LinkedIn is a great social networking tool if you’re looking for a job or trying to network. Many businesses find great employees using LinkedIn. What many people don’t realize is that it can be a great tool for branding and awareness of a business. Setting up your personal LinkedIn profile can expand your reach and enhance your online presence. You also have the option of setting up a business page.
In this article we’ll explore the following:
- Why Should You Be On LinkedIn?
- Making Your Linkedin Profile Friendly
- Linking To Your Company Page
- Update Your Page Frequently
- Take Advantage Of Marketing Opportunities
- Keeping Up With Your Profile
Why Should You Be on LinkedIn?
LinkedIn has over 500 million users; 40 percent of people say they use LinkedIn every day. About 45 percent of LinkedIn users earn over $75K annually. The average user on LinkedIn is a professional or college graduate.
You don’t have to be looking for a job to be on LinkedIn. Your profile can help you build trust. Many people check information about leaders in the industry on the site.
Like it or not, you’re going to be Googled when people want to know more about you. By completing your profile, you have some control over how you’re seen.
Your company should be on LinkedIn for potential customers and employees searching for information about your business. It can be an important element in your digital footprint. LinkedIn can also be a marketing tool where you can share information about your company, products or services and information about your industry.
More Than Just A Job Search Tool
LinkedIn is a major social media presence. It’s also unique – it’s the only social media platform centered around business professionals.
This platform provides you with a great opportunity to connect and have a professional relationship with people that you may not have otherwise known about in your industry. This also gives you a massive advantage for conventions and other industry events. Who loves going to an event when you don’t know anyone at all?
Very few of you crazy extreme extroverts out there. What if you already knew 20 people who were going to be there and had a soft introduction through your LinkedIn account? Well, that would make it a heck of a lot easier to start up a conversation with your new friends. And who knows! You may end up working with them in the future.
This is a massive value add that only comes from LinkedIn. You get to focus on your professional life – not filter through baby pictures and family reunions on Facebook while you try to promote your business. This platform provides you the opportunity of focus and a filter that removes a lot of the noise from traditional social media platforms.
Making Your LinkedIn SEO Friendly
You’re going to have to invest some time on this one.
Include relevant keywords in your personal and company information. Be clear in who you are and what your business does. In your description, put the most relevant information in the first 156 characters, because that’s what will be displayed in search results.
Use the same keywords in your description and company image that you use on your other social media pages and Google Business page.
Consistency is best when building a brand. These keywords will point back to your business and build up a strong keyword profile that strengthen’s your business’s ranking within search results.
Your LinkedIn profile can have a big impact on your website’s strength!
Create your custom URL – Don’t just Accept the Number You’re Assigned
Did you know that you can create a url on your profile that is your name instead of the customer or user ID number that LinkedIn assigns you? You certainly can.
You’ll need to go to the edit profile screen and at the bottom of the gray window that shows your basic information, you’ll see a Public Profile URL. Click “Edit” next to the URL, and specify what you’d like your address to be (like your name). When you’re finished, click Set Custom URL.
This makes it way easier for people to find you on LinkedIn and way easier for someone to look you up after you’ve met them at a meeting or industry event.
Consider Adding Photos and Videos To Your Summary
Who wants to read another boring profile summary? (No one raises there hand – EVER). Want to stand out? Shake it up with some photos or videos that you’re proud of.
Keep it professional – (Keep those family photos on Facebook).
Show off that project that you poured blood sweat and tears into – and talk about only sleeping 10 hours for an entire week. Engage with your reader – great story telling can make the sale for you.
Photos and videos can then speak for themselves and they will help you stand out. It shows that you took the time to really invest in your profile and make it worth while for someone to read it.
Link to Your Company Page
Encourage employees to keep their own personal profiles up to date, linking back to your company page. Share your company page on your website, your blog and social media platforms.
“What if I am the company?” No problem. You’re going to need a company page and then a separate individual profile page for yourself. What if your company ultimately doesn’t make it? You’ll still have a strong profile page to fall back on and hopefully a strong network to fall back on and get a job quickly.
This will help it rank higher in searches. Give your employees time to work on their LinkedIn profile and create a culture of helping people succeed.
Your first reaction to this may be to think “Great, I’m just helping people get out there so they can get better jobs and then I have to replace them.” We disagree.
Sure, some folks may get noticed, but more than that, your business gets noticed and is seen as a place where great people come from.
Your employee’s reputations will reflect positively on your business. Encourage them to express themselves online.
Update Your Page Frequently
Share relevant content with your network to build your online presence. Keep in mind who your audience is.
This may not be the place for salesy blog posts, but information about the industry and how your product and service can benefit busy professionals.
This is an opportunity for you to share your knowledge, especially with areas that your passionate about. This could be a an area of your current job that you wish you had more time to work on – or share with others about. Make your profile your platform for this expression.
Social media platforms are about building communities, and community is all about sharing what you know.
Encourage interaction with your network by asking questions to get comments on your posts. The reach of your posts will expand as your network does.
Marketing Opportunities
Create targeted Showcase pages under your company page to promote specific items and products that target specific niches or customers.
LinkedIn now has sponsored content and advertisements to build your audience and connect with professionals. This is a massive opportunity especially for B2B (Business to business sales).
Other business owners are on LinkeIn actively searching for products and services that you provide.
By keeping a fresh and new LinkedIn profile, you’re increasing the chances that you will get new leads just from LinkedIn.
Keeping Up With Your LinkedIn Profile
If you’re wondering how to find the balance between running a business and keeping up with digital marketing efforts, Nozak Consulting is here to help.
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