LinkedIn is, without question, the most powerful B2B social media platform available today. What many people still see as a glorified Curriculum Vitae, is in actual fact a very powerful marketing tool – in the right hands.
In this article, we’re going to share 5 powerful tips for building strong and valuable relationships on LinkedIn.
1. Know your niche or have a very clearly defined product / value proposition
Many people swear by niching down. For example, if writing is your gift, choosing a specific industry to write for can be very powerful indeed.
That being said, you don’t necessarily need a specific niche to succeed – however, you do need a very clear product / value proposition.
Whether it’s your niche or your specialist service, you need a flag that you can wave so that your audience can clearly define who you are and what it is that you do.
Discover that and you’ll be off to an excellent start.
2. Know your audience
Next, as you might have guessed, is all about knowing who your audience is. You have a certain set of skills that you wish to leverage for cash. Now, who most needs the skills that you have to offer?
When you know exactly who your ideal customer is, this entire process becomes so much easier – if not practically effortless. This is because you can effectively tune out the rest of the world and dial your messaging in to resonate with a very specific type of person, thus saving you an awful lot of time.
3. Optimise your profile accordingly
You’ve got your niche / product; you’ve got your audience; now you need to optimise your profile to reflect that.
Remember, LinkedIn isn’t a glorified CV – it’s a landing page. So, optimise your profile as though it’s a sales funnel.
- Clearly defined headline.
- High-res profile photo.
- Well-designed cover photo.
- Populate your profile with audience pain points and your resolution.
4. Post consistently
If you can, post every single day. Do so consistently and offer high-value information on your specific area of expertise and demonstrate your authority.
If you are constantly posting on set days and at set times, you will train the LI algorithm to put your posts in front of even more people.
LinkedIn rewards interaction. Show up and give your audience the information they need!
5. Engage
Just as you should post every single day, you should also be commenting on other peoples posts. Spend 20-minutes or so a day going through your newsfeed and adding value to other posts.
Remember, don’t just post any old rubbish. Add genuine value. Take the information they have provided, then expand on it with your own experiences.
This is a guaranteed process for onboarding more followers and growing your audience.
Final thoughts
It really is as simple as that:
- Define your niche / value proposition.
- Know your audience.
- Perfect your profile.
- Post high-value content every day (or as consistently as possible).
- Dedicate lots of time to engaging with other users in your industry.
That’s it. If you commit to the above 5 points, your audience will invariably grow and you will get inbound leads because you are consistently demonstrating your expertise on a daily basis.
Of course, it’s all very much easier said than done. The fact is, finding the time to produce content and regularly engage is a job in itself, so it may be worth hiring a social media marketing agency to outsource these requirements to.
Think of it like outsourcing your accounting requirements to a qualified bookkeeper – it’s not so dissimilar.
In any case, we hope you’ve found this article helpful and wish you the best of luck!
