LinkedIn has become a top priority for me recently when it comes to building my network within social media platforms. Over the past month that I have been focusing on using LinkedIn as a networking tool I have been pleasantly surprised with the results so today I wanted to share a few tips with you on how to effectively set up your profile to get the best results from your efforts.
Since LinkedIn is one of the most important social networks online for building business relationships, by sharing details about your profession, your industry, contact details so people can connect with you, and your business information you are expanding your opportunities tremendously using LinkedIn as a marketing tool. LinkedIn has also recently expanded its capabilities to interact with other social media sites, in an effort to connect the various sites and online profiles you maintain as part of your social networking efforts.
Tips for effectively using your LinkedIn Profile to build powerful business relationships
Today I wanted to share with you the steps you should take to create and setup your LinkedIn account properly for your business. In a few days I will post some more tips on how to use LinkedIn as a powerful marketing and networking tool for your business.
- Once you have joined LinkedIn proceed to fill out your profile in as much detail as possible. Add professional profile details, including employment status, country, zip code, Company name and job title. Remember to use appropriate keywords related to your niche throughout your profile descriptions. The more keyword focused your descriptions are the easier it will be for people to find you based on your expertise.
- Then search for contacts associated with each email address you want to connect LinkedIn with (Yahoo, Windows Live, Gmail, AOL, and others)
- Send invitations to any other email address of friends you might want to connect with on LinkedIn.
- Add attachments for any resumes, letters of recommendation, sample documents, or other information pertinent to your profession and/or industry.
- add applications to your profile to share your business and knowledge with your LinkedIn connections. My top recommendations for applications to use are the WordPress Blog app(this pulls in your latest blog posts right to your LinkedIn profile) and the Twitter app(this pulls in your Twitter posts straight to your profile).
- Add both your past and current Employment information, Education details, Websites you own or help maintain, and a Twitter account, your Facebook Fan Page, etc…
- Create a profile headline that accurately reflects your experience and expertise that includes appropriate keywords related to your niche. This is an important step, since this primary tagline will appear next to your name when someone searches for you on the site.
- Upload a profile picture from the Edit Profile page at the top left. Choose a photo that best represents your business, and puts forth the professional image you want to portray.
- Search for people you know (by name or email address), Connect with them if they are on LinkedIn.
- Join LinkedIn groups related to your profession, niche, or industry, or create a group of your own. You can access these options by clicking on “Groups” from your main profile page. (You can join up to 50 groups so your reach to other like minded business owners is phenomenal) Once you have joined a group make sure to share your knowledge, respond to discussions, ask questions, and build relationships…this is key.
- Search for companies you might be interested in establishing a connection with, or for employees you may already know or want to connect with. You can access this option by clicking on “Companies” from your main profile page.
My number one recommendation is for you to complete your profile to 100%. This is important for many reasons…one reason is just because it looks more professional…it shows that you are a serious business owner and you are someone who follows through on projects that you start. The second reason is because it helps with your rankings within LinkedIn. The profiles that are completed to 100% tend to show up higher for their focused keywords.
Also it is really important to use target keywords within your profile. If your main business focus is social media management then make sure you use those keywords within your profile several times so that when someone does a search on LinkedIn for those qualifications you will show up within the search results.
My last tip for effective LinkedIn networking is to build your network daily. Take a few minutes everyday to add new like minded business owners to your network. A great way to do this is go to some of the groups you have joined and request to be connected to your group members. You know the people in your groups are interested in a similar business niche as you are so they are the perfect people to start building relationships with, find joint venture partners, and even new clients.
The key to using LinkedIn effectively is just like all of the other social media sites you are networking in….consistently connect with like minded individuals, connect with them by sharing your knowledge, and be active and available to build solid relationships for long lasting business growth.
I am active user of LinkedIn and I would love to connect with you. Stop by my profile and make sure to send me a request to connect with you at http://www.linkedin.com/in/themarketingmomma
To Your Success!
Kate Wilber
The Marketing Momma