In just under ten years, LinkedIn has become the de facto tool for professional networking. With over 300 million users worldwide LinkedIn has become one of the top 5 social media giants on the web, rivalling Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus for traffic and general position. It is without question the networking resource for professionals looking to staying connected to current colleagues, people they may have worked with in the past, and peers who work in similar jobs. But how can you get your business LinkedIn-ed?  

Who should use it: Businesses (especially B2B service providers), Recruiters and Job-Seekers

What to share: Job-postings, company descriptions, employer/employee research

Post frequency: Two to four times a week

While keeping a company description and profile page mindful of keyword SEO your network of employees and contacts is your most valuable (and potentially damaging) content on LinkedIn. Make sure people in your organisation are appropriate, professional and on-brand. There’s nowhere online where employers and employees are more intimately linked. 

Our 5 point guide to geting LinkedIn successful

1.       Make it personal

Before you can delve fully into using LinkedIn as a business, you need to master LinkedIn as an individual user. While many people have an account, their profile is often incomplete, making it essentially useless. As will all social media, you might even say the only thing worse than not having a profile is having an incomplete one.

a)      Include full name and photo

b)      Enter work history – layout as you would your resume

c)       Customise Your LinkedIn URL

d)      Customise your Website URL’s

e)      Ask for meaningful Recommendations

f)       Connect Your business Twitter Account with LinkedIn

g)      Grow a meaningful Network

2.       A couple of reasons to use a company page

You’ve completed your personal profile so now it’s time to set up your Company Page—Commence. And why you may be thinking … why we need yet another social platform, he’s the two most important reasons

a)      Company Reach. Without putting any efforts into building your company on LinkedIn, chances are many of your employees are updating their personal profiles to show where they work. Every person that connects with that profile may potentially click on your company name and be navigated to your company page. Take advantage of this. Hordes of users can easily land on your page through simple LinkedIn browsing.

b)     

GETTING LINKEDIN-ED FOR BUSINESS 

Product Awareness. Company pages on LinkedIn provide a section for talking about specific products. While you can create a business page on Facebook where you can describe your various products as a whole and see which friends “like” that page, LinkedIn narrows the field and allows you to add multiple products so each stands out. Not only are consumers learning about the products and services your company produces, they are also able to see how many of their connections recommend them. This form of product awareness is hard to find, and better yet, able to be measured.

3.       Completing  your company page

A LinkedIn company page is the one page on your various social platforms that calls for the most professionalism. Just as a person profile is professional in its resume-like nature, a company page should emit a white-collar persona paired with some company character. So let’s look at five easy steps to complete your LinkedIn company page.

a)      Include Basic Information

b)      Include Products and Services

c)       If applicable, Post Jobs

d)      Turn on Company Status updates

e)      Promote

f)       Measure, Measure and Measure again!

4.       Lead generation – LinkedIn-ed style

There are two main approaches for using LinkedIn for lead generation. The first approach is to provide prospects information about your company directly on LinkedIn. The second approach is to start the conversation on LinkedIn, but then drive the prospect through to a landing page on your website

a)      The indirect approach: The indirect approach aspires to drive people through to a landing page where they can download a white paper, signing them up for your e-newsletter or giving them more information on your products or services.

b)      Another approach: You still want to start out by offering free advice or helpful information to your customer prospect. The rules of engagement are the same as the direct approach, but the difference is that once you’ve connected with your prospect on LinkedIn, you drive them through to your landing page.

5.       Key tips for Marketing your LinkedIn Business Page

a)      Add a variety of cover images to reflect a range of business priorities, products, campaigns, or events

b)      Create banners that show the vibrant nature of your business and culture

c)       Don’t be shy about asking for recommendations on your products

d)      Before posting an update, ask yourself – Would I want to read this story?  Would I want to share this with my connections?”

e)      Post content that interests your followers and less about how great your company is

f)       Publish photos & content from top events to show everyone what you are all about

g)      Encourage employees to like and share your updates with their network. This helps grow your follower base

h)      Stay fresh by reaching out to your followers at least once a day, if not more

i)        Listen to your audience. Look at Company Page insights, read comments, make connections

j)        Target specific audiences with LinkedIn Showcase Pages

To find out more about LinkedIn, connect with us for a full review.