LINKEDIN BASICS FOR BUSINESS

THE PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL NETWORK

PRESENTATION HERB LAWRENCE

VICE PRESIDENT GOVERNMENT GUARANTY LENDING

FIRST COMMUNITY BANK

WHAT IS LINKEDIN?

• 330+ MILLION PROFESSIONALS IN 200 + COUNTRIES!

• 3 MILLION COMPANY PAGES

• EXECUTIVES FROM ALL FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES ARE MEMBERS OF THIS NETWORK.

• RELATIONSHIPS MATTER – CONNECT WITH PEOPLE IN A NEW WAY TO PROLONG PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS & TO CREATE NEW ONES VIA YOUR EXISTING CONTACTS!

BASICS TO COVER

• IS LINKED IN RIGHT OR YOUR BUSINESS?

• PROFILES

• CONTENT – POSTING

• CONNECTIONS – FINDING FOLKS

• COMPANY PAGES

• PULSE – PUBLISHING WITH LINKEDIN

• TOOLS

WHY ONLINE MATTERS

WHAT ARE MY GOALS?

• WHY AM I HERE?

• WHAT DO I WANT TO ACCOMPLISH WITH LINKEDIN?

• WHAT IS MY “VALUE PROPOSITION?

• HOW ARE OTHERS USING LI IN MY INDUSTRY?

• HOW MUCH TIME TO DEDICATE?

• HOW DOES LINKEDIN FIT INTO MY OVERALL MARKETING PLAN?

FIRST THINGS FIRST – JOIN LINKEDIN

• HTTP://WWW.LINKEDIN.COM

• HAVE YOUR RECENT RESUME READY!

• COMPANY NAMES, DATES, EDUCATION

• SUMMARY OF EXPERIENCE GAINED AT EACH JOB OR SCHOOL!

• A PROFESSIONAL HEADSHOT, OR RECOGNIZABLE PHOTO!

• DON’T BE TOO CASUAL WITH THIS PHOTO, THIS IS A PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL NETWORK– NOT FACEBOOK.

CREATE A STRONG PROFILE

PROFILE COMPLETENESS:WHAT YOU NEED TO GET 100%

• CURRENT POSITION

• AT LEAST: 2 PAST POSITIONS

• YOUR EDUCATION

• PROFILE SUMMARY – A SHORT PARAGRAPH ABOUT YOURSELF & PROFESSIONAL ASPIRATIONS! (REMEMBER YOUR KEYWORDS!)

• PROFILE PHOTO – NO BABIES, NO PARTYING. KEEP IT PROFESSIONAL (HEADSHOTS WORK BEST!)

• YOUR SPECIALTIES - HELPS FOR ENDORSEMENTS!

• AT LEAST: 3 LINKEDIN RECOMMENDATIONS

CONNECTIONS ARE EXPONENTIAL!

FINDING CONNECTIONS

• SEARCH FOR PEOPLE.

• IMPORT E-MAIL ADDRESS BOOK

• INVITE PEOPLE TO CONNECT WITH YOU ON LINKEDIN.

• START WITH YOUR COMMUNITY – SEARCH FOR YOUR PROFESSIONAL CIRCLE FIRST.

• INTRODUCE YOURSELF – SEND MESSAGES TO MEMBERS OF YOUR INDUSTRY OR COMMUNITY THAT YOU HAVE YET TO MEET.

SHARE YOUR LINKEDIN URL

• SHARE YOUR PRESENCE ON LINKEDIN ON YOUR BUSINESS CARDS – THIS A GREAT WAY TO BUILD YOUR CONNECTIONS ONLINE & MEET NEW CONTACTS.

• REACH OUT TO YOUR CLIENTS IN A PROFESSIONAL WAY – FACEBOOK IS GREAT FOR BUILDING A CASUAL RELATIONSHIP, BUT FOR BUSINESS PEOPLE LINKEDIN CAN WORK BETTER!

• YOUR LINKEDIN URL IS LOCATED: ON YOUR PROFILE – UNDER EDUCATION & RECOMMENDATIONS. YOU CAN EDIT YOUR URL TO BE EASY TO REMEMBER!

SHARE ON LINKEDIN BUTTON

STATUS UPDATES: WHAT SHOULD YOU SHARE?

• LATEST PROJECTS OR EVENTS YOU ARE SHOWING

• YOUR LATEST SPECIALS, DEALS OR NEWS

• TIPS FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS/SUPPORT INFO

• LINKS TO YOUR BUSINESS ONLINE:

• FACEBOOK PAGE

• TWITTER ACCOUNT

• WEBSITE

UPDATE AROUND 2-4 TIMES A DAY –

HOOTSUITE IS AN AWESOME TOOL FOR FEEDING POSTS.

WHAT IS GOOD CONTENT

• EDUCATES

• INFORMS

• ENTERTAINS

• PROVIDES VALUE

• BUILDS TRUST

• CREATES RELATIONSHIPS…THEN

• SELLS……

WHY GOOD CONTENT MATTERS

HOW TO SPREAD CONTENT

• VIDEO

• IMAGES, PICTURES –

• ARTICLES

• INFOGRAPHICS

• EBOOKS/WHITE PAPERS

• WEBINARS

• PODCASTS

BEST TIME TO POST ON LINKEDIN

• WEEKDAYS DURING BUSINESS HOURS, SPECIFICALLY:

• TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, THURSDAY

• MOST CLICKS & SHARES

TUESDAYS 10-11 AM

• BEST TIME OF DAY: 7-8 AM AND 5-6 PM

COMPANY PROFILES• FOLLOW OTHER COMPANIES – LOCAL, INDUSTRY, OR

PARTNERS.

• SEARCH FOR JONESBORO, PARAGOULD, MEMPHIS COMPANIES WHO ARE ALREADY SET UP ON LINKEDIN.

• SET-UP YOUR OWN COMPANY PROFILE- (ONLY ONE PERSON NEEDS TO DO THIS!)

• GET YOUR EMPLOYEES WHO ARE ACTIVE ON LINKEDIN INVOLVED WITH THE COMPANY PROFILE!

COMPANY PAGE

SETTING UP YOUR COMPANY PAGE

• BE SURE YOU READ THE DIRECTIONS!

• USE YOUR WORK EMAIL

• YOU DO NOT WANT TO ATTACH A PERSONAL EMAIL TO THE COMPANY PROFILE (WHY? NO ONE ELSE IN THE COMPANY CAN LIST IT.)

• SHRINK YOUR LOGO – 100X60 PIXELS

• PICK THE BEST COMPANY TYPE

• BE HONEST ABOUT THE SIZE!

DON’T FORGET …• KEYWORDS, KEYWORDS, KEYWORDS!

• COMPANY SPECIALTIES ARE REALLY IMPORTANT!

• DISCUSS WITH YOUR OWNER & FELLOW EMPLOYEES WHAT YOUR COMPANY DESCRIPTION SHOULD BE!

• BE DIRECT, PROFESSIONAL & SIMPLE!

• ITS LIKE A FIRST IMPRESSION- MAKE IT COUNT!

PULSE

DON’T GIVE UP!

• DON’T JUST CREATE A PROFILE – GET INVOLVED WITH GROUP CONVERSATIONS, ACTIVELY ADD YOUR CONTACTS TO LINKEDIN & RESPOND TO RECOMMENDATION REQUESTS OR MESSAGES!

• SEEK OUT THOSE WHO WOULD RECOMMEND YOU, TOO!

• UPDATE YOUR LINKEDIN STATUS– SHARE YOUR PROFESSIONAL NEWS!

• EXAMPLE: REAL ESTATE AGENT LISTS A NEW HOME – SHARE THE DETAILS! YOUR CONNECTIONS MAY BE MORE LIKELY TO BUY A HOME FROM SOMEONE THEY KNOW THAN A COMPLETE STRANGER!

TOOLS TO SAVE TIME

• HOOTSUITE.COM

• BUFFER.COM

READ ALL ABOUT THESE AND OTHER SCHEDULING TOOLS AT OUR STORIFY ARTICLE “SCHEDULING TOOLS FOR BEGINNERS”

SUMMER READING

• HUBSPOT HOW TO MASTER CONTENT MARKETING ON LINKEDIN

• PROFILES 6 LINKEDIN TIPS TO MAKE YOUR PROFILE POP

• COMPANY PAGES 4 ADVANCED TIPS TO OPTIMIZE YOUR COMPANY PAGE

• PULSE HOW TO USE PUBLISHER TO GET MORE VISIBILITY

• GROUPS 3 WAYS TO GENERATE LEADS WITH GROUPS

• ETIQUETTE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO LINKEDIN ETIQUETTE

LET’S TAKE A LOOK AT LINKEDIN!

• HTTP://WWW.LINKEDIN.COM