Social Marketing – Making LinkedIn Work For Your Business
You want to be known as a thought leader, and/or a subject matter expert, and/or a connector in Linked In. Regular communication within this space will help you space, and asking questions regularly can help increase brand awareness for you and your company.
Ask questions your target audience would be interested in. As they read the question, or at least your profile, they should know you are in sales, so don’t try to hide that. Be genuine, and ask questions that they either can answer or would want to know the answers to.
Answer questions your target audience would be interested in. Sometimes it might be easier to do this, since you don’t have to think of new questions on a regular basis. Think about how others will perceive you based on your answer. Answer comprehensively, kindly, and with expertise. Share information and recommend other experts, including your clients and prospects. Get questions asked in answers via RSS so you learn about opportunities to chime in without even logging in to Linked In.
Join Groups where your audience is, or where their contacts are. Participate in Group Discussions, but more importantly, browse through group members to look for contacts to add to your network and communicate with. Send group members messages with clear, concise messaging—focus on the relationship, but let them know why you want to connect and what you have in mind.
Set up the RSS feed so you get Network Updates delivered to you as soon as possible. Reach out to your contacts as they have news, congratulating them on accomplishments, asking them about changes, commenting on new connections, etc. Use the Network Updates as an opportunity to reconnect and further brand yourself.
Consider advertising on Linked In. Their new advertising feature gives you the ability to choose certain types of Linked In users. It’s comparatively expensive, but the ads go in front of a demographic that is supposedly above average in regard to income, professional status, and decision-making power.
