Once upon a time, LinkedIn was only known as a job-related social media platform "for professionals". Now, with over 700 million active users, LinkedIn has become the second most used platform for B2B marketers.
As a small business owner, LinkedIn marketing should be another priority on top of having an active Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram presence. However, in order to do that, you will need to understand how LinkedIn works to make sure your presence is felt.
Unlike with other social media platforms, obvious sales tactics and spamming your business will not work on LinkedIn. People are not expecting you to sell products or services on LinkedIn. What they are interested in is the information and expertise you have to share. Marketing on LinkedIn requires a different approach if you want to get results.
To help you add one of the world's largest professional networks to your marketing toolkit, we've listed some tips and tricks to help you scale your business.
1. Complete Your LinkedIn Company Profile
Did you know that Company Pages with complete profiles receive up to two times more visitors than those with incomplete page profiles?
For a complete profile, it’s essential to have the following items:
- Logo
- Company description
- Website URL
- Company Size
- Industry
- Company Type
- Location
To fully complete your LinkedIn profile, head to your Company Page and select “Overview.” There you can upload a high-resolution image for your company logo as well as a cover image that represents your brand. Along with that, filling out the "About Us" section will provide your visitors with more information.
Beneath the "About Us" section, you will find more fields to complete your profile by entering your website URL, company size, industry, type, and location. All of this helps make your business' LinkedIn profile look more legitimate and professional, giving potential customers the opportunity to connect with you.
2. Get A Custom URL.
As part of your LinkedIn marketing package, you can claim a custom URL for your business. This makes it easier for people to remember your brand if they want to contact you, especially when they search for your company online. This is especially useful in the B2B sector where people use LinkedIn regularly to learn more about a business.
3. High-Quality Content = High-Quality Returns
Content is king and the more you post, the more likely you are to get tangible results for your business. LinkedIn helps improve their user experience by integrating content natively into their platform, videos included. All content you post should accomplish either of the following goals: teach people to solve a problem or how to do their job better.
Not only will this make you become a thought leader in your space, it will lead to more business by delivering more value to your customers.
It is also important to brand your LinkedIn profile the same way as your website and other social media accounts for consistency. This includes imagery, colours, content tone, and more.
4. Create A Regular Posting Schedule
According to LinkedIn, businesses that post at least once per month gain followers 6X faster than those that don’t. However, you should aim to post at least once per week to keep your followers engaged. To help you post consistently, create a scheduling template so that you can easily plan your posts each week.
We’ve found that LinkedIn content performs really well if you include a descriptive caption, eye-catching images, and relevant hashtags. As a bonus, you can add emojis, questions, and bullet points to switch up the look and feel of your content.
5. Every Connection Can Lead To A Business Relationship.
LinkedIn is a social network for professionals to connect with other professionals. As a business owner, you can connect with prospects, partners, and other business owners to reach your goals. You will also be able to reach your target market with the ability to nurture them through the buyer's journey.
Once these connections have been strengthened, you can decide which should be developed into business relationships and which can continue as connections.
6. Join Groups And Stay Active.
By joining relevant groups, you will be able to participate in relevant discussions to better reach your target demographic and learn what your competition is doing. Groups are an excellent way to listen to what your audience is talking about and answer any questions they might have. On top of that, being a part of a group gives you access to more connections than ever before.
7. Boost Your Email Marketing List.
Linkedin lets you communicate with fifty people at a time, a feature that should be taken advantage of to increase your email list. You can include a link for them to sign up for your emails directly along with a special offer. Offer to look at something of value for them in order to generate goodwill and get some replies.
8. Target Specific Segments With Sponsored Posts
Unlike other social media platforms, LinkedIn offers a very specialized advertising platform that is unparalleled. You can zero in on the exact industry, company size, and job roles to reach the people who typically buy your products or services.
For example, if you are selling translation software to small businesses in Canada, you can set your campaigns to only show for businesses with under 100 employees, that are based in Canada, and only to executives at those companies.
9. Promote your Company Page Beyond LinkedIn
A LinkedIn marketing strategy on its own will not get you results. It is essential to promote your presence across different channels in order to maximize your growth.
For example, have a link to your LinkedIn profile in your marketing communications, email signatures, blog posts, and more. You can also add a LinkedIn “Follow” button to your website and make it easy for people to share content at any point throughout their reading experience. By adding a LinkedIn “Follow” button to your landing pages or using sticky social media sharing buttons in your blog posts, you set yourself up for long-term success.
LinkedIn is an untapped market for many small business owners. As one of the top digital marketing service providers in Toronto, Webware.io wants to help you take advantage of every tool there is to help you grow your business.
If you’re a small business owner and know that you need to take advantage of social media platforms like LinkedIn, but don’t have the time to learn and manage these tools on your own, we can help you. Webware.io gives you the expertise, tools, and support to help your business navigate your digital channels. To learn more about our services and how we can help maximize your business’ exposure online, please click here.
If you have any questions about how we can help with your digital marketing needs, we’d love to hear from you. Please contact our experts here.
