Tagged: linkedin marketing
How to Leverage LinkedIn for Personal Branding and Business Growth
- by Luke Thiessen
LinkedIn remains the most consistently popular social network for professionals, and for anyone looking for networking or B2B opportunities, it’s a no-brainer.
A whopping 97% of B2B marketers use the platform for content marketing, while 89% use it for lead generation. On a platform where 4 out of 5 members are making some kind of business decisions for their companies, it pays to invest your time on LinkedIn.
Beyond B2B, the platform also remains hugely popular for networking, hiring and job seeking, with 11,000 members applying for jobs every minute.
So, whether you’re looking for a new opportunity, building your network, or trying to find new clients for your business, let’s look at some tried-and-true strategies for personal branding and business growth on LinkedIn.
Your personal profile
Think of your profile page on LinkedIn as a digital version of your elevator pitch and business card – you get just one short line of text to pitch yourself, along with space for your name, title, and photo.
Chances are, if someone is seeing your profile for the first time, they came from one of three places: a post of yours that showed up in their feed, a recommendation from the algorithm of who to follow, or from a search. In all of these cases, someone was curious enough to click on your profile, but may know little to nothing about you. So it’s time for an introduction.
Arguably the most important part of your profile is your “headline,” the one open-ended line of text you get to add which isn’t tied directly to some specific piece of information or formatting. The headline has a character limit of 220, allowing for about two short sentences, but best practice is to keep it significantly shorter than that, since in some places it may be cut short.
The headline is a place to summarize or “pitch” what you offer – both professionally and as someone to follow on LinkedIn, if possible. Remember that your actual job title and work experience will follow underneath, this is just an introductory hook. If you are a freelancer or small business owner, this may double as a pitch for your business and work, but should still clearly be about you as an individual; there are other places to get deeper into your business.
Beyond your headline, my advice on LinkedIn profiles is to keep things professional, with just a bit of personality. It’s a professional networking platform after all, so this isn’t the place for overly whimsical profile and cover photos (unless that really is your personal brand). That said, showing some personality – without compromising professionalism – will help make your profile more memorable.
Your content
Like any other social media platform or blog, it helps to have a content strategy and plan. Two things LinkedIn rewards in terms of content are quality and consistency – so plan for a posting schedule that feels realistic and attainable, and also allows you to deliver quality content every time.
As for what to post, that’s something you’ll have to decide for yourself – but we can help you narrow it down.
Many of the most successful thought leaders and power users on LinkedIn, regardless of their industry or role, have leaned into a niche and a fairly narrow set of topics. Find the thing you’re best at within your industry, or the aspect of your perspective that is most rare and unique to you, and have that be the focal point of most of your content.
This might feel limiting at first, but with a well-developed content strategy and plan, you can find many different ways to talk about the same subject and share the same expertise. For example, LinkedIn marketer Gus Bhandal created a “content album” strategy which takes inspiration from musical albums, where all the songs sound different, despite being played with the same instruments and by the same artist in the same genre. He created numerous types of post styles to help inspire and frame different types of content, knowing they will all remain cohesive due to his specific perspective and personal brand.
Building and engaging with your network
Quality content and a strong profile is a great place to start on LinkedIn, but building a network and growing your following requires you to engage with other users.
Start by connecting with people you actually know, people you’ve worked with, and other people in your industry or related industries whose content genuinely interests you. LinkedIn is not the place to be picky about privacy and who sees your posts – you can follow strangers, and let strangers follow you.
Next, start engaging everywhere that it feels natural. Leave comments on posts you like, and reply to comments on your own posts. Be authentic, but also don’t be afraid to push yourself outside your comfort zone and engage with strangers. It can help to pretend that you’re at a large party or event where everyone’s been invited but most don’t know each other – you won’t offend anyone by leaving comments, especially if they’re supportive or asking relevant questions. And make sure to reward others for doing the same on your posts by replying promptly and warmly.
LinkedIn for business
So far, we’ve largely talked about personal profiles and personal branding – which certainly crosses over into business if you’re a freelancer or small business owner whose name is synonymous with their business. However, if you run a business with its own LinkedIn page, there are additional things to consider, and additional opportunities for growth.
One of the first things to do is ensure your page is fully complete. Many business pages lack some key pieces and are therefore less likely to be found in search. Make sure your page is filled out and includes plenty of keywords that interested users might be searching when looking for a service, a job, or businesses in their industry to follow.
Next, just like your personal page, make a content strategy and plan. Similar rules apply here, although most businesses can get away with a slightly broader range of content. We also recommend implementing video and photo content as much as possible for businesses, as these types of posts tend to get far more reach and engagement.
If your business has employees, utilize them to expand your reach. Tag them whenever it’s relevant, and ask them to share your posts where appropriate. Showing the human faces behind your business always helps too.
Finally, use LinkedIn to post jobs. Job postings are one of the most popular features of the platform, tend to get more shares, help build credibility, and give more people a reason to follow you. Even if you use some other platform for hiring, just posting about your job openings on the platform can get you most of these benefits.
Getting outside help
Did you know that Starling Social manages corporate LinkedIn pages? Our team has a lot of experience with LinkedIn for a variety of businesses and nonprofits, and a proven track record of building audiences and engagement on the platform. Get in touch today to book a discovery call!
How to Find New Leads on LinkedIn
- by Alyson Shane
Want to use LinkedIn to find more leads? Looking for more ways to turn your cold connections into warm leads that move through your sales funnel?
With almost 700 million active users in 2020, LinkedIn has become more than just a job-hunting and networking tool. These days, LinkedIn isn’t just for CEOs and salespeople - it’s a must-use tool for any B2B business looking to increase brand awareness, find new leads, and increase sales by expanding their customer base.
If you’ve never tried using LinkedIn to generate leads, then don’t miss this post! These strategies will help you start reaching prospects and nurturing them into warm leads.
Update Your LinkedIn Profile To a Custom URL
This simple strategy is one of the most overlooked tactics on LinkedIn. Custom links create a sense of consistency across your LinkedIn profiles and helps you look more professional.
Instead of your LinkedIn profile URL looking like this:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/d5...
To this:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/al...
Updating this field is super simple! Just follow these steps:
- Start by clicking on the Me icon on the top-right of your LinkedIn home page
- Click View Profile
- On your profile page, click Edit Public Profile & URL on the right
- On the new window that opens up, click on Edit your custom URL on the top-right
That’s it! This simple step will help create a sense of cohesion across your LinkedIn profiles.
Invite connections to like your LinkedIn company page
It seems simple, but it works! This new(ish) feature might not be available for all company pages yet, but once it’s available inviting your connections to like your page is super easy. Just follow these steps:
- Navigate to your Linkedin company page
- Under the Admin Tools drop-down menu, select Invite Connections
- A pop-up window will appear with all your connections listed
- Select each person you’d like to invite, and click Invite Connections
- If an error appears, you may have reached your invitation limit
To prevent companies from spamming their contacts, LinkedIn only allows 100 invites at a time. These invites are “credited” back to your account once someone has accepted your invite to like your page.
Share curated content from LinkedIn Content Suggestions
Another way to find new leads on LinkedIn is to regularly share posts focusing on topics they’re interested in.
If you’re not sure what to share, LinkedIn has a handy Content Suggestions feature for company pages. This tool helps you discover topics and articles that your audience is engaging with on LinkedIn and is a quick, easy way to share content with your followers.
To use this feature, take the following steps:
- Navigate to your Linkedin company page
- Select Content
- In the pop-up window, select your industry and a few demographics about your audience (ideal leads)
- Click View Content Suggestions
LinkedIn will generate a list of trending content from the last 15 days based on your selected industry and audience demographics. You can refresh this list over and over to find new content suggestions that appeal to different audience types.
But beware: not every content suggestion will resonate with your followers, so choose wisely.
Use LinkedIn Messaging to build relationships
The more people become familiar with you, the more they like and trust you. This is also known as the Mere-Exposure Effect. Our favourite example of this effect in action is this chart of Benedict Cumberbatch
Obviously this chart was made as a joke, but it demonstrates exactly how the Mere-Exposure Effect works: the more someone sees Benedict Cumberbatch’s face, the more attractive he becomes.
So what does the Mere-Exposure Effect have to do with finding new leads on LinkedIn?
Building the authority and brand awareness necessary to move a prospect from a cold lead to a warm lead takes time. After all, people want to buy from people and brands they like and trust, and the higher the investment in a product or service is, the higher that trust level has to be.
One of the easiest ways to establish this trust is to use LinkedIn Messaging to build strong relationships with prospective customers.
How to develop a LinkedIn messaging strategy
Sliding into people’s DMs and asking them to buy from you right away is a tactless move, and it’s honestly a little rude, especially if you don’t know the person you’re messaging.
If you want a response you need to approach the relationship naturally. Ask questions, provide value, and be a real human being before pressing for a consultation or sales call. Think about this outreach as a multi-step process that could look something like this:
Step 1: Send a connection request
When you send a LinkedIn connection request, always click Add a Note to customize the invitation. Here’s an example of the kind of note we add (notice it’s focused on them and doesn’t try to sell anything right off the bat):
Step 2: Thank them for connecting with a value-add
Once someone accepts your connection request, send them a follow-up message as soon as possible. This message should thank them for connecting, and include a link to a relevant article or group you manage.
Here’s an example of a follow-up message on LinkedIn:
Hey Sandra,
Just wanted to drop you a line and say thanks for connecting! I’m looking forward to keeping in touch.
Since you work in a technical field, I’d love your thoughts on this article we recently published about writing technical blog posts. You can find it here: [LINK]
Looking forward to your feedback!
Cheers, Alyson
Remember: the purpose of this message is to show them that you’re a trustworthy resource of content they care about. Make sure to tailor this value-add to the person you’re talking to!
Step 3: Share a link to a high-quality 3rd party resource (article, video, webinar, etc.)
We recommend waiting at least a few days between sending these messages so you don’t seem pushy and overbearing.
This message should again relate to something they’ve said, posted, or shared on the platform. Be specific about why you think they’ll be interested in the resource and what you think about it as well. Don’t forget to ask for their feedback!
Here’s an example of what this message could look like:
Hey Sandra,
I hope business has been going well! I found this article and it made me think of you, so I wanted to send it your way. It talks about the importance of showcasing company culture in “technical” industries like yours.
You can find it here: [LINK]
I thought the suggestion to use the new Instagram Reels feature to introduce followers to your office team was really great. I’d love to know what you think!
Cheers, Alyson
Message 4: Request a phone call
Unless you’re a born salesperson, this is arguably the most anxiety-inducing of all the messages in this strategy. This message should be short, polite, and to the point.
Here’s an example of what it could look like:
Hey Sandra,
I’m working on getting to know my LinkedIn connections a little better, and since we’ve been crossing paths lately I’d love to hop on a quick call and see how we can both benefit from being connected.
Are you free to chat next week? How’s Thursday, November 5th, in the morning work for you?
Cheers, Alyson
Did you notice that we suggested a specific date and time to meet? This strategy makes it easier for someone to say “yes” because they can quickly check to see if they’re available.
Message 5: Follow up
If the person doesn’t reply, send this follow-up message a few days after you’ve sent the message above.
Hey Sandra,
Hope you’re doing great! Just following up on my invite to have a short phone chat to get to know each other a bit better. I’d love to learn more about how we can both benefit from being connected.
If not, that’s totally fine! You can always reach me directly via email. I hope to hear from you soon!
Cheers, Alyson
Only send this message once. Sending it multiple times will look pushy and might damage both yours and your brand’s reputations.
How to find new leads on LinkedIn: conclusion
These are just a few of the many strategies you can use to generate new leads for your business on LinkedIn.
Remember: the best way to use LinkedIn is to be helpful, positive, and consistent. By posting regularly, liking and commenting on the posts your connections share, and using the strategies we outlined above, you’ll be generating new leads for your business in no time.
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