3 common mistakes executives make on LinkedIn

Running a company, whatever its size, has changed. Executives, CEO’s, owners of SME’s all need to have a voice. Companies need a human face for the benefit of their customers and for their employees.?

What better place to establish that voice than the largest worldwide networking platform: LinkedIn?

Whether you have a staff of 2, or 2 million, you can leverage LinkedIn to bring huge benefits to your company and also to you as an individual. It really is a win-win situation.

During my research for my article “Why should executives use LinkedIn” https://sarahclaysocial.com/why-should-executives-be-on-linkedin-in-2022/

I came across many LinkedIn profiles. What I saw was that many business owners and executives seem to make the same mistakes over and over.

I categorised them under 3 main headings

1. Positioning

2. Showing authority/educating

3. Outreach & Reach out

#1 Positioning

When people visit your LinkedIn profile what do they see? Is it polished and complete? Does it tell them who you are, what you do?

Your LinkedIn profile is ‘prime real estate’. It’s your shop window, – and I’m talking Gucci here, not Primark or Walmart!?

It’s where people spend time getting to know you before they get in touch. A profile has many sections to it so it’s vital that they’re all completed. It needs to ‘sell’ you as the best in the business. It’s the only time on LinkedIn where it’s really acceptable to talk about your wins and achievements. You can use it to talk about how you’ve succeeded and made a difference in your work life. You can use it to tell your story.

You also have visual aids in your profile - don't underestimate their value. Your photo, your cover story and your banner or background image can be used to tell your story and help your audience come closer to you. Bringing them closer will help build up that all-important ‘trust’ needed for business relationships. (Please help yourself to my free profile builder here https://sarahclaysocial.com/linkedin-profile_pdf/)

As the head of your company, it’s important that your audience trust YOU. It is more important now than ever in our history that the faces of our corporations positively represent their organisations. It's the leaders where audiences look for the company ethos and values. People work with people.

#2 Showing authority and knowledge

If you can show your depth of knowledge in your industry, people will begin to place you as an expert in your field, as 'the voice'. Publishing articles, short and longer posts highlighting the knowledge that you have built up with experience and time, will position you and increase your reach.

Becoming the go-to expert will place you as a highly desirable asset. That in turn will make the goods and or services of your company more highly desirable. This, could lead to an upturn in sales and/or prices as the products or services your company offers become more desirable.?Another off-shoot of this is that showing your knowledge and expertise in your area of work could lead to offers of employment from other companies giving you leverage to negotiate with your current firm.

#3 Outreach and Reach Out

With over 800 million people using LinkedIn, reaching out to new people to grow your connections can seem like a daunting task.

LinkedIn has an amazing outreach or ‘search’ tool, which, if used correctly, can help you target your ideal audience with lightening efficiency. Rather than simply communicating with the people you know, true LinkedIn success comes when you step out of your comfort zone and find new people and companies to introduce yourself to and converse with.

By creating a strategy to target only relevant people and industries, you can reach potential customers, collaborators and recruits all over the world. All from the comfort of your home office and without investing a penny or a cent.

Commenting on other people’s posts is a great way of gently introducing yourself to your target audience. Add your thought leadership as comments on other people’s posts. Don’t ‘show off’ but contribute to the conversation and add value. This way, you’ll open yourself up to that person and potentially, their whole network!

Play it clever and you never know who may see what you’re saying!

I work with entrepreneurs, CEO’s, and whole companies helping them leverage LinkedIn to get more business. If you’re interested in working with me, please send me a DM or book in a call with me https://calendly.com/sarahclaysocial/20-minute-discovery-call-usa.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Sarah

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