Kerwin Rae joins Nathanial Bibby on LinkedIn Heroes for an interview about social media, video marketing, building a business, mindset and much more.
Grant Cardone reveals his social media secrets with Nathanial Bibby on LinkedIn Heroes.
Influencers on LinkedIn Pulse like my man Richard Branson, have over 13 million followers.
But you’re not Richard so how do you make your content go further and get people reading?
According to LinkedIn’s latest available figures, more than a million people have published posts on LinkedIn‘s platform.
More than 130,000 posts are published every week; and the average post reaches LinkedIn members in 21 industries and nine countries.
After all, there are now over 710M members on LinkedIn.
So how do you stack the deck in your favour when it comes to publishing LinkedIn articles.
Here are 4 ways to hack the algorithm when writing LinkedIn articles.
Whether you’re just getting started on LinkedIn or have already used it as a marketer or salesperson for a while, optimizing your profile is essential to your success.
With a complete profile, valuable and varied content, and a broad network, you’ll stand out from the crowd, attract more attention, and ultimately get better results in business.
Watch the short video below for some of the most important areas of your profile to get right.
To dive into Profile Optimisation in more detail check out How to Optimize Your LinkedIn Profile for Maximum Visibility on the Social Media Examiner blog.
It’s one of the best articles out there.
Every time you publish a post on LinkedIn, your connections will see an alert in their notifications.
But to really make ripples, you need a large audience of first-level connections.
For any of the stuff we’re talking about throughout this post to really work, you’ll need to make as many connections as you possibly can that may be interested in your content.
To help get your connections ramped up, you may want to download the LinkedIn Messaging Templates 2021 which give you scripts you can use to invite people to join your network.
LinkedIn Pulse has more than 100 individual channels.
Some of the most popular channels are for Leadership & Management, Big Ideas & Innovation, Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Social Media.
Check out trending topics and share your insights backed up with research and anecdotes to be featured in these channels.
Want to get a story featured on LinkedIn Pulse?
Then you’ll have to tweet LinkedIn editos and ask them to check out your work.
Ask a Pulse editor to share your story on the channel on Twitter with “Tip @LinkedInEditors #LinkedInPulse” at the end of your tweet.
Yes, seriously, use Twitter to get featured on Linked.
That’s how it’s done for now!
To categorise your content, LinkedIn Pulse does an analysis of the text of your article.
This is like SEO tactics of the dark ages, when all you had to do was include your keyword in the title and use the right words a few times throughout the post.
LinkedIn is still a relatively easy search engine to manipulate.
But a word of caution.
This will evolve just like Google did, so my advice is always act with integrity online.
Let me be clear, keyword stuffing is a bad idea (even though right now, it will probably get you a lot of exposure).
Always align your objectives with the platform and you can’t go wrong.
Definitely avoid using boring images in your content, such as:
How you chose images will come down to your brand.
But get creative and save the images using keywords – that will help with your SEO.
Here is a great example of an article with non-boring images – Why You Surround Yourself With is Who You Become
Now that we’ve covered some LinkedIn article hacks, you’re ready to write your masterpiece.
In this next section I’ll walk you through step-by-step preparing and posting your LinkedIn article.
If you are going to write something, you want your content to be discovered and read by as many people as possible. Right?
There are many benefits to publishing Linkedin articles and not limiting yourself to just publishing short posts.
The main benefit of writing articles on Linkedin is that it establishes you as a thought leader.
By publishing articles on Linkedin with your own content, relevant to your business and industry, you automatically position yourself as an expert.
When you write articles on LinkedIn, you want to demonstrate your thought leadership, expertise, and industry knowledge.
Here are some ideas on how you can choose your topic:
Once you know what you want to write about, you are ready to get started….
Start by going to the LinkedIn Home tab and clicking the Write an Article link at the
top of the page.
After you click this link, the LinkedIn Publishing tool opens.
This is where you create your article.
To add a headline to your article, click the Headline field and type in a headline.
Choose a headline that will grab users’ attention in the feed and make them want
to click through to read the article.
List-based articles work well, as do mistake-based titles.
Check out these examples:
The next step is to format your article in a way that makes the information easy to
consume.
Because we’re bombarded with information and text online, it’s best to use shorter
text paragraphs interspersed with images.
This approach makes your article easier to read, which is particularly important when
people are consuming the content via the LinkedIn mobile app.
Adding subheadings, bullet points, and bold type also improves readability, as you
can see in the example below.
To illustrate, ask people for their comments (a great way to spark conversation) or to get in touch with you. Links to your website, podcast, or social media will work here too.
When someone leaves a comment, you can reply to them and keep increasing
engagement.
Examples of questions you can ask at the end of your article:
At the top of the article, you can add a cover image. To do this, click in the area
above the headline and upload an image from your computer.
LinkedIn recommends using a 744 x 400 pixel image for best results.
After you add a cover image, two positioning options and a Delete button appear
on the screen.
Choose an image that will capture your readers’ attention in the LinkedIn feed and
make them want to click on the article to read it.
In addition to the cover image, you’ll also want to embed relevant images and
video in the body of your article.
To add an image or video, click the icon to the left of the article body.
Once you’ve written your article and added images and links, what’s next? Note
that as you create your article, LinkedIn automatically saves it as a draft.
When you’re ready to publish it, simply click Publish at the top right of the page.
Once you’ve published your article, you’ll want to share it. Click the Share button at
the bottom of your article to see the sharing options.
Be sure to share to these places on LinkedIn:
• Your personal LinkedIn feed
• A LinkedIn message (if relevant)
• LinkedIn groups
• Email list
When sharing articles to your personal LinkedIn feed use hashtags to get more views
on the link.
LinkedIn encourages the use of hashtags when you create posts and will suggest hashtags to use.
Articles have a much longer lifespan than posts on LinkedIn.
And while you can view the analytics for your posts for only 60 days, analytics for articles are available for 2
years.
You can give an article new life by resharing it via a LinkedIn post that directs users to that article.
I have several LinkedIn articles that still get comments a year or 18 months after they were published.
To visualize this, if your article is about 10 reasons why someone should attend your live event, list one or two of those reasons the first time you reshare the article.
When you reshare it a few days or even a week later, discuss some of the other reasons.
Before publishing make sure you go through the follow check-list:
Here’s a suggested structure for Pillar Content in the form of a LinkedIn article.
Media and links to include where appropriate…
That’s it!
The key to getting ahead, is getting started.
Go get ’em!
Linked Insider 2.0 is the top LinkedIn training course for sales professionals and business owners in the world. If you want to generate high quality leads consistently, build a brand and become an industry leader then this is the program for you. The 2.0 version is updated with the latest strategies, content and insights required to get results in today’s market.
LinkedIn hashtags were introduced in 2018.
You may already be familiar with Instagram hashtags and Twitter.
LinkedIn’s hashtag terrain is a little different from the other social networks.
Just like Twitter or Instagram, a LinkedIn hashtag is any combination of letters, numbers, or emoji that follow the # symbol.
Using hashtags on LinkedIn will make your content easier to find, expand your reach and allow you to connect with other members interested in similar topics.
But first things first, why LinkedIn?
Since LinkedIn is hell-bent on becoming the premier social network for professionals and the LinkedIn membership base has grown like crazy.
What are LinkedIn hashtags anyway?
Simply put, LinkedIn hashtags are special text snippets that can be used in your posts, articles and within the text on your profile.
They are one way of telling the LinkedIn platform what your content is about, that way it can show it to people who are likely to be interested in the content or are already following the hashtag you are using.
Here are some LinkedIn hashtag tips to swear by…
Don’t leave your hashtags hanging.
Even if you’re sharing an image or video, hashtags are no substitute for stellar copy.
Hashtags can be placed after copy, or embedded within copy as long as it makes sense to do so.
As a best practice, write your copy and then see if certain keywords can be made into hashtags.
#Do #not #hashtag #every #word.
Not only will this look like spam, there’s no point in tagging words that aren’t important.
Always remember the goal of your post, and use hashtags to facilitate them, not compete with them.
Like hashtags elsewhere, Linkedin hashtags can only include letters, numbers and emoji. Any spaces or symbols used within the tag will break the link.
That means no apostrophes, commas, exclamation points, or hyphens.
Here are some key punctuation do’s and don’ts:
There are no limits to the number of hashtags you can use in a post on LinkedIn. That said, we recommend that you limit each post to a maximum of five hashtags.
Using too many hashtags on LinkedIn could also result in the algorithm marking your post as spam.
If you run a business profile on LinkedIn, your profile and posts most likely already are public. But it never hurts to check.
There’s a niche community online for every industry and subject, and they often use specific hashtags.
Whether your followers are self-described #avgeeks or #girlswholift, using the right niche hashtag will connect you to an online community that’s passionate about your industry.
Not everyone is familiar with niche tags, so strike a balance by using popular general hashtags, too.
70% of LinkedIn users live outside of the United States.
If your post or article is about a certain region, or directed at a particular geography, it could be worthwhile to add a destination hashtag.
LinkedIn will automatically suggested relevant hashtags when you begin to write a post. If they seem like a good fit, include them. But don’t add them just for the sake of it.
Be deliberate in your hashtag use.
Start following hashtags relevant to your brand. Posts with the hashtags you decide to follow will show up in your LinkedIn feed.
You can also pin your favourites to your homepage.
Identify which of your posts and articles have performed the best. What hashtags did you include?
If a certain hashtag is frequently found in your top posts, that one may be a keeper.
Many professionals use LinkedIn to network before, during, and after industry conferences and events.
These days most events have hashtags. Use an event hashtag to signal your company’s presence or involvement–whether virtual or in person.
Create a hashtag to coincide with a brand campaign or recurring company initiative.
An example is pictured above #LinkedInHeroes
Here are a few do’s and don’ts to consider before you get started:
The company hashtag can be automatically appended to employee posts, which helps to increase the visibility of your company and tag company-related content.
Don’t use a hashtag where it may be better to @ mention.
If you’re trying to tag a company or person, tagging them with the @ symbol followed by their name is a better way to get their attention.
One way that hashtags have been leveraged effectively on LinkedIn is when creators have used them to link to library of content.
#AskNat and #LinkedInHeroes are examples of this.
Branded hashtags either contain the name of your brand or is something that you created exclusively for your brand.
There are two key benefits of using hashtags for branding.
The first one is the possibility of monitoring the performance of your campaign, simply by focusing on just your branded hashtags.
The second one is user-generated content.
Every time a user puts one of your branded hashtags inside one of their posts, they are increasing your presence on social media.
If you are ready to take your LinkedIn marketing seriously and investing in LinkedIn training or LinkedIn marketing services, contact our team today.
To see what hashtags you are following – CLICK HERE
To find more popular LinkedIn hashtags – CLICK HERE
For my best audio content tune in to The Nathanial Bibby Podcast on iTunes or Spotify.
On LinkedIn, videos are shared more often than any other type of content. On average, people spend 3x times longer watching video on LinkedIn. 79% of consumers now agree that video is the easiest way to get to know a brand online.
That same research shows that 74% of consumers can draw a direct connection between watching a video on social media and their purchasing decision-making process. In fact, 46% of consumers said that they’ve made a purchase as a result of watching a brand video on social media, while another 32% have considered doing so.
If you want to view LinkedIn videos offline, you’ll need to save or download the video from LinkedIn. However it’s not as straightforward as you may think, so you’ll need a 3rd party tool to save the video.
Unfortunately you’ll find a lot of these tools that are offered around the internet actually don’t work. Some are full of spam, some are just out-of-date, many you’ll need to pay to upgrade before it will do anything. Some are simply out-of-date, they don’t work any more.
In other words, there is a lot of stuff out there that promises to work but you are still unable to download the LinkedIn video. Until now at least… Fortunately we keep an eye on what works and what doesn’t. You can follow the process below which has helped thousands of people on YouTube successfully download and save LinkedIn videos.
The video above is the most recent step-by-step tutorial on how to download LinkedIn video in MP4 format.
Here’s a video on LinkedIn which has been updated recently showing you exactly how to complete this process and save videos withhout the need for software or apps.
If you are trying to download a video from LinkedIn Learning, this tool will not work. LinkedIn Learning is a paid subscription service so the security is top notch, you’d be making a serious offence by ripping content from a paid service in the membership area. I would advise against saving these videos if you are not supposed to.
That’s it! You’re all set to listen and watch your favorite YouTube videos wherever, and whenever, you want. I hope this was helpful, for more helpful LinkedIn marketing tips check out The Nathanial Bibby Podcast.
For years, LinkedIn was overlooked in the realm of social platforms. It’s certainly not the largest and has a smaller reach than other social networks. However, marketers, business people, and companies start seeing the benefits of turning to this platform to gain new prospects and make a big impression.
LinkedIn officially launched in May 2003. It’s just nine months older than Facebook. Even though it did not take off like other social media platforms, LinkedIn is the oldest major social network and has been growing at an incredible pace every year for the past 10 years.
The latest statistics show that LinkedIn has almost 740 million members worldwide with at least three new members every second. A survey showed that 73% of social media users trust LinkedIn, ranking it the highest out of all nine platforms, including Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook. Although it does not have billions of members yet, people have spent more of their free time on LinkedIn than they used to two years ago.
Initially, LinkedIn was viewed as a social networking site like Facebook rather than a networking tool. But the platform has changed and improved over the last few years. It now has various tools for analytics and marketing. Although it is not the social networking website that people prefer, LinkedIn is where you can find B2B marketers, small to large businesses, company owners, and entrepreneurs. Let that sink in for a while, and it will dawn on you that LinkedIn marketing offers excellent potential.
LinkedIn is where you will find quality leads and the chance to grow your connections.
Here’s why:
You can immediately see the opportunity that LinkedIn presents. The points above show that LinkedIn is a great platform to switch to, primarily if your business is merely focused on blogging, posting on Facebook, or tweeting. With leads and connections, you can use LinkedIn to your advantage and gain high conversion rates.
So, how do you do that? Let’s say you run a business, and your clients are Bitcoin users or investors. You need to zero in your marketing efforts towards those investors. The same thing applies if you offer services and resources for those wanting to become doctors. You can target interns, Doctor of Medicine students, and those undergoing prevocational training.
Like any lead generation methods, it takes a little trial and error before you see the results. But it’s worth the wait and effort. Here are the ways to build your network and successfully generate leads on LinkedIn:
By now, you probably already have a LinkedIn profile. Take a good look at it and examine your page. If you were a potential client, would you be interested in dealing with the person who owns the page? Be objective, so you will know where you should improve on. Think of it as the first thing that people see.
Obviously, your profile should be about you. People will want to know who you are and what you do. Make sure that you have the following:
While those elements are essential, don’t spend a lot of time introducing yourself. It may be your page, but it should also be what your target audience wants. The trick is to show potential customers that you understand their problems. Being empathetic almost automatically creates the assumption that you have the solution to their problems.
So, if you target Bitcoin investors, you want to keep your introduction at the minimum. After that, you discuss a problem that’s trending in the Bitcoin arena. For example, you can say that your experience as a Bitcoin investor has taught you that traditional investment models are not as effective. And that’s why you’re sharing that knowledge with people who are interested, which should include Bitcoin investors (aka your target audience and customers).
Tell the people what you do and at the same time, divulge why you do it. Empathise and show the audience that you know and understand how they feel or what they are going through. It’s not about getting sales. It’s about helping people.
In other words, if you’re using your profile to get customers, you should take your customers with you on your journey. And if you’re reaching out to someone and they click on your profile, think about the mindset that they are in. What will relate to them when they look at your profile? You should start identifying the problem, creating curiosity, and giving advice on what to do next.
The next step is to check your existing connections. You can use them to get visibility over all the potential referral networks. For example, you have 10 clients, and you’re connected to all of them. Those clients have 10 other connections in their network, giving you a broader networking potential.
When you see networks that you’re interested in, you can send a connection request. The fact that you have that mutual connection with that person or business gives your request a much higher chance of getting accepted.
Broadening your network is nice, but it is even better if you can target a particular group, business, or profession. It can be challenging to work out your ideal lead. But a suitable method is to use the platform’s built-in Sales Navigator. It gives you more than 20 categories to filter your search results from the database and get your target list.
Some of these categories are:
After specifying who or what you’re looking for, you can begin adding the profiles you want to your network. One thing to note about LinkedIn connections is that they are not the same as Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms. Usually, when you send a friend or follow request on those sites, you have a high chance of getting approved.
With LinkedIn, your chance is considerably reduced. Users tend to keep their networks restricted. It’s quality over quantity, unlike with Instagram and Twitter, for example. While it is good to have plenty of LinkedIn connections, you should still ensure they are suitable for your business. For this reason, you may want to limit the people you add to those that are second connections to yourself.
Here’s why:
View the profiles that you want to add. Inspect their location, company or business, and other factors. Make sure you go through the profiles one by one. That way, your profile shows up on their “Recently Viewed” list. You can wait and see if they view you back. If they do, you can go ahead and send them a connection request.
Start by connecting with your past and current contacts. It’s always easier to create a connection with persons or companies where you’ve already built trust with. For example, you can select your previous clients or those you worked with in the past. Searching on LinkedIn is very easy. You can find individuals using their name or name of the company. Find people whom you’ve lost touch with and reconnect with them.
Whenever you receive a business card from someone, look them up on LinkedIn. You can initiate the connection by sending a request to be added to their network. Meanwhile, if you’re a new user, you can simply import your contacts from your phone, Gmail, Yahoo!, and others.
LinkedIn is an excellent place for you to find out what your previous customers have been up to. It’s easy to make it less awkward by saying something positive about what they have recently done when you contact them. Ask questions about new projects and find ways to help.
For the connection request, make sure you personalise your message, instead of using the standard one from LinkedIn. It’s not only boring but also does not provide any context about why you’d want to connect. Address them with their name, so your request stands out from others. More importantly, give them a reason to approve the request. It’s not always easy, but here are some pointers to consider:
It’s always worth taking the time to write LinkedIn connection requests. You do not just get approved, but you also build your network with quality connections.
Don’t be snobbish and selective. After all, social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, are built for the purpose of socialising with others. Engagement is an essential component of your success. If you have accounts on other social networks, now is the right time to encourage your friends, associates, and customers to connect with your LinkedIn page. You can then use this opportunity to connect and generate leads using their networks.
Joining groups related to your industry also helps improve your popularity. It’s also useful in growing your network with the right people. A ton of connections is useless if most people in your network do not engage with you. Therefore, the key to generating leads in LinkedIn is engagement, which means back and forth communication with your connections. And the only way to ensure they continue with the correspondence is for you to converse with them, rather than looking for a sale.
Bear in mind that LinkedIn, first and foremost, is a social network. You should be ready to connect and socialise with other people to help expand your network. To be sociable, you need to follow the five A’s in seeking connections:
While communication helps you start relationships with potential customers, it’s always necessary to be genuine. Be truthful and never pretend to be an expert on something you barely have any idea of.
One more way to increase engagement on LinkedIn is to celebrate others’ accomplishments. For example, if you come across some good news about a prospect, client, or any contact, be sure to share it on the website. Update your status with it, congratulate, and mention the person using the “@” symbol. It ensures that they will get a notification about the post.
Although it is not necessary to write recommendations, it can be helpful when getting leads. It does take time for anyone to recommend you or your services, so you may want to do it first. You can post recommendations based on truthful facts for your customers and contacts. Once approved, that recommendation will be on their account, which gives you access to more related networks.
LinkedIn has had many updates for the algorithm for the past year. Engagement is important, just like with IG, Facebook, and other platforms. But LinkedIn is also starting to take into account dwell time, which is the duration that someone spends looking at your content or post. The longer, the better.
If you post a seven-minute video, it will do better than a 30-second video – that is if the video can hold the viewers’ attention until the end.
One way to increase engagement on LinkedIn is through posting content. Your content can be anything, such as a thought-provoking question or anything industry-relevant. At the same time, you should have diverse forms of content, such as advice or a quick insight on current events.
Take advantage of LinkedIn Pulse, which is a useful tool that lets you share your knowledge. When you post, it will be on your homepage feed. Use this feature to your advantage to stay active on this platform. If successful, it can help you build a good network, which highlights your reputation as an authority on the matter.
Content, as they say, is king. However, it will not work if your network is made of people who are not interested in the content you publish. The ideal scenario is if you’re targeting medium-sized businesses in Perth, most of your network should fall into that category. That way, when you post content, it will be relevant to them all, rather than the content being relevant to just 10 per cent of your network.
When it comes to content, quality always trumps quantity. Trust-based industries, such as B2B, financial services, and others, are very much into building trust first. Volume is good since you will get a lot of feedback, allowing you to improve your content. You can use the data you gain to see what’s working and what’s not.
Long-form content is valuable anywhere on the web. Google prefers ranking content with at least 500 words. But if you want to rank higher, shoot for at least 1,000 words. On LinkedIn, it’s the same thing. Long-form content, which is 1,000 words and up, can showcase your views and expertise better. The problem is that not everyone has the time to read your long content.
No one will bother reading a 2,000-word article if the topic does not appeal to them. Writing long content requires more time. It’s not worth it if your audience is not interested. So, how can you make it more compelling to read? It’s actually easy. Make the content about your readers and their issues. While it’s tempting to talk about your business and accomplishments to sell more, most of your target audience will not spend time reading about you.
Show your contacts you have that depth of knowledge on something that concerns them. Provide solutions to your target audience’s pain points. And only then will you be able to reach out to your potential clients.
The good news is that valuable content has many benefits. You establish your authority on the subject matter. It also encourages comments from other users, which means engagement. And a significant advantage is that you’re able to put a link to a lead magnet. Readers who find your content useful for them will be directed to your email funnel.
These people can potentially become your customers because they are interested in hearing more from you. If someone connected with you because of your content, it means you’re adding value.
Here’s something to ponder on: If you’re adding value by engaging with other people’s content for them to reciprocate, it’s not going to have any impact. Essentially, you’re not going to learn what they want.
Think about it. Let’s say you’re opening a restaurant and 50 other people are opening their restaurants in the same year. Then, you engage with those individuals so you can go to their launch and invite them to go to yours. Unfortunately, this tactic is not useful because obviously, those are not your customers.
LinkedIn is focused on ensuring the members have a good experience in the platform. Therefore, spam, algorithm manipulation, and even sending several requests to random people or business owners, are not tolerated. You could end up getting banned from LinkedIn for those offences. Even if you do not get banned, spamming and other destructive practices will not work if your goal is to be recognised on the platform. The only way is to start building relationships.
Another thing to avoid is selling anything right away, especially right after getting your request accepted. Generating leads does not mean you should be salesy. Never tell a new contact about your business, product, or service until those connections have established the need for you to do so.
Remember that you can never sell to anyone unless you make it known that you have the solution to their problem or need. This involves a process of talking, asking, and initiating a conversation to determine your potential clients’ requirements. From there, you can find whether or not you can solve their issues.
Originally, LinkedIn was created as a recruitment platform. The creators did not anticipate that the salespeople and marketers will soon dominate it. Many businesses are now moving to LinkedIn, which increases the growth potential of your networks and leads.
Just like with any social media platform, you need to maintain your LinkedIn activity. But one remarkable thing about it is that you do not have to keep checking every once in a while, to see any updates or changes. Instead, you should focus on aligning your objectives to the platform.
Since your goal is to obtain quality leads, you have to work to get them. You’re required to put in the time and effort to evaluate and re-evaluate your position regularly. With these methods, it’s guaranteed that you’ll enjoy exceptional results for LinkedIn lead generation.
Have you built a profile but wondering how to effectively navigate the platform to attract qualified leads who want to business with you?
In this article, you will learn a proven 5 step process for effective lead generation on LinkedIn. But first, let us look at who LinkedIn is for and who it is not for.
The short answer is LinkedIn is best suited to B2B lead generation, however it is often overlooked as a source for B2C customers, which could be a missed opportunity.
B2C organisations with a higher transaction size, or personalised service could find that LinkedIn is an effective tool to generate leads.
It is also used to engage partners, distribution channels, media opportunities, influencers and many more avenues could work well other than direct to the consumer.
93% of marketers pick LinkedIn as the number one spot to generate high quality leads.
With over 700 million members and engagement steadily on the rise, it is no wonder most B2B marketers agree that LinkedIn is the place to be.
However, it’s one thing to know that the attention is there, but there won’t be any results without a proven, measurable strategy.
Based on 10 years of generating over $450 million leads for various clients using LinkedIn, here’s the 5-step process that you can follow to generate a ROI for your business.
There are 5 keys to LinkedIn lead generation.
The first thing you need to do is create an awesome profile.
Your LinkedIn profile is the cornerstone of your professional brand online.
Yet many sales professionals create a LinkedIn profile that looks like their résumé or CV. If you are using LinkedIn to attract clients, a simple list of your professional experiences could be the most boring content to have on your profile.
Instead, complete all the profile basics in a way that conveys your personality.
To start, make your first visual impression count by displaying an optimized professional photo.
LinkedIn is not the place to run a casual snapshot. Make sure you use a high-quality, well-lit headshot that’s at least 200 x 200 pixels.
Next optimise your Headline, which appears directly under your name. This is especially important because it is highly visible, as well as searchable.
The headline is limited to 120 characters so be sure to use valuable keywords that your target audience uses often.
You can add video to your introduction and other areas of your LinkedIn profile. Video is excellent for telling stories, sharing client testimonials, and explaining what you do.
Introducing yourself in a video with your own face and voice makes your introduction personal. You immediately stand out from the crowd, especially if most of your competitors are not including video.
Education is a core criterion on LinkedIn, so completing this field is important. If you did not go to university, reference your high school.
Some people have even put “School of Life” or “School of Hard Knocks,” which works if that informal style is right for your brand.
Continue to complete the steps LinkedIn suggests to you until your profile starts to fill out more than your competitors.
The more content you have, the more visibility you will have and the more opportunity to engage your ideal customer.
The 2nd thing you need to do is grow your network. Use the advanced search tool to make sure you are reaching members of LinkedIn with specific search criteria.
For example, job title, industry, location and make sure that you are only connecting with 2nd degree connections. 2nd degree connections are members of LinkedIn, that a connection in common with you.
When you do a search on LinkedIn, the results vary based on your network. Generally, you see first-degree connections, then second-degree connections, and so on.
Therefore, a great way to expand your reach is to simply add more connections. You can grow your connections on LinkedIn by employing a number of tactics.
Reach out to previous employers, teachers, mentors, colleagues, clients, and school friends. You can also include a link to connect in your email signature, blog, and website. Also, use the search feature to find people in your target audience.
Tip: If you have an email database, you can import customer emails or email marketing lists and synchronize your email contacts with LinkedIn.
This tool will give you an excellent foundation to start reaching out to people who share mutual connections with your current or former clients.
To find the feature that imports your contacts into LinkedIn, click the My Network icon. On the left, click More Options in the Your Connections area.
Now you can enter your email address or choose a service provider from which you want to import your contacts. If LinkedIn’s importer doesn’t support your email provider, you can still invite people to connect via email.
Click the Upload a File icon and navigate to a CSV or TXT file of your email contacts that’s saved to your hard drive.
The LinkedIn tool for syncing your email contacts with your LinkedIn account If you’re happy with the list of people, click Add Connections to send invitations to all of the people listed.
Next, you see contacts who aren’t yet on LinkedIn. Click the Skip link to avoid sending them emails from LinkedIn asking them to sign up.
LinkedIn groups are another great way to grow your network. LinkedIn has all kinds of groups so you can almost certainly find groups related to your target audience.
These groups give you access to more people who matter to your business. To find groups that reflect your interests and goals, start by researching which groups people in your current network are involved in.
If you’re connected, you may have some similar interests and goals.
To search for groups by name or keyword, use the search box at the top of your LinkedIn home page. Type keywords or group names of interest and click Search.
On the search results page, click the Groups tab. The search results on LinkedIn filtered to the Groups tab LinkedIn also recommends groups for you.
To browse these groups, click the Work icon on the far right of the toolbar at the top. In the panel that appears, select Groups. Then click Discover at the top of the page to view suggested groups.
Now it is time to start generating leads.
To do this we should start sending direct messages to prospects. Now there is 2 ways you can send messages directly to prospects.
1. You can send them an InMail, which is part of LinkedIn’s premium subscriptions.
2. Or you can message them for free, on the basis that they are a first-degree connection.
If you use InMail, which you need to pay for, a good campaign will convert at 2-3%. When you message existing connections for Free, you can get a 15-20% conversion rate.
The fact that somebody knows some of the same people as you, and they have accepted your connection request means they are much more likely to respond favourably when you message them.
You have probably seen the messages most marketers use in your inbox; they are all about themselves, rather than about the person they are writing to. They come across impersonal and salesy.
You want to make sure your message does not come across like this. Make it personalised, to the point and show interest in the person you are sending it to.
Mention the connections you have in common, or something you have noticed on their profile. Anything to build rapport and show that you have taken the time to learn something about them.
Always remember; the goal is to take the conversation offline not to try and sell something on the spot.
Ask for a phone call so you can establish whether the person you are approaching has the problem you solve, or not.
Never assume that someone needs your product or service; this is a common trap that salespeople fall into.
What makes the difference between someone who closes 1 in 3 prospects?
The secret sauce of social selling – social proof. Social proof is evidence that others have tried your product or service and had a good experience.
It builds trust with your audience which is more important now than it has ever been before.
Most professionals fail to do this effectively on social media, so you very quickly stand-out from the competition when you have a profile and content that clearly portrays that you are a safe bet.
Just like when you want to go to a nice hotel, you read the reviews and ratings on trip advisor…. People are doing the same on LinkedIn.
The 2 areas that build social proof on your LinkedIn profile. These are endorsements and recommendations.
You can get more endorsements by simply endorsing others in your network, LinkedIn will suggest that they endorse you back and they will naturally want to return the favour in any event.
To request recommendations, click the Ask to be Recommended link in the top right of the Recommendations section. Next, follow the on-screen prompts to fill out and send your request.
Help guide them on how to find the recommendation feature on LinkedIn by sending them a request for a recommendation.
If you do this, make sure you customise the wording you use in the recommendation request. The more recommendations and endorsements you have, the more likely you are to get leads from LinkedIn.
The next step will also contribute wonders towards not only your social proof, but every single one of the 4 steps already mention.
With more than two-thirds of LinkedIn’s users considering themselves regular consumers of news, the audience on LinkedIn is ready to consume your content.
You will want to incorporate LinkedIn into your daily posting habits. Multiple, spread out your posts every day will help you reach and engage with your audience.
I also recommend using all the different post types available on LinkedIn – videos and images, along with well-written captions should be posted at least 3 times a week. Once a month I recommend posting a long-form article, with more detail around a hot topic that your audience will relate to and get value from.
Do not just post any old content though. There are over three million long-form articles written on LinkedIn. You need to create content that will stand out from the crowd and cater to the needs of your audience.
Make use of hashtags to maximise your reach with people interested in the topics you are posting about. Posts with hashtags have almost 30% higher views than those without.
The biggest mistake people make with their content is they are focused on what they want to say, instead of what their audience want to hear.
Do not assume what your audience will find valuable. Once you have identified exactly the profile of the ideal audience that all your LinkedIn marketing caters for, start communicating with those people.
Ask them what their problems are, what keeps them up at night, what kind of content they enjoy.
You could even ask what time of day they use LinkedIn; do they prefer mobile or laptop, etc. If you post content to LinkedIn when most of your audience is not online, will you receive the amount of views and engagement you were hoping for? Probably not.
So, remember, if you want to build a brand on LinkedIn, it’s crucial to find out when your specific audience prefers to surf the site. Because if you do, you will nail the timing of your posts. This will give you a much clearer picture of how your content marketing plan should look so you can put together a proactive, targeted content plan.
Following this approach my agency Bibby Consulting Group has successfully generated over $400 million in additional sales revenue for our clients using only LinkedIn strategies.
With almost 720 million members and a steady growth rate of 2 members per second, there has never been a bigger opportunity to grow your business than there is right now on LinkedIn.
If you follow these 5 proven steps you will attract a consistent flow of high-quality leads on LinkedIn that will allow you to grow your sales revenue consistently.
Bibby Consulting Group are Australia’s leading provider of LinkedIn training and LinkedIn marketing services.
What strategies do you use to generate high quality leads on LinkedIn? Let me know in the comments below.
