How to be successful on LinkedIn: a guide
Finding and connecting with your audience is the goal of any marketing, and it’s also one of the hardest things to get right. As we at Oversite know, finding and connecting with your customers requires a stocked toolbelt, sharpened with good strategy, targeting, messaging and more. One of the tools on that belt is often LinkedIn, and for good reason. Look past the viral grandstanding and you have a highly engaged audience platform very different from the behemoth that is Meta.
But should you be on it? Let’s walk through it together.
Social media should be social
While LinkedIn is a different platform to others, it is still a social media platform that is founded on, well, being social. To be successful on LinkedIn as a brand you need to form relationships with your audience. At the beginning, this may be your immediate audience of current clients/customers, business partners and people you know are familiar with your business.
When you’re looking to broaden outside of this, send personalised connection requests to those you believe could be helpful in your business journey. This may be people in 2nd or 3rd levels of connection, outside of your current network and possibly able to expand your client fishing pond. Personalised messages should be tailored to the person, and are more likely to lead to a connection if you can highlight shared interests or goals.
When you’ve begun building your audience make sure you put time into driving engagement. After all, there’s no point having an audience if you can’t give them a show. Engagement can often be fostered by regularly sharing insightful content, commenting on other’s posts, and participating in group discussions. You can also demonstrate knowledge and value by writing articles or sharing industry updates.
Remember, consistent and meaningful interactions are key to transforming connections into lasting business relationships.
Quality over quantity
Growing a business relationship on LinkedIn takes a smart approach. It’s about building a solid pipeline, engaging with your peers, and making the right connections.
The best way to set up for success is by building relationships on genuine and quality connections. These can be honed by sharing valuable content regularly to show how your products or services can make a difference, and who they make a difference for. Leveraging content will help drive interest and establish your credibility on the platform.
It’s not just about you (surprise!)
It shouldn’t need to be said, but you’ll have a much better chance of creating quality relationships if you engage with others. There’s two ways we recommend doing this.
The first is to treat LinkedIn like an online networking event. Comment on posts, share stories, and send direct messages to build on interactions and find your community. Not only do you learn who engages with you (and likely your business), it keeps you top-of-mind. It’s the people who think of you when you’re not there that will help you open the most doors.
The second is a more automated mode that helps keep you on your toes without doing all of the grunt work. LinkedIn’s Leveraged Connections tool can automate interactions around wishing contacts happy birthday, celebrating updates they’ve made and more. It’s another tool in your belt, though be sure to send personalised messages outside of this - you don’t want to be Uncle Geoff who only messages you on your birthday but still expects your presence at any Sunday BBQ he hosts.
The little details
When you’re building your audience and doing the work to create quality connections, don’t forget your LinkedIn profile. Any person who doesn’t know you will go there first to see just who you are and whether you’re worth their precious time interacting with.
Think of your profile like your personal storefront. How do you want to present yourself? What do you want people to know about you? What are the key achievements you have made and what value do you bring to them and their network? We recommend a professional photo and an introduction description that focuses on how you help others. Where possible you want to be approachable and relatable so your new connection can see exactly how much you’re worth their time.
Consistency is key
Like any strategy, it’s most likely to succeed if you keep at it. Make adjustments as you need but ensure you are consistent in engaging with people and building your audience.
We recommend to use LinkedIn daily as a networking tool, treating each interaction as a chance to build trust and showcase your expertise. It doesn’t need to be hours every day, even a few minutes will keep you on top of things. By expanding your network and keeping up consistent, meaningful interactions, you can turn LinkedIn into a powerful platform for professional growth and business development.
