How to use Linkedin for small business?
LinkedIn, at its core is a professional social network. It’s all about career development, professional connections and other types of business related activities. You cannot just post anything and everything you want, people on LinkedIn are professionals who are there for business.
Many people assume that LinkedIn is just for professionals and job seekers. This certainly is not true. Millions of professionals use LinkedIn to grow their networks and careers, but did you know you can use LinkedIn to grow your business too?
Well if not then keep reading. You are about to discover how to use LinkedIn effectively for your business!
- Create an Effective LinkedIn Page and a Personal Profile
The first and foremost thing that you need to do is to create an effective LinkedIn page that is completely professional.
We all know that, ‘First impression is the last impression’. And your profile is a great opportunity to impress.
Your page should provide opportunities to your customers to know about your brand.
What is in there for them, what purpose will it serve to them are the basic questions that your page should provide answers to.
Don’t think that your business is small so it doesn’t require a personal profile. You can show your potential clients that there is indeed a person behind the curtain and give them reasons to consider you an expert. Thus having a complete personal profile will add value to your business.
- Redefine Your LinkedIn Profile
Your profile must be updated at all times. People must get to know about your brand as well as you, since business is a two-way process.
Keep optimizing your profile; update about your latest achievements, skills and examples of your latest work.
Keeping it real is the best way to attract more customer engagement.
- Establish Your Goals and Audience
Be sure of what you want to achieve, this will help you target your audience. Set your goals, don’t aim very high. Take one step at a time and you will surely be able to see your business grow.
LinkedIn provides you with a vast audience, so make sure whom you want to reach out to.
- Build Your Professional and Personal Brand
Building relationship with your client is very crucial, because people buy from those they know and trust. Being a social media platform, LinkedIn will showcase you and your business in the professional light. So keep your profile professional and complete.
Your customers should be able to learn who you aim to serve, what are you offering to them and why they should listen to you.
Your credibility is very important which can be achieved by the recommendation of the others.
- Expand your Connections
Grow your page followers. Invite your LinkedIn connections to follow your LinkedIn page. Use a “Follow” button on your site or blog. Promote your company page on blogs, emails and newsletters.
Follow Plugin Generator.
You can also grow your network by joining an industry group and participating in them. This will let people know that you are an active person and have business knowledge.
To enhance your LinkedIn business, you can also start a group and indulge in knowing your audience. Share your knowledge and expertise to gain customer trust which will help you improve your business tactics.
- Publish Rich Media and Engaging Content
Post content that your target audience would want to read. Make sure to use high quality photos and captions, which attract your audience.
LinkedIn is a text heavy environment; images can actually provide you sufficient traffic to make your post famous. Your content should provide an insight on how to solve a problem and then establish you as a thought leader.
In fact videos get higher number of views in comparison to images. Just looking at a picture no one can sense the usability of the product but a quick sneak peak can generate interest among audience. This will make your product famous and people will be anxiously waiting for it.
Going live on LinkedIn can also promote huge audience participation as it gives live insight on your product and business. Live videos generate more comments than a regular shot video.
Make sure to post relevant content which not only presents your product but also talk about it. Avoid hard selling and try not to sound too ‘salesy’.
Keep a track of what you are posting and make use of hashtags to accumulate more audience. Everyone is looking for a fresh and new idea; make sure you provide them with it. LinkedIn business works on the prospect of fresh ideas.
- Stay Close to Your Customers
Your post will drive customers to action, which means you should be ready to provide them with answers to all their queries. Since LinkedIn is providing you an opportunity to stay as close to your customers as possible, make proper use of it.
Your content will derive questions from your audience and you should be able to satisfy them. Customers should not be kept waiting as they will lose their interest in your business. Answer them sooner rather than later.
Your interaction with the customers will build trust and loyalty towards your business. LinkedIn facilitates the opportunity of direct messaging which can prove to be fruitful to you. If
Customers are not comfortable questioning you in comments section, they can certainly reach out to you in personal chat.
Share with the customers your aims, goals and benefits that your business will provide to them. Take them in confidence and build their faith. Your business in no time will gain much recognition.
- Create LinkedIn ad Campaigns
Think about LinkedIn marketing strategy . Expand your network and cultivate a professional reputation for your home business.
Reach your marketing goals with more ad options. You can also use paid advertisements to get your business in front of the potential clients. You can use sponsored content to boost your content in your audience’s feed.
Update on paid LinkedIn membership might appear as costly but once it starts giving the results you want, it won’t matter that much.
- Stay Conscious of Your Industry
You need to know about your industry which means you need to be well aware and informed about your business.
You should be conscious about your competitor’s actions. Staying one step ahead of your competition will be beneficial for your business.
Do something that other brands won’t do, assist other brands to get exposure and recognition. This will not only prove you generous but also that you are bold enough to talk about different brands.
This in return will work in your favor as well. As this will encourage other brands to publish about your business in return. This creates a never-ending cycle by which everyone gets benefited.
Conclusion
LinkedIn is a social media platform which helps in making connections, establishing partnerships and generating brand awareness.
With the resources above, you should have all you need to get started with your small business marketing on LinkedIn.
Author :
AASTHA SINHA