labor shortage

By Natalie Smith

More than 300 million users around the world make LinkedIn the largest social network for B2B professionals. LinkedIn’s popularity and its focus on business attract the attention of recruiters and job hunters, but the site also attracts marketers who want to spread the word about available products and services to businesses and professional customers.

How can you make use of such a platform? The following tips will help companies and businesses like yours benefit from using LinkedIn for marketing purposes So, here is what you can do, step by step.

Make a Lot of Connections

Harnessing LinkedIn for your business requires that you build as many connections as possible with the site’s users. You can connect with company profiles as well as with the individual pages of executives, managers, and employees. The point is – as you build relationships, you will not only have the opportunity to promote your products or services, but also cooperate with others. For example, you can join forces with other firms to match products that create synergy and exchange client referrals.

Furthermore, you can expand the presence of your brand on LinkedIn by encouraging your employees to create accounts and list you as their employer. Media personalities and employees also use LinkedIn, so you can connect with them as part of your public relations campaign. Features such as invitations, InMail, and People Search can help you find and connect with decision makers as well as potential suppliers and partners. You can also attract relevant users by participating in LinkedIn Answers.

Create a Great Profile

When LinkedIn users receive a connection request, the first thing they see is your profile. Make sure you have an up-to-date, complete profile with a professional photo or your logo. It should also include a concise description of your business, including its physical address and website URL. It is important that your profile presents all the relevant information about your brand.

Optimize your profile with keywords that have relevance to your business, so people can find your company using the LinkedIn search tool. Use bold headlines and other formatting tools to make your profile easy to read and to highlight vital information. Your profile can include polls, images, videos and presentations, so make it a diverse, exciting and fun place to visit.

Use Recommendations

LinkedIn has a feature that lets users review and recommend one another. When other users recommend you, their recommendations appear in your user profile. Attract recommendations by listing the products and services you offer as you show off your business. You can also request recommendations from your connections.

Recommendations carry a lot of weight with the LinkedIn community because they come from third parties who have had experience with your firm. Of course, you can improve your chance of receiving recommendations by providing high-quality products and services and backing them up with customer service excellence. This is very important for your marketing efforts.

Provide Valuable Content

As with other social networks, posting high-quality content on your page will increase the value of your LinkedIn presence and enhance your marketing strategy. When you create content, try to think outside the box and regard LinkedIn as an ed-tech tool. Why? LinkedIn users have a business mindset and you should supply them with relevant information instead of forcefully trying to sell. Marketing is no longer about that.

So, prime the pump with educational content that leads businesses to realize that they need your brand. Post links to trending articles and industry news, share valuable tips, give advice, and so on. When you educate others like that, you establish yourself as a thought leader that people gravitate to.

You can make your effort more effective by configuring LinkedIn to display content published on your blog. You can also cross-post the content you post to LinkedIn on other websites. Don’t forget to share content from other sources as you engage the LinkedIn community. Finally, make sure you visit and comment on other LinkedIn profile pages to demonstrate that you prioritize your desire to help others above your sales effort.

Use LinkedIn Ads

LinkedIn advertising can expand the reach of your brand while targeting a precise audience – it can send traffic to your website and generate leads, customers, and sales. What you can also do is assess the effectiveness of your advertising campaigns using LinkedIn’s analytics.

Use LinkedIn’s self-service advertising tools to create a headline, make your appeal, and add a link. Remember that many of the site’s users ignore ads. Grab your audience’s attention by offering value such as a useful video or blog post that will justify their responding to your ad.

LinkedIn has a lot to offer you as a marketing tool. Start by creating a fantastic profile, building relationships, and participating in the community. Next, enhance your LinkedIn profile with valuable content that establishes your firm as an authority in your industry and use LinkedIn’s advertising services to expand your audience. Stay active on LinkedIn and you will open the doors to many surprising opportunities.

Natalie Smith is a freelance writer and copywriter from Seattle. She follows topics such as content marketing, social media, and business is general. You can reach her @Natalie Smith.