If you aren’t already on LinkedIn, we have one question. What is holding you back?
LinkedIn claims to help people “conduct business where business gets done,” and marketers who have utilized the platform for networking and lead creation can attest to this. The platform offers several tools that enable marketers to create and deploy great ads without spending much money. B2B marketers want to boost sales leads and convert them into customers, and the platform’s highly targeted targeting features help them do just that.
What Sets LinkedIn Apart?
Keeping on trend with other recent years, LinkedIn continues to be the most relied-upon social media outlet for generating leads among B2B marketers once again. It’s no surprise that highly focused business executives in B2B trust LinkedIn more than other social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Sagefrog’s B2B Marketing Mix Report analyzes marketing trends, and in 2021 it reported that 86% of B2B marketing professionals would use LinkedIn to generate leads. Facebook (79%), Twitter (60%), and Instagram (60%) aren’t far behind, but they lack LinkedIn’s reputation and professional-focused skills.
LinkedIn is vastly popular among the business community, going above and beyond most social media platforms. Over 740 million individuals on the forum and over 55 million registered companies. And of these users, nearly 40% check in daily, even if their time spent on the platform is often limited to the space of only a few minutes. Getting the attention of these business owners quickly and firmly is key to leveraging LinkedIn to benefit your own company!
Tips For Building Your Brand On LinkedIn
Research Your Target Audience – Like with any other social media platform, you will want to know who you are trying to target and reach. You can create tons of content, but if it is not landing with the appropriate audience, then you might as well not have written it at all because it will likely go ignored and unseen.
Build Your Brand – Building a personal brand is the most impactful way to do business on LinkedIn. On average, individual accounts have 10X the reach of business accounts, and people are drawn to people. Your personality and voice are the basis for your brand and what every other user on LinkedIn is going to see, read, notice, and want to connect with.
Leverage Analytics – If you want to use LinkedIn to its full potential, you’ll need to be able to see and read your analytics. Without knowing exactly how well or poorly a piece of content or your engagement is doing means not having every tool available to you being used. Analytics may show that engagement at a particular time is better than posting at some other time or that your audience may have shifted. Apps such as ShieldApp and Brand30 can help track backend analytics and keep you in the know when it comes to your LinkedIn profile.
Create Consistent and Engaging Content – Keep your content readable, likable, and most of all, frequent. Try posting at least once or twice a week, as long as you keep your work original. And try to make sure that it is something that your followers will want to look through, rather than anything self-promotional. After all, LinkedIn is similar to other social media channels, only more geared towards business owners. Would you instead read through a track that is mostly self-promotion and advertisements or educational and entertaining content?
Connect on a Professional Level – People connect, not with the businesses themselves. Be true to yourself and let your personality shine through in what you choose to post online. People will be drawn to you if you open up a little and share some of your own life. However, consider that LinkedIn is a professional network, so it isn’t the place to post all your social interactions, everyday thoughts, feelings, or real-life drama.
Keep Up Interactions – It may appear shallow at first, but the more replies and comments your post receives, the more people it will reach. However, not all forms of participation are created equal. Because a remark requires a little more effort than a reply, it will help your content reach a wider audience. When people interact with your postings, it increases their visibility, so reciprocate when you see one you like. Keep in mind that others might see the information you interact with in your network, so keep it relevant to your business. Engagement is a significant driver of growth, so commenting on top influencers’ posts by going deeper and adding value will net you more business than simply posting alone.
Optimize Your Profile – Your profile is the most critical aspect of LinkedIn because it demonstrates that you’re involved in the community and have taken the time and effort to stand out. Something as simple as adding a profile photo can make your profile seven times more likely to be found in searches. Make sure you also create a headline for your LinkedIn profile that is unique. The headline is set to your existing job title by default; however, you can change it to reflect your expertise or vision for the post. Consider your headline to be the tagline for your company. It’ll be the first thing many people see, so make it count!
Build Your Network – LinkedIn makes it easy to expand your network and create influential brand associations. These associations help maintain your reputation and strengthen your community and business ties. People tend to think highly of individuals who hang out with like-minded people; thus, growing your LinkedIn network will also help you grow your brand. Connect with trusted friends, previous colleagues, classmates, industry leaders, vendors, and other professionals on LinkedIn to do this. Also, don’t be afraid to request introductions to others in your connections’ networks. Additionally, the LinkedIn algorithm spotlights posts your contacts engage with, so even more key than connecting with your target audience is building a community around them. Create connections, have those connections engage with your content, and you’re golden.
Create Content – LinkedIn is absolutely a content starved platform, so creating content that others want to read will set you apart from the other users on the site and build your brand. Long-form blog topics and informational posts will significantly net you the most response if you can leverage connections and engagements.
Join Like-Minded Groups – Groups on LinkedIn is a tool that has gained importance due to the pandemic, especially since so many individuals have started working remotely. Digital communication channels are exploding, and it is best to get in on the trend as early as possible. However, to succeed on LinkedIn Groups, you must have a thorough awareness of the communities you’re a part of and be aware of group etiquette and policies. To avoid being ignored or banned, follow the rules, post meaningful material, and prevent blatant self-promotion.
Ready to boost your brand on LinkedIn? At MKC Agency, we elevate your business process, helping scale your business while remaining focused on what you love to do. If you’re looking to increase your growth, improve efficiency, and find a customized winning strategy that will work repeatedly, then reach out for a free consultation. That way, we can get started on improving your outreach tactics today.