A few weeks back I created a new series on The A Dot Blog that outlines tips to help businesses bolster their social media presence across various platforms. If you missed the past two posts, you can view them here: Social Media Tips for Facebook & Social Media Tips for Twitter.

In today’s post I will tackle a very popular social media platform among professionals that is often overlooked by businesses who are considering where to spend their marketing efforts online. You may have guessed it — I’m talking about LinkedIn.

Did you know that LinkedIn’s user base exceeds 450 million users and that its average number of users is roughly 105 million per month? Amazing!

Here are a few more LinkedIn stats to consider:

• There are roughly 40 million students & recent graduates on LinkedIn
• The majority of users on LinkedIn are men (57%)
• 40% of LinkedIn users visit LinkedIn daily
• 2 new LinkedIn accounts are created every second

There’s no wonder why 79% of business-to-business marketers view LinkedIn as an effective source for generating leads!

If you’re considering using LinkedIn to market your product or service offerings, the following tips can aid in your efforts!

• Focus on your own profile. Make sure that before you create your company’s LinkedIn page you spend time filling out your own profile first. Why? When your name is featured on your company LinkedIn page, people will likely check out your profile to learn more about the role you hold in your business. Be sure to add skills, achievements, company milestones, etc. — basically anything that you want others to know about YOU and anything that sets you apart from the rest!
• Build your company page. Be accurate and thorough when creating your company’s LinkedIn page. Boast about your products/services. Let potential customers understand why your business is better than the rest. Link your team members’ profiles to your company page so that viewers can have a “behind the scenes” look at who is a part of your business and how they’re championing your brand.
• Claim your custom URL. When you first create your company page, you will be assigned a random URL containing numbers. Be sure to edit your URL and choose one that better matches your brand. If possible, use your business’ name. This will ensure your page appears in searches both on and off LinkedIn. Plus, it’s easier for you and others to remember.
• Get your team on board. Encourage your own employees to create a LinkedIn profile, fill out pertinent information, follow your LinkedIn company page, and share your brand’s content frequently.
• Keywords are key. Be sure to fill out your company page with keywords that match your product/service, business, industry, target market, etc. This will increase the likelihood of your page being listed in search results.
• Share your LinkedIn url every where. Link your company page to your website, email signature, other social media accounts, marketing materials & anywhere else you can think of to help grow your company’s following. Don’t be afraid to search & connect with your current customers on LinkedIn, too.
• Post engaging content. Stand out in the crowd by using images that contain faces and evoke some sort of emotion — these types of images are what people are naturally drawn to. When your followers like, comment & share your content, their connections see this activity, which increases both the reach of your messages and the chance to gain more followers.
• Interact with others. Be sure to also share, like, and comment on any other content that you find interesting and aligns with your brand and industry.
• Cross-post/promote content. Share LinkedIn articles that you publish to your company page or personal LinkedIn profile on other social media accounts and vice versa. This will help increase visits to your profile/company page, and will ensure you’re sharing great, consistent content across all social platforms.
• Sponsor your best pieces. Have content that is performing very well? Consider sponsoring it directly on LinkedIn. There are various advertising outcomes you can achieve when sponsoring your content that depends on the parameters you select; such outcomes include increasing your company page’s follower base, getting your updates seen by your target market across every device, directing your audience to your website, and more. Learn about sponsoring your content on LinkedIn by clicking here.

That concludes this series! I hope you have gained some valuable knowledge about social media marketing for your business! Which platform (or combination of platforms) works best for your business? Let me know in the comments section below!

Until next time…