Tag Archives: linkedin

RIP LinkedIN

Posted on by

ByePlease, a moment of silence for the business-to-business social media networking site LinkedIN.

You may be thinking, “Laurel, what are you talking about ?  LinkedIn’s not dead.”

But you know what? I’m predicting it’s going to die in relevance, and here’s why:

The Gloves Are Off! Facebook vs. LinkedIn

Facebook announced recently it’s jumping into the job seeker’s marketplace, which was the reason that LinkedIn came to be in the first place – so job seekers could connect with employers and vice versa.

Now, Facebook is going to start letting employers actually post and advertise jobs on the newsfeed of Facebook.

Because pretty much everyone’s on Facebook I think they could have a real impact on LinkedIn’s market share.

 

LinkedIn’s going to h – e – double hockey sticks

Hockey analogies aside, sInce LinkedIn was purchased by Microsoft I’ve been pessimistic about LinkedIn.

I don’t know about you, but my experience with Microsoft has been absolutely terrible.

It seems like their business model is going to take the LinkedIn contacts that you have and try to integrate them with the contacts that you have if you’re using Outlook, and to encourage you to continue to use Microsoft’s software.

I don’t know about your experience, but Outlook actually just, yeah, killed my computer, so I switched to Mac.

“ Microsoft buying LinkedIn makes me think they’re just going to ruin it. “

Historically, I love LinkedIn in terms of a lead generation source and to get me in front of the people that I am trying to market to, because of course, I’m in the business of helping to other businesses.

Since the acquisition, If you’ve been posting to Pulse, which is the LinkedIn blogging feature, you may have noticed that only a fraction of the people can actually see your blog posts than before.

Reach has declined, which means you’re not going to get as much exposure to your target audience as you would have before Microsoft took over.

Alignable, the rookie, might take it away!

Alignable is a relatively new social media networking site for businesses to connect with other local businesses and network within those local groups.

I’ve been on there playing around for a couple weeks now, and you know, I have to say, I really like it.

There’s an ease of use that’s there. You can promote your business for free. And so far, I’ve had a lot of success with it. Their customer service representatives have reached out to me via email and other platforms – amazing!

For these

These three points are just a few reasons LinkedIn is going to end up dying.

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Do you use LinkedIn right now for business-to-business marketing?

Are you thinking about it?

Have you been doing it in the past and not so much now?

Are you going to use Alignable?

Please weigh in with your comments below. I’d love to hear what you have to say about my prediction.

Thanks so much for checking this post out, and you can visit me on my website or YouTube for more online marketing tips at www.laurelannestark.com.

3 Tips to Grow and Enrich Your LinkedIn Network

Posted on by

building-your-linkedin-networkHaving a strong LinkedIn network is very beneficial to your professional career. It can help you land a job, learn new things and make new connections that you never thought would be possible. Although many professionals have a LinkedIn profile, many are still not taking full advantage of the social network. The following are three proven ways to grow and enrich your network on LinkedIn:

1. Go to Events & Take People for Coffee (Add people in the moment)

The most fundamental way to grow your LinkedIn network is also the most old school, but going to events gives you a chance to meet unique individuals with many different backgrounds. Instead of bombing out random add requests on LinkedIn, make real human connections first, before adding anyone. Once you’ve made the initial interaction, consider taking the new connection for coffee. Even if the individual doesn’t work in your field, bring a list of random questions as there is still likely something to be learned or another networking opportunity may present itself. An under-utilized strategy for events and coffee meetings is bringing out your smart phone and adding people with the LinkedIn app on the spot. That way you won’t forget, or have to remember cards or emails.

2. Engage with Your Network (comment, like, share, endorse or recommend)

Similar to all other social networks, you cannot expect anyone to engage with you if you aren’t engaging first. More active members of your network will likely share original composition posts which are great for commenting on with your thoughts, or sharing the post with your network. These posts will allow you to get your profile out to more people, in a shorter amount of time. Less active networks will share trending articles, memes, videos or inspirational messages and liking or commenting on these types of posts will show your support for the author but it can also open up the opportunity for other LinkedIn members to see your profile and connect. If you’ve worked directly with a connection for some time, consider endorsing one or a few of their skills and if you’d really like to show your support, write a personal recommendation. These are all ways to ensure your profile stays active and relevant.

3. Share Original Content

Once you feel comfortable with the size and engagement of your network, it’s time to start
sharing original content. The best way to share your ideas is with LinkedIn’s publisher feature. Don’t focus on the length so much as the content on the page. Write about topics you have first hand experience in and do your best to provide real world value that can be applied by anyone who has the drive. Adapt your content overtime as you may notice that some topics tend to be more popular than others. Interviewing a colleague or friend is a great place to start if you can’t come up with any unique ideas to write about. If you already have some writing experience, you can use these posts to showcase your knowledge, expertise or unique skills, all of which will show well to your network.

In a world where “who knows you” is often more important than “who you know” growing and enriching your LinkedIn network can take you a long way professionally. With a few simple steps, you’ll see your network grow exponentially and over time the engagement will increase and the possibilities for the future will be endless.

“There’ll always be serendipity involved in discovery.”
– Jeff Bezos

Marketing Strategy: Have A Blog? Become A Publisher on LinkedIn

Posted on by

audienceDo you write a blog for your business? Have you ever wondered how to get more exposure for your blog and/or website? Do you want to expand the reach of your message? For the sake of your marketing strategy and growing your business you should have answered ‘yes’ to all of these questions. That’s why it’s worth learning more about Pulse, which is LinkedIn’s Publishing platform.

In 2013, the social media platform LinkedIn purchased Pulse, a news reader app, for $90 million. At first, LinkedIn planned to use this app on its platform as a news aggregator and make LinkedIn a one-stop-shop for both networking and catching up on industry news. LinkedIn even compiled its own list of “Influencers” who wrote on specific industries and topics, and who could be followed individually by LinkedIn users. For over a year the only way you could become a contributor to Pulse was if you were one of these named influencers or if you wrote for a major news source.

However, the rules changed in February 2014 when LinkedIn opened up contribution to Pulse to all LinkedIn users, and essentially created it’s own blogging platform. This is BIG news for business owners. “Why”, you ask? Well, consider this: LinkedIn’s latest active user count is now northwards of 347 million users. While your published article may not come even close to reaching that many eyes, it’s still exciting to think about how many new eyes you can reach, and how reaching those people can help grow your business.

Still not convinced? Then consider these 5 additional benefits to publishing on LinkedIn:

Reach A Wider Audience & Create More Leads

Remember the 347 million? LinkedIn Publishing allows you to expand your reach beyond just your connections. It connects you to everyone. Take advantage of reaching this different, but wider audience in order to attract new business.

Increase Brand Awareness

Unfortunately, a lot of times people may be unaware of your company or brand. Especially if you are new to the game or operate in a smaller niche market. Publishing on LinkedIn can help you with this, as it will allow you to expand your network and share your story with more people. It will allow you the opportunity to be seen by new eyes, and potentially new clients.

Drive Traffic To Your Website

Like any blogging platform, you can add images and links to your article. This gives you the perfect opportunity to drive traffic back to your website. You could be talking about a product or a service, or just asking people to connect with you if they want more information. Any way you look at it, adding links to your article that drive people back to your website doesn’t just add value, it’s savvy marketing.

Build Credibility & Become An Industry Influencer

Share your industry knowledge and experience with your audience. Show them what you know and how you can help. Add value by giving them facts & figures, tips & tricks. Become the voice that people want to listen to and you will be well on your way to becoming an industry influencer, and a trusted source of information.

Create Engagement With A New Community

When you publish a piece of writing on LinkedIn, people are already geared up for engagement. That’s why they’re there! They want to connect and create conversation. That’s why you shouldn’t be surprised if you get a comment or two on your articles. And if this happens, be prepared to comment back. This is the perfect opportunity to create discussion and show your human side. Let people connect with the face behind the business.

There are many benefits to publishing on LinkedIn. However, as when writing to your blog, remember who your audience is. Remember that LinkedIn is geared towards business professionals, people who want to gain industry knowledge, or those who want to grow their connections. Keep your audience in mind, and also the purpose of your writing. Short articles can do well on LinkedIn, as long as they provide a clear and engaging message. Long articles can also do well, it’s really up to you and your writing style. The point is that it’s an additional platform for you to get your message across and to reach an audience that you may not have necessarily reached before. It’s a great opportunity for you and your business, and for your marketing strategy, it’s a no brainer.

8 Steps You Need to Take to Rock LinkedIn Like a Pro

Posted on by

At over 300 million users in over 200 countries, it’s no wonder that LinkedIn is becoming the first stop online for many business professionals. It not only helps you to expand your network online, but it also allows you to form closer relationships with those that you network with offline. With the ability to connect, endorse, recommend, comment, and share all things business related, it’s a must-have for any professional business person or company.

That said, if you’re wanting to learn more about how to be a LinkedIn rock-star, look no further. We have created a fun video for you that outlines the 8 Steps You Need to Take to Rock LinkedIn Like a Pro.

We hope you enjoyed!

Why Your Company Needs an Optimized Social Media Presence

Posted on by

new-media-group-optimized-social-mediaGone are the days of needing the newspaper or the radio to tell the world about your ideas. You no longer need press releases or the wire to break exciting news to your customers, and you no longer need a TV to publicize videos and online commercials. The only thing you need is a social media strategy.

Plain and simple, your business needs to be online; if you’re not sharing, tweeting or posting, you’re falling behind. Social media has taken the world of information by storm – we’re able to watch events unfold in real time, and see the opinions of people from all over the world with just a couple of clicks. Your business is able to take advantage of these tools in order to gain more followers, develop your reputation, improve your SEO, and gain direct access into the thoughts and values of your customers.

Here are four reasons why your business needs an optimized social media strategy:

1.    Extend Your Reach

Social media is arguably the largest method of communication – it gives you access to hundreds of millions of people! Whether it’s on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+, you have the chance to connect with people of all ages, from all around the world. Some great ways to do this are to start following or “liking” different companies that are in the same industry, or even pick a few that are just for interest! The social media world is a give-and-take process; the more you share and follow the more you’ll get in return.

2.    Direct Access

Customer feedback is the most valuable insight for a business. You get to learn what your customers are looking for and how you can improve for next time! With social media you’re able to make that feedback turn into a conversation, and show that individual as well as many other potential customers, how dedicated you are to working with them to meet their needs.

3.    Thought Leadership

Having a business blog or generating an opportunity to be a guest writer on someone else’s blog is a great way to improve your business’ reputation. People know that real people run businesses, and they want to know the thoughts and values of those top executives. Writing out your ideas can turn your status towards thought leadership, and you’ll start being the source that people go to for details about your industry. Whether you’re in finance, construction, jewellery making – you name it! Show the world your expertise over your social media channels.

4.    SEO

Lastly, from a technical standpoint, social media is a quick way to improve how you rank in search engines listings. It grants you more links and pages, and the more your content gets shared the more opportunities you will have to show up through searches. There are also a number of very insightful programs that are able to run analytics on your accounts to see how your influence is growing, and where you’re seeing the most success.

With the number of individuals using social media to pick where they shop, eat, buy, visit, etc., you will be left in the dust without an online presence. Take the time to build out a strategy that will show the world your thoughts, and then build a system so that you can show customers your commitment to them through responses. Social media is invaluable, and could be just the step that your company was looking for to take it to the next level.

7 Ways Successful People Use LinkedIN

Posted on by

Throwback!! I filmed this video about Marketing your business using LinkedIN over 2 years ago.

While I am happy to report both better hair days and an improved filming technique, the recommendations and information I provided are still true today.

LinkedIN remains one of THE most effective places for business owners to bolster credibility, build community and generate leads.

5 reasons you need to be on LinkedIN

  1. LinkedIN is THE social network for business only use
  2. LinkedIN is being used by your future customers- currently over 238 million users
  3. LinkedIN profiles are critical to reputation management– they usually show up prior to any other website when searching someone’s name
  4. LinkedIN can be used to get on Google- profiles display on search engines for target keywords- they can be optimized.
  5. LinkedIN users are affluent- the median household income of a user is $100,000

7 Ways Successful People Use LinkedIN

  1. To solicit endorsements– boost credibility and your reputation
  2. To stay in touch with prospects, clients, suppliers and any other business contacts
  3. To generate leads through an optimized profile and company page
  4. To find out who knows the person you’re interested in contacting, and asking for that introduction.
  5. To showcase portfolio pieces or projects visually or through multimedia
  6. To make new connections by contributing to conversations in industry groups
  7. To listen to prospects and clients and hear what’s important to them

In fact, it’s become even more effective than it used to be.

Recently, LinkedIN introduced In Page Analytics- which is a fancy way of saying that now you can see exactly how your audience reacts to your posts- in real time.

This means, less guessing and more knowing what resonates with your target market.

linkedIN-in-page-analytics

 

Ebook_Linkedin_mock4Do you want to learn exactly how to leverage LinkedIN to generate leads? Grab your copy of my free workbook here: