By Maureen Kane
Why use LinkedIn for business
After a few years of business uncertainty one thing I have learned for sure is that harnessing the power of LinkedIn marketing can result in business transformation and be a game changer for anyone who wants business growth advice.
LinkedIn has been evolving so much over the last few years and no matter if you are in your current position and looking to elevate your career, a thought leader looking to grow your audience or a business looking to generate awareness and create sales opportunities, there is a place at the table for you on LinkedIn
The struggle for many however is to work out how you can help grow your business on LinkedIn. If done badly, you can end up spending hours scrolling, engaging and creating content which brings little or no results versus using it wisely you can totally transform, change or supercharge your business or career.
Step 1 – Business planning for the next 12 months
The first thing you need to do is get clear on what you want to achieve in your career or business in the next 12 months, or at least the next 3-6 months, without this you will always be shooting in the dark. This is where speaking with a business coach, leadership coach or engaging in executive coaching can really help
Step 2 – How much time do I need to dedicate to LinkedIn Marketing
Then, think about how much time and effort you can invest to do this, as I need to point out – LinkedIn success does not happen overnight, it takes work.. Do you realistically have the time to do this all yourself or can you afford to outsource some or elements of this to a trusted LinkedIn Coach or specialist who could be a great asset to your team.
Step 3 – Creating a LinkedIn strategy
Thirdly, and probably the most important part is to create a LinkedIn strategy plan to include:
- What is the message you will use on LinkedIn to help attract & grow followers?
- Who are you gearing this towards?
- What value can you share that will showcase your expertise and attract followers?
- What’s the next step for your followers to engage with you further? (a LinkedIn Lead Magnet/ call to action)
Step 4
Once you are clear on your messaging it is vital this jumps out on your Linkedin Banner (you need one which includes your call to action or Lead Magnet) your *about section* and your Linkedin posts of course too.
Step 5
Your LinkedIn headline is something that is seen by everyone, when you create a post, send a connection request, and comment on a post, so keep this short and something that jumps out at people. I for example use a line from a recent LinkedIn Recommendation: “My Visibility & Success on LinkedIn skyrocketed since working with Maureen”
Step 6
A LinkedIn Lead Magnet will give you the edge you need to stand head and shoulders above any competition. This will enable you to convert your followers from LinkedIn posts to LinkedIn Leads. This is a free yet valuable piece of content that your followers can sign up to
access and you can use to drive your followers on your profile, on your posts and in LinkedIn messages.. This enables you to collect email addresses and take a conversation from LinkedIn to email. One of my lead magnets is 10 Ways to grow Business from LinkedIn in 2023, It’s a 2-page PDF, which can be downloaded free from my Linktree.
Step 7
Success comes down to many factors. Growing your following is an essential part of this. You can do this in two ways and I recommend you do both every week. Send connection requests out to your target audience and also ensure you are putting out at least one post a week delivering value that gives people a reason to want to follow you.
Step 8
Content is, of course, important so you share expertise, knowledge bombs and insights about you and your team that help people connect on that human level. Dependant on your own goals will decide how many times you post each week on LinkedIn. A busy thought leader may post an impactful post only once a week, whilst a business may choose to post daily. But, just remember the key is always to educate and engage your audience so they want to connect and follow you so I would always go with quality over quantity of posts.
Step 9
My ninth tip is about the format of posting. The first line that people see is The HOOK, this will either make people want to read more or not, so think of it like an email subject header – short and impactful. Also mixing up the styles of Linkedin posts not only keeps your audience engaged but also plays in the favor of the LinkedIn algorithm. Use a mix of visuals, including the good selfies, carousel, text only and videos.
Step 10
Linkedin is a social media platform afterall so my tenth and final tip is to remind you the importance of engaging with others on posts and in messenger. I would suggest engaging with influential people in your field in addition to your target audience to help you get seen more by the right people.
In summary, with a little prep and consistently engaging, posting and connecting on Linkedin you will drive more traction to you and your business weekly, which in combination will guarantee to set you up for great success in 2023 – the results will pay for themselves x 10!
