The Premier Business Social Network
LinkedIn is the premier business networking site on the Internet. It’s referred to as a social network but the rules of engagement are very different to what you get on Facebook, Tumblr or Twitter.
LinkedIn has built a reputation for serious business networking. This means that posting funny pictures of your pets, something that’s perfectly acceptable on Facebook, is frowned upon.
Using LinkedIn Appropriately
People use LinkedIn to generate new business leads or find a new job. You need to look and behave professionally on LinkedIn if you’re going to benefit from it.
Just like you would optimise your On Page for your website, it’s also possible to optimise your LinkedIn profile so that you get found for your speciality. Doing so can give you a serious competitive advantage.
LinkedIn Has A Search Engine
I’d been toying with this idea for a while and then I had a light bulb moment. LinkedIn has its own search engine. Granted, it’s nothing like as sophisticated as Google’s but it’s still a search engine.
Just like Amazon has its own search engine – where you type in something that you want to buy e.g. iPhone cover, LinkedIn also ranks individual profiles according to a keyword that a user is putting in.
Up till now, I’d been using the LinkedIn search bar to find people by their full name, or adding [name] [company/location] if LinkedIn returned results showing several people with the same name.
LinkedIn is growing fast. Every second it adds 2 new users and to date there are over 330 million people on there. However, the large majority of users treat LinkedIn like an online job portal.
It started out that way, i.e. you would optimise your profile with your C.V. (resume) but in the past few years the platform has evolved.
Turn LinkedIn Into A Lead Machine
If you’re a business owner, then LinkedIn can be a goldmine for you. There’s no other business networking site that is as well respected and that has such a large database of business professionals on its books that you can connect with.
By setting up your profile correctly you can be found by key decision makers within a matter of minutes.
How To Optimise Your Profile
1. The Headline
Use keywords in your headline. Think about how others search for you. Having a generic job title like ‘Senior Executive’ at XYZ Corporate Firm isn’t going to help you get found. Senior Plumber at Joe’s Plumbing, Denver, Colorado. If you’ve won awards, have a speciality or have any USP, e.g. you’ve written a book, the headline is a good place to include it.
2. The Summary
Don’t go overboard. People that browse your profile are attracted by your headline. Unless you’re using LinkedIn purely as a means of finding a new job, you don’t want to be putting your full resume in here.
It’s only head hunters that are would be interested in going through it. Anyone that is looking for a person to fulfil a service wants to know what is in it for them.
So list the benefits of your current service and back that up with experience from a previous job if it’s relevant. Sprinkle in your keywords again but make sure that it flows naturally. Don’t keyword stuff! Whatever you put in your summary has to look professional.
3. Your Experience
In years gone past, it was fine to put your full job title down. And that still works. But here is where you have an opportunity to add your keywords in again. Get creative in this section and turn your previous job titles into relevant keywords phrases. Putting down that you were a Vice President of Marketing is a waste of online real estate. Far better to use something like Lead Generation Expert for [XYZ Corporate Firm].
4. Skills
LinkedIn allows you to use up 50 skills. Make sure you include variations of your main keyword in here. So Lead Generation Expert could also be Lead Generation Specialist, Business Consultant, Sales Strategist. If you’re stuck for ideas, try typing in your main keyword into the LinkedIn search bar and viewing the profile of other users in your industry.
5. Interests
This isn’t just about hobbies. Sure, people view this section to find out something personal about you. But this is another section where you can sprinkle in your keywords so use it wisely.
Don’t forget to grow your network!
LinkedIn shows you connections up to the 3rd degree. The larger your network, the greater your reach and the higher you’ll rank.
If you’d like to connect with me on LinkedIn, you can reach me here: http://www.linkedin.com/in/SamAdodra