LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional networking platform with over 722 million users worldwide. As such, it presents a huge opportunity for small businesses looking to expand their networks and generate new leads. Here are some tips on how to effectively network your small business on LinkedIn.
Complete your LinkedIn profile
The first step is to fully optimize your personal LinkedIn profile to represent your business. This includes having a professional photo, headline, summary section detailing your background, experience, skills, and offering. The profile should be written to appeal to your ideal target audience.
You can also showcase your business by adding a LinkedIn background photo and linking to your website in the contact info section. In addition, be sure to turn on the “Open to” settings so people know you are available for new business opportunities.
Grow your connections
Start connecting with both your existing professional network as well as new contacts in your target market. Personalized connection requests tend to have higher acceptance rates. You can search for contacts by location, industry, job function, skills, employer, and more.
In your request note, mention how you might be able to help them or why you’d like to connect. Avoid sending generic invites. Also be sure to regularly go through your “My Network” feed and congratulate connections on work milestones to nurture relationships.
Join relevant LinkedIn Groups
LinkedIn Groups based on topics like industry, interests, university, etc. are a great way to meet like-minded professionals. Search for relevant groups in your field and join the most popular and active ones. Groups allow you to connect with members, ask questions, establish yourself as an expert, and get found by potential new customers.
You can post discussions in Groups to share insights, links, or start conversations. Just make sure your posts follow the rules and provide value to the community instead of blatant self-promotion. You can also advertise to Groups related to your target demographic.
Follow companies
Follow companies you would like to work with or that align with your customer avatar. This gives you insider access to their job postings, content, and employees. You can like, share, and comment on their posts to get on their radar. Companies often check out who is engaging with their brand.
You may also discover employees you can connect with or receive notifications that your connections get a new position there. This gives you an opportunity to congratulate them and start a relationship.
Build your company page
Create a LinkedIn Company Page to establish your business brand and presence. The page can include an overview, photos, services, culture, products, jobs, and compelling content showcasing thought leadership.
You can publish LinkedIn articles and long-form posts on the page to attract new followers. Company pages also appear in Google search results so it helps with SEO. Encourage employees to follow the page and share company content in their feeds.
Utilize LinkedIn ads
Once you build a base audience and following, consider running LinkedIn ads to expand your reach. Well-targeted campaigns can drive traffic to your website, promote content, and generate leads for your business. You can target by location, industry, job title, interests, skills, and more.
For example, if you run a web design agency you could target executives and managers in your city and audience members who show interest in web design. LinkedIn provides robust analytics to optimize your spend and results.
Share and engage with content
Posting and interacting with content is a great way to be noticed on LinkedIn. Share articles, images, infographics, SlideShare presentations, and videos that align with your brand and resonate with your audience. Add thoughtful comments that demonstrate your knowledge.
Post content natively to LinkedIn or share content from other sites. Use relevant hashtags and mentions to extend your reach. Also post company updates, news, and announcements to nourish followers. Commenting on other’s content can lead them back to your profile and company page.
Recommend and endorse connections
Personalized recommendations and endorsements help strengthen your relationships. When you recommend someone for their skills it appears on their profile and gets broadcast to their network. Endorsing someone for their skills simply clicks a thumbs up icon.
Both recommendations and endorsements boost your credibility when done thoughtfully and not in mass quantities. The gesture can prompt the receivers to look at your profile and reciprocate. It enables you to develop social capital.
Partake in LinkedIn events
Attending virtual events and workshops posted on LinkedIn is a low-pressure way to meet prospects and get involved. You can join via a listing on LinkedIn Events. Look for relevant events to your audience and business to connect with potentials clients and partners.
During the event you can network with other attendees through the chat function. And after the event you can connect with speakers or panelists by sending them a personalized invite asking to continue the conversation.
Leverage LinkedIn analytics
LinkedIn provides analytics to assess the performance of your profile and Company Page. Look at data on your followers, post reach, content engagement, page visitors, follower demographics, top-performing updates, etc. This allows you to see what’s working well and opportunities for improvement.
You can also install the LinkedIn Insider browser extension to get visitor analytics on who is checking out your profile and Company Page. The insights help you tailor your approach to attracting more of your ideal audience.
Conclusion
In summary, focus first on optimizing your company and personal profile, making meaningful connections, and actively engaging in relevant groups and discussions. From there you can run ads, share multimedia content, and leverage analytics to fine-tune your LinkedIn networking and lead generation activities.
Networking on LinkedIn does require an investment of time and effort but implementing these tips can significantly expand your reach and opportunities for a small business. Just remember to provide value to your network rather than hard-selling. Relationship-building is the foundation of good networking on LinkedIn and social media.