Using LinkedIn to Grow Your Business

How to Use LinkedIn to Grow Your Business The Basics of Building Your Profile and Developing Your Network

A Visualization of the Structure of Social Networks

Social Media’s Three Buckets Professional Networking Social Networking Information Sharing The Golden Rule of Professional Networking on Social Media for Business Development: Manage all content as if your best client, your biggest prospect, and your closest friend were the only audience.

To Grow Sales, I Need… To TALK to more people. To network more. To be viewed as an industry expert. More people to call in.

To grow sales I need to be viewed as an industry expert. How can you tell if a someone is an “Industry Expert”? What do they do? Share high-level industry knowledge. Offer analysis and perspective on current issues/events. Provide suggestions and guidance to others in their field. Are recognized by other VIPs in their industry. Keep visible and active in their professional communities. Are quoted or referenced in industry publications and networks. Receive calls from people looking for assistance.

To grow sales I need to network more. How does networking help grow your business? When you call people you’ve networked with, they’re more likely to take your call. You find people who may be good connections/ prospects/ resources who aren’t currently in your database or on your radar. You can build brand awareness for your company and for yourself. Networking gives you an opportunity to have CONVERSATIONS about your industry to show off your skill and knowledge. You’re more likely to have referrals sent to you when you’re actively networking. Networking gives you an opportunity to build trust and familiarity.

To grow sales I need to TALK to more people. If you’re in the midst of a very busy day, and feeling the crunch of unfinished work or unmet goals, how would you respond to the following? Zig Ziglar calls and leaves you a voicemail. Would call him back the same day? Your Assistant tells you that Angus King or Jim Collins is on hold for you. Would you stop what you’re doing and take the call? You get an email from the Commissioner of the ME Dept of Economic & Community Development asking you to schedule a time to speak. Would you reply immediately? “ John Richardson” calls and asks for ten minutes to talk about a service he’s offering. Would you give him the ten minutes, or tell him you’re busy?

To grow sales I need more people to call in. Why would someone want to call you? How do you choose who you call for services you purchase? In general, a personal connection with a prospect will increase the likelihood that they’ll call you when they need your service. When seeking a service or information, people look for trusted vendors. They know you will treat them professionally and provide good service and value. Someone in their circle of influence has suggested that they call you. Your name/company name is top of mind when they think of your service. Your contact information is easy to find.

Creating Your Profile: The Basics Professional Headline: Your elevator pitch 120 Characters Not hyperlinked If you provide email, you will get unsolicited link requests Employment & Education: Include RELEVANT past employers Update when you change titles Include RELEVANT education Websites, Interests, Associations, & Honors/Awards: Add link to your company’s website Always customize the Website Name Add links to Non-Profits you volunteer with Add professional awards, associations & interests Public Profile Link & Summary: Customize your profile link to include your name Your summary is the extension of your personal professional elevator pitch Update your summary regularly

Group Participation Discussions Add a new discussion or comment on a discussion a few times each month. News When you see good articles, look for a share link and share with your group. Updates Members Search for and connect with people in your groups. Settings Choose how often you want to see updates, and how people can contact you from the group. Share Send an invitation to join the group to colleagues. Leave Group

Group Participation Rules of Conduct Don’t try to sell on your first contact! Respect group members’ time- provide value! Don’t over do it! (no one wants 10 emails a week from you, no matter how wonderful you really are) Be thoughtful- remember, you’re the new kid in school. Respond to discussions and messages. Consider the group a valued resource. You can never be TOO appreciative or polite. FOLLOW THE GOLDEN RULE OF PROFESSIONAL NETWORKING ON SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS!

Building Your Network Start by using the advanced search features to find people you are already connected with. Current Customers Volunteer Organizations School Classmates Previous Employers

Once you start connecting to people you know well, you can begin to find new contacts. Review the connections of your 1 st level connections. Keep you eyes open for connection indicators. Call your first level connections to ask for an introduction to their connections. Building Your Network

Building your network When speaking with a current customer, ask if they’re on LinkedIn. If they are, offer to connect and send an invite. If they are not, suggest they check it out. Search for people using Advanced features. Search for people in your Groups.

Best Practices: invitations Never presume that people will want to connect with you. Don’t send out multiple invitations to link. Don’t attempt to connect with strangers. Always customize your invitation to connect. Be humble and present WHY you want to connect. Remind the person how you know them. When possible, connect on the phone first.

Best Practices: Recommendations Never presume that people will want to recommend you. Recommendations from coworkers are less valuable than from outside contacts. Only send blind recommendations to very close connections. For all others, give them a heads up that a request for recommendation is coming. If you choose to recommend someone, be thoughtful and provide details about your work with them. If you get a recommendation that has grammatical errors, send it back with a note to edit- be appreciative and assume it was an oversight on their end. If you’re posting it on your site for all to see, they’ll want it to be right. Always send a thank you note back to someone who has recommended you.

And Don’t Forget!!! Manage all content as if your best client, your biggest prospect, and your closest friend were the only audience.

Using LinkedIn to Grow Your Business

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