta he largest social media platforms in the f December 2021. The Wall Street referring to the current le) dominate the market, MERITS + Facebook has emerged’as one of the biggest platforms for people to connect and network. It facilitates people across the globe—friends, family and even strangers—to build relationships and find new opportunities to connect with one another. + Facebook serves as a platform for massive information sharing. According to a report by Pew Research Centre, nearly 66% of Facebook users get news from Facebook, making it a mass platform for news consumption. So, the medium can be useful to learn about latest news and information + Facebook, being one of the most used social media networks, offers businesses the broadest range of tools for business promotion and marketing. By creating a business page and building a big following, businesses can reach out to a wider audience and increase their branding and sales.Facebook also offers a wide variety of entertainment ! options where you can view and share videos, games and memes, which can be a g Feat way to relax and unwind. DEMERITS Facebook, in the past, has faced several scandals related to data breaches and mtis So, users risk a similar mishandling of their data and privacy Facebook can become a compulsive habit, tending towards an addictive disorder According to a study (Chakraborthy 2017), around 50 percent of Facebook users in the age group of 18-24 visit the site/app as soon as they wake up. This kind of addictive nature of Facebook can have negative implications for its users (particularly, the youngsters) in terms of loss of their productive time and attention, «Users may be subjected to cyberbullying, online harassment and abuse, resulting in a negative impact on mental health and well-being, Fig. 1. Effects of cyberbullying. Facebook has been criticised for its role in spreading misinformation and fake news. Users may be exposed to false information, which can be harmful and misleading,LINKEDIN One out of three professionals on the planet is on LinkedIn. —Jason Miller Gaurav isa software sales manager who worked at talent management organisation Due to downsizing at his company, he lost his job. At first, he was not worried because he believed he could quickly find employment with his background and experience, However, he remained without a job even afier three months. Anxious, he shared his situation with a friend who suggested that he should create a profile on Linkedin. Gaurav took time to create a good LinkedIn profile-the kind that would get noticed by recruiters. Soon, Gaurav heard from several companies that were looking for someone with his kind of expertise. Now, he is happy preparing for the various interviews lined up. Linkedin is a social networking platform created in 2002, ‘The founders, Reid Hoffman, Konstantin Guericke, Jean-Luc Vaillant, Allen Blue and Eric Ly, created the platform to enable professionals to connect, network and showease their skills and experiences. It provides a digital space for individuals and organisations to establish and maintain professional relationships, search for job opportunities and promote their products and services. {On LinkedIn, users can create a profile that highlights their education, work experience, skills and accomplishments. They can also connect with other professionals in their industry or field, join groups, share content and participate in discussions, LinkedIn also offers a range of features stich as job postings, company pages and premium subscriptions for users to access additional tools and features. It also provides plethora of educational courses. LinkedIn has become a critical tool for recruiters, job seekers and businesses to find and connect with the right talent, establish brand awareness and market their products and services. With over 700 million users worldwide, Linkedin has become the go-to platform for professionals to manage their careers and build their personal brands.MERITS 1 excellent platform for professionals to es an opportunity to connect with ¢ and even find potential + Professional networking: LinkedIn is an connect and network with each other. It provid people in the same field, share knowledge and exper job opportunities + Give prominence to your brands: LinkedIn provides an Cee os to build their personal brand and showcase their skills and experie oe wider audience. Users can create a profile highlighting their achievements, education ang work experience, which can help them stand out in a crowded job market, + Learning and development/promote your skill set: LinkedIn Learning is an onling learning platform that provides access to thousands of courses and training materia, ls and enhance their knowledge in various fields This can help users develop new s + Job Opportunities: LinkedIn is a valuable resource for job seekers as it allows then to search and apply for jobs directly on the platform. Many employers also use LinkedIn to search for potential candidates and post job vacancies. As a result, job seekers have a high chance of getting the position they want. They use keywords such as educational qualification, skills and years of experience to find possible contenders whom they contact through email IDs and other contac information. Also, many companies and institutions place advertisements on Linkedla inviting people to send their resumes and CVs for job openings. + Showcase your knowledge and skills: With LinkedIn, you can showcase you knowledge, your abilities, your core strengths and your ideas. Recruiters look your recommendations, relationships and examples of previous situations where yu brought value. Therefore, it’s crucial to request reviews, provide excellent service those you've worked with and watch out for positive recommendations as all of thes: will help demonstrate to potential employers what you have to offer. + Easy listing and wide publicity: Other advantages of LinkedIn include vast and larg Job listings, publicity and ease of resume update.LINKEDIN || 67 peMeRtTs spe and scams: Like a oe Soi networking lator Link «spam 201 scams. Users may receive unsolicited! messages and eh Pon to n inection requests n't know and some of thee mes: ssages may be fi y be fraudulent from people they dor ncerns and risk of identity theft: LinkedIn collects - ivacy © Privacy i stores from its users, including their work history, donde ersonal data education.and connecti potas eased concerns about privacy and data security, especially afer Ue pl iri a latform Meed a data breach in 2021. Theft of private dala may rst in identity the. sypensive premium packages: While Linkedin is free to use, some of its featufes, Jy as job postings and premium memberships, require Payment. This may be e sud especially those who are unemployed or on a tight budget harrier for some USErS, sime-consuming: Time consumption is one of LinkedIns main flaws, The amount of e required to master its effective utilization is a lot, In contrast to other websites, tim ding LinkedIn effectively requites you to be prepared to sacrifice some of your valuable time regularly. pite the demerits, LinkedIn has become a professional necessity. Dest you to be able to leverage the benefits of LinkedIn, you must have a LinkedIn For profile. Creating @ LinkedIn profile is easy. For this you may either go to the Linkedin wrebsite or the LinkedIn application on your mobile phone, Click ‘Join Now’ and then, proceed to add your basic details such as your name, email ID and password. you can kedIn profile Once you have a LinkedIn account, you can create your CONSTRUCTING SELF USING LINKEDIN, Itis dificult to discuss LinkedIn because it continuously updates its platform and whatever gels written here may become outdated overnight. However, there are certain essential elements which are central to a LinkedIn profile + Name: Write your name (your first name and your family name). Do not use any title such as Dr: or Professor: Also, you don't have to write your qualification such 4 MCom or M.A English here.68 || INTERCONNECT + Headline: In LinkedIn, this is similar to an Executive Summary & @ CV. Headline is meant to enable a recruiter to get an idea about your qualification and skill without having to go through your entire profile. the ‘most important thing ies the headline isto highlight your unique achievements and skills. A good headline should announce your expertise. ir photograph. Your cae fers a 1s users to upload their P rofile Photo: LinkedIn offers a space for i 10 alo ca photo on your LinkedIn profile represents YOu. keenly. obser fella lot about you. Recruiters who are visiting Your | plete tere whether you are smiting or not, whether you @PPE3" sincere or ae a shat j you exude in the photo. It is always good te post a professional photo that does na distract the recruiter/visitor. Like in all profile photographs, it is important you post a photo that features you individually ‘and not as part of a group. an also upload a background photo, usually a long anda backdrop for your profile picture. It is up £0 the user wre, Remember, a picture speaks a thousand word rect and updated contact information message you regarding their h with you via email. Creating Background Photo: You & narrow one which serves as @ to make the best use of the pictu Contact Information: It is crucial to give cor ‘on Linkedin, Although some people may directly fhterest a large number of companies will get in touch 4+ dedicated email ID to deal with LinkedIn enquiries may be a good way of dealing with LinkedIn-generated interest. + Summary/About Section: In the summary or the ‘About’ section, you are free to define yourself in your own words. It allows you to talk: about yourself in as many ss two thousand characters. Use this space to give an overview of your professional life The summary is your opportunity to present your best self. Unlike in a traditions ' GV, here you can use the first person voice and be less formal than in a CV. For example: Developed positive workspace cultures as an HR professional wih 6 years of experience in Human Resource Management. 1 help companies hit the quality employee training, in recognition of which I won the prestigious Ht Professional Award of the Year. (Notice the use of the first person pronoun Ther! Other Inclusions: In addition to the above, you can mention your current position ich you belong. education, location and industry to wUNKEDIN |) 69 a new job/hiring/providing service fe : to findir is ind en nie : indicates yo » OF you ate looking for a job, then mention that you ae fini 9 peat are finding stats are looking for people, then say open for hiring or ling a new job; in e you “ ‘ ng or if you y ase customers: SAY providing services You want to connect to m0 ‘aman Gupta arm ond co atoning Lvs) py sample LinkedIn profile of Aman Gupta, co-founder of boAt. ‘sto the above basic information ofthe profile there are specific sections where Inadditior give detailed information under the following categorie you can pperiencer Professional jobs and postions held in companies and non-profit organisations. Education: School and higher education information. ations: Any specific licence and/or certificate you have attained + Licences and Certi Skill: All relevant skills which help people know your area of expertise alent to reference letters in a traditional CV, these are + Recommendations: Equiv: s and peers. professional endorsements you have earned from your colleague: + Courses: Any courses other than your educational qualifications.70 || INTERCONNECT Honours and Awards: List your awards and honours here. Languages: Languages you can speak and/or write. Organisations: Any involvement with organisations or commun. ties. Patents: Any patents which you have either applied for or received, + Publications: List your published works here. + Projects: Mention the projects you have completed or are working on here, Test Scores: Any test score of significance can be putin here. Your JEE, CAT, TOE. + Volunteer Experiences: If you have served as a volunteer, mention it here, Note: It is not necessary that you should complete all the sections listed on the Linked page. You fill in the ones that pertain to you and you have certificates for and leave other sections.72 \\ INTERCONNECT STRATEGIES TO ATTRACT RECRUITERS, + Keywords: Keywords are essentially common words or phrases weitere Use while searching for potential candidates. They play a significant se nd neu LinkedIn profile. For instance, if a recruiter is looking for an = mat 1 fe at in the word: ‘M.Com with specialisation in accountancys i =D hal fe She will see profiles of potential recruits who have used ass ‘eruat : - profiles. After fetching these profiles, the recruiter aan es en sr Knowing the keywords that are critical for your field is the frst step ing a successfull Linkedin profile mportant details in your profile i Kk for + High level of detail: Potential recruiters loo} | i as the skill you possess, the internships you undertook, who you worked fo, the job titles you held/hold, etc. Just as in a CV, these details help a recruiter know if your career is progressing in a specific field. WHAT ARE KEYWORDS? Many companies today use Linkedin as a resource to find potential candidates. Regardless of the field in which you work—engineering, commerce, humanities, marketing or HR, learning to use keywords in your LinkedIn profile is vital to getting noticed by recruiters. , Keywords are common phrases which are keyed into the LinkedIn Recruiter Platform to search for candidates. This ptactice is similar to recruiters searching for candidates using traditional CVs; however for CVs or resumes they do so using Applicant ‘Tracking System (ATS). Another important difference between a traditional CV and Linkedin profile is that CVs and resumes are tailored for specific job profiles whereas LinkedIn profiles target multiple positions and appear in searches of various recruiters Here is a list of top keywords to ensure your LinkedIn profile appears in ters’ search: + Position Titles: Specific job titles are among popular keywords. Example: “Senior Content Creator’, “Income Tax Auditor” ete.10° where you w rir amen whee You want go sand Certifications Integrate names of speci i lsbo throughout your profile. Include cerifcationsynae ot Sills and soft sill that you have acquired top keywords for your Linkedin profile, that you aspire to get. From there, ure in your profile YOU MUst Took at job the 4 arm You may determine the keywords scriptions that sould fea where should I put my Keywords? est places 0 natural age the following: integrate these top keywords in your Linkedin Profle eae: Your beatne isthe frst thing a recruiter will se when they lok ax your profil, Ensure that you do not waste this valuable space by only ‘rentioning your current positionttle and company. A good Linkedin headin. Jpdldes relevant Keywords-to.catch the recruiter’ eye and make them want to see more of your profile, “About section/summary: Your ‘bout section is the most important section of your Linkedin profile. I also an easy place to include keywords. While writing jour profesional ie story here, you must include your major accomplishments, jour skills and certifications. It isa good idea to list 6-8 core competency skills ‘o that any recruiter looking for them can find your profile Ifyou are not currently employed, you should list your desired position titles so thatyourprofilecan be fetched by the system when those positions are searched for. {eis important to keep the content relevant. Do not be unrealistic; also do not exaggerate, Too much content is not the purpose, relevant and meaningful content isthe cornerstone of a good ‘About’ section. ' + Experience section: Many LinkedIn users neglect this section, As a matter of fac, this is a great space to highlight your expertise. You can fit in keywords here by optimising your position titles.74 || INTERCONNECT You should not change or make-up your official job titles Le, calling yours “Content Head! when you were only a "Technical Writer: However, you may clude areas that you weee in-charge of, ‘There’ no limit to the number of job experiences you can include here. You ‘may go back to older positions if you wish to include strong keywords through them, Skills section: Linkedin offers as many a8 50 slots for you to fil in your skills. Typically, skills can be of two types: technical*hard sills and soft skills Technical skills are specific skills gained through training, for example, java, accounting, auditing, copywriting, editing, etc. Soft skills are the skills that help the candidate t0 apply the technical skills more productively For instance, presentation skills, team work, analytical abilities, problem-solving, et, There is no harm in mentioning every skill you possess. But do not stretch the truth—only lista skill for which you can provide an example while being interviewed. Include different keywords (and their synonyms) of your expertise to increase the chances of your profile getting fetched in a search engine For example, if you have worked as an editor for a journal, include all the ‘words related to the process of editing such as revising, editing, copyediting, proofreading, etc. Some experts advise to employ different forms of the same ‘word, for example—revise, revision, revising, Similaey, use words lke manuscript, research thesis, ete. for optimising your chances. This is particularly important for people looking for a job opening using LinkedIn, Farther, focus on hard skils frst and then on the soft skills, Recruiters arent ‘going to be searching for ‘eye for detail; rather they would be first looking for hhard skills such as ‘Editing: Finally, remember to prioritise your skills and be sure to use synonymsFormal Language We can schedule a meeting for tomorrow if you're free. We are pleased to inform you that your request has been approved. We are trying to look into the matter. Please be patient. We apologise for the inconvenience caused. We should complete the task today. We'll try to look into Have some Patience, ms We're sorry for the troube Let's finish the task todayAbbreviation Asap Lol Wyd Tbh Idk Omw Ofe Ide Full Form. As soon as possible Laughing out loud What you doing To be honest I don't know On my way Of course I don't care Abbreviation Fall Form 9. In In teal life 10. Tbf To be fair AL. Caj Casual 12. Ikr I know, right? 13. Obs Obviously 14.V Very 15. Atm At the moment 16. Ttyl Talk to you laterHOW TO WRITE A BLOG Blog writing involves creating content on a specific topic and publishing it on a website. It requires a combination of research, creativity and technical skills prog, high-quality content that engages and informs readers. Here are a few guidelines jy can help you create informative and engaging blogs. + Choose your topic: Pick a subject you are passionate or knowledgeable about. Itc be a personal experience, an industry trend, a how-to, guide, oF an opinion pie © Identify your target audience: Identify who your target audience is and what hy want to know or learn from your blog. This will help you determine the tone aj style of your writing, + Research: Research your topic thoroughly to provide accurate and reliable informatie to the readers, Use reputable sources such as academic journals, industry reportsa expert opinions. Gather information from credible sources to support your tp Verify facts and statistics before using them in your blog posty BLOGS || 135 organise your thoughts intoan outline that includes an introduction, fine! Tel ; wan q conclusion. This will help you stay on track and ensure that your i rn pints * sin gical fi en: tat writing Your blog post keeping in mind your target audience, bm on e. Complete the first draft of your blog using your outline and w purpos’ ‘i etting we a ‘worry about making it perfect at this stage—just focus on getting ate down of POPET - it Fe ofread: Read through and revise your draft to improve its clarity, gait ‘and overall quality. Remove any irrelevant information, restructure sentences. it , : edd yy and ensure that your writing is error-free. Check for grammar errors, eter 0 gna formatting issues ype’ fo 4 amages and multimedia: Enance your post with relevant images, videos a his, or other multimedia, jinfograp™ publish and promote: Publish your blog and share it on social media platforms to * “aah a wider audience [analyse and optimise: Analyse your blog posts performance and optimise it based con the readers’ feedback and engagement. This will help you improve your future blog posts and content strategy. emember, practice makes one perfect. Keep writing and experimenting with different gjyles until you find what works best for you. KEY COMPONENTS OF A BLOG. Blogs are typically composed of several key components that work together to create a éahesive and engaging piece of content Content: The most important aspect of a blog sits content, It should be well-written, informative and engaging for the teader. The information should be accurate and relevant to the topic being discussed. + Design/Layout: The design and layout of the blog should be user-friendly, easy to navigate for the reader and visually appealing136 INTERCONNECT ould be attention-grabbing and acg rhe headline oF tie shou Uraely a ost tthe «tone of writing should be consistent throughous Th he ity should come across in the writi bly «personality shou! 8 While mie + Title: content of the P* ‘Tone of Writing: authors voice an a professional tone. *e Te "i ul have a clea call-o-action atthe end ofthe sway, This could be subscribing to the bog, cor 2 ki mn social media. ‘om Call-to-Action: A blog sh readers to engage in some ‘on the post or sharing it 0 Post, ' i SEO (Search Engine Optimization): A blog should be optimised for search i Sear i appropriate Keywords, mets tags and descriptions. This wil help on blog’ visibility and increase its chances of being found by new readers. th BLOG ETIQUETTE, Blogging can be a productive activity if attention is given to the process writing. Every blogger has her own unique way of writing howeve and st et certain, OE points may be kept in mind while creating a blog: tain com, Do's + Write a catchy and interesting headline. ‘+ Use simple, clear and concise language. + Use sub-headings to break up the content and make it easier to read. + Use bullet points and short paragraphs to highlight important information, + Use images, videos or infographics to illustrate y four points, * Prooftead your post for grammar, spelling and punctuation erro rs, Share your blog on social media for greater visibilityBLOGs || 137 pe comps JBN. ecbla eetha eadee el Blagiarse or copy content from other sources without proper attibu create content that is fensive or discriminatory in any way Doni use 190 many Pop-ups or ads as it may diseact readers from your content Dorit ignore comments or feedback from reader; this can harm your reputation as a blogger,ING CRIPT NCE OF VIDEO S FICA) SIGNI ‘ideo content Teator, the first Westion words, a video © 8 Sept for a ig The in other should there b. 7 ith is—s ie, television seri logger © ith is. vie, te ‘ If you are a olay as mete whether Pha Script behind it r ind of you would 7 Any kind o a successful we would b ? lear yes. how or ideo script 7 ace nae Biase Pro; being a a vlogger, Ne, Tyo inteng to ea basic skill fog You, i in the Vog tig, sheet iy vhat will happe out d With the m, thae'chan to procee: ipt isa se begs the vlog, how ‘A’scr how to bout ides you al guides ich you would oints which yo f thought and the p ° the turn ief content, chief con: ain message neclude yo finally how to co ould bring and finally ou We anations y and exp! OF the make, the Samples ur vlog. - It gives you of events. ° any unexpected — € you wish to delive ipt saves you from pose of the messag a compelling message es A script si nce of the purp. ucture them into Ips you avoid Common mistakes, — shear the thoughts and str eparedness and sem fillers like umm... aa, seit 0 dco val organise the uatente of Ps nt. Unnecessary i second of the video v4 story. It i vide is significa d script to make in the ing a goo second ided by havi avoide can be A sense of, Alectog T. Tt also helps You 4EA VIDEO SCRIPT yo WRIT! wow jore beginning your video scripting, spend some moments charting out the three Bett significant aspects of your video: Who is your audience? What is your message? : s qrovhat voice would you want fo convey your message? Once you have answers tothe shove questions, YoU May proceed to do the fllowing steps to cteate a video script Create a meaningful eye-catching title for your video: Choosing a title may seem simple and a mundane exercise for creating content. But it is best not to undervalue its importance. Having a good title with a focus on having appropriate keywords is critical to having your videos identified by the search engines. Poor titles with excellent content may go unnoticed and tum out to be useless as search engines may fail to fetch the video. + Research and prepare the message keeping in view your target audiences: Start drafting the content/message/story you want to convey in your vlog. Do the research, gather ideas, organise them into a compelling narrative structure. While preparing your video draft, pay special attention to whom the video intends to address, Are they children or teenagers? Are they parents or academicians? What is their educational background, preferred language of communication and their level of understanding of a topic? Make sure that the video you intend to create is going to add value to your target audience. + Develop your voice: Voice in a vlog does not refer to the physical voice. It means the kind of persona you want to create for the viewers/consumers of your vlog. For developing a voice, you must choose how you would want to communicate with your audience. Do you wish to talk to them as a casual jester cracking jokes or do ‘you want to talk like an expert? Do you want to give your opinion as an optimist or ‘as a critic? Do you intend people to remember you as a logical and a fact-oriented person or as a passionate enthusiast? Every vlogger has to develop a voice of his fr her own through which he or she must communicate the message. People get hooked on to the vlogs as much for the voice of the vlogger as itis for the content.Vlogs Ih 06 ETIQUETTE SY pos peauthentic and genuine: Your audience w and true to yourself il connect with you more ye hy nest ngage with your audience: Encourage com . we bp wc: sea and feedback and respond to dur ray fice tole passing inappropriate comments Tekine hg 1 ckling troller in to be immune to such comments, flagging them as insprisa ‘ a learning rite and deleting the unnecessary comments and even blocking such unsocial elements, + Use good lighting and audio: Make sure your viewers can see and hear you clea id ou + Be creative: Experiment with different editing techniques, music and visual effects to make your vlogs more engaging. 7 Don'ts + Dont use offensive of inappropriate language: Avoid controversial topics or offensive anguage as it can offend your audience. Stay focused on your message and dont go off on + Don't ramble or go offtopi tangents. | Don't oversell or promote too much: While its okay fo promote your brand of product, avoid being too pushy ence: Dorit ignore your vie hip with them. fair use guidelines and only use content swers’ comments or feedback, as + Don’t neglect your aud smment this can harm your relations! 1 Be awvare of Don't violate copyright laws Be aware ol that you have the leg right 10 can creat high-quality and engaging oes tht jos and dont, Yo 7 you achieve your goal ese mar audience and help Mowing By fo your avi connect will at ee