Social Media Strategy: How to Use LinkedIn
Social media is a fact-of-life for many today. But the strategic use of platforms like, for example, LinkedIn for marketing purposes is still a mystery to many across a variety of industries.
If you’ve ever wondered how to use LinkedIn more effectively to expand your professional reach, this article is for you.
Five Social Media Strategies for Using LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the fourth most popular social media platform today, but it has undergone several changes since its inception in 2003, that have, perhaps, impacted how people use LinkedIn today.
To catch up with what LinkedIn offers now, consider the following points.
- Make your profile and company page search friendly.
Did you know LinkedIn allows you to optimize your personal profile and company page for search just like search engines like Google?
On LinkedIn, you can get discovered by professionals searching LinkedIn for keywords or keyword phrases you want to be identified by. In addition to completely filling out your profile and company pages, adding images and samples of your work, strategically add keywords to your headlines, summaries, and work experience.
- Be visible and connect!
Many professionals tend to be protective of their online presence. While this is not without good cause, being visible is a better social media strategy on LinkedIn. And on LinkedIn, there are some extra settings to consider to make this happen.
To be visible to others who don’t have an existing connection to you:
- Go to “Privacy & Settings,”
- Click “Privacy,”
- Select “Profile Viewing Options,” and
- Check off the “Your Name and Headline” option.
Enabling this options opens a metaphorical door for connecting on LinkedIn.
To fully take advantage of this feature, navigate to the “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” under the “Profile” drop down to see who has looked at your profile page. Take note. If someone has viewed profile, and you’re not yet connected, connect! They’ve just been looking at your information, so start a conversation about it while it’s timely. This is what LinkedIn is for!
- Link strategically to drive traffic.
You may know you could add links to the contact section of your LinkedIn profile, but did you can also add them to your portfolio, multimedia samples, job descriptions, and more?
Adding links in these places will help drive traffic from LinkedIn to other sites that are important to your business. Link your company website and the special offers you may have featured there to drive professional traffic to relevant information that could result in important professional connections if not new customers!
- Enjoy the perks of existing LinkedIn groups or start your own!
Groups are an important feature of LinkedIn for many reasons. One of them is making new connections. Group members are able to view the profiles of other members without connections, which is important if you are strategically utilizing point two in this list. Also, and there are some caveats, but if you’re a member of the same group with someone whom you are not already connected, you can skip connecting and message them directly.
The more groups you join and participate in, the more people you can connect with and message.
While you’re engaging in other groups, another great way to strategically use LinkedIn is to create and invest in your own group. Are you an industry leader or trying to establish yourself as one? Create a group to engage fellow leaders. If you find yourself answering a lot of questions, create a group for other professionals who may have need of your wisdom.
- Engage, engage, engage!
LinkedIn was slow to adopt updates and posts, it’s true, and as a result many professionals have been slow to actively participate on LinkedIn. But now, you can share what you’re up to on LinkedIn like you can on Facebook – but on a professional level. Are you creating professional content as a part of your marketing strategy and sharing it on other social media platforms? Share it on LinkedIn. Other types of updates that are relevant to share on LinkedIn include industry news, job updates, and information about professional groups you participate in or have started.
And don’t forget about your LinkedIn company page! You can post company-related updates there, giving other professionals a reason to follow your company.
Finally, sign up for email updates, so LinkedIn posts that are important to you arrive to your inbox, reminding you to engage.
Above the Fold Media offers strategic social media services to its clients. If you’d like to learn more about leveraging social media to grow your business, learn more now or contact us today.
