LinkedIn now hosts a whopping 810 million members.
Not bad for a 19-year-old business social platform.
And despite social giant Facebook hosting 2.91 billion members, businesses who do their marketing on LinkedIn increased their lead generation by 277% more than those who only use Facebook.
If you want to grow your business, LinkedIn is clearly a worthwhile option.
But despite LinkedIn’s crazy growth, there’s no reason to be afraid.
We’ll show you how to market effectively on the leading professional platform.
Have a Solid Profile
If your website is the first professional touchpoint for your business, LinkedIn is the second — but it’s a bit more personal.
Your profile picture is front and center on LinkedIn. So, at the very least, try to have one. Also, place your value proposition clearly at the top of your main description.
Additionally, your personal page should:
- Have a professional but slightly casual headshot as your profile photo. Smile! People love positivity and knowing who they’re talking to.
- Fill in all sections and use relevant keywords. List your experiences, and media appearances, and include recommendations.
- Utilize the Featured section to include helpful and relevant resources to sell yourself.
- Create a custom URL to add to your professionalism and make it easier for prospects to go to your page.
Post Regularly And Smartly
Regular posting on LinkedIn is what best allows you to truly get something out of the platform.
Create content that is of high quality, creative, and practical. Work with content buckets — e.g., inform, tell a story, ask a question, share company news, etc.
Best Times To Post
There’s no official best time to post on the platform. However, LinkedIn has said that morning posts gain the highest engagement. Wednesday is the best day for B2Bs and Mondays and Wednesdays for B2Cs.
Best Type of Content
As for what to post, images generate twice as many comments. Want to do carousel posts on the platform? Go for it! LinkedIn says they’re especially profitable for organizations.
Video marketing is another great content type when it comes to digital marketing on LinkedIn, reportedly generating 20x more engagement through shares.
Best Frequency
With LinkedIn, go for one post a weekday and take your weekends off! That’s 20 posts a month.
Make Wise Connections
Making connections on LinkedIn is a hit or miss if you’re not intentional.
That is, you want to focus on connecting with your target audience or networking with people who will ultimately help you reach them.
Willy-nilly connection requests will only waste your time and others’.
Here are three essentials for building wise LinkedIn connections:
- Prepare a script that’s friendly, professional, and direct to send along with your request.
- Consider sending a video message to stand out.
- Link your website, a resource, or a particular page on your site that’s relevant to the conversation you’re hoping to start.
And remember to always keep in mind that you’re a human talking to another human!
Design an Engaging Company Page
Having a LinkedIn company page is crucial for your business. Just like your personal profile, it should include as much information as LinkedIn requests.
Fill out everything possible when creating your page.
When designing your company page, remember to:
- Match colors and images to your brand colors or those on your site.
- Keep it updated so leads know your business stays current.
- Make sure of LinkedIn’s analytics tool.
- Optimize it for search.
Join and Participate in LinkedIn Groups
Joining the right LinkedIn groups — those where your target audience resides — is great for staying in the know on conversations in your industry.
Plus, you can message anyone in the group without adding to your LinkedIn InMail quota (Yay to savings!)
You can further build connections, trust, and credibility by sharing your expertise and contributing to discussions.
Do all of the above by also creating your own group… with the added bonus of having all your leads in one place without your competitors in the picture.
Make Marketing on LinkedIn a Team Effort
LinkedIn says 30% of company page engagement comes from employees sharing content 14X more than other pages they follow. Clearly, employee advocacy goes a long way on the platform.
Encourage your employees to complete their own LinkedIn profiles and engage with your posts. Make LinkedIn marketing a team effort.
A LinkedIn Marketing Strategy For Your Small Business
LinkedIn is amazing if you want to boost your credibility, establish yourself as a thought leader, and gain access to high-quality leads. Not to mention, it’s the most trusted social networking platform.
We hope these best practices helped you to see the light and want to give LinkedIn marketing a go! Don’t have the time, patience, or resources for implementing a LinkedIn marketing plan? PSM Marketing is here to save you from the headache while bringing you all the rewards. Contact us today!