How to Use LinkedIn to Grow Your Audience

LinkedIn is an online social network designed to create professional relationships between its users. The problem is that not everyone knows how to maximize LinkedIn’s features it has in order to boost exposure. The network enables its users to create a personal profile in which they can present their professional experience and establish relationships with other users in order to promote professional or business interests.  The user profile displays a description of current and past professional experience, relevant background studies and academic achievements, unique skills and abilities and employer recommendations. LinkedIn also facilitates publishing about employment opportunities or creating business partnerships. The point of this article is to explain to you why you should invest a little more in your LinkedIn profile and be more active in this network to enjoy all the social and professional benefits that the social network can give you. A world of opportunities are at your fingertips with LinkedIn from helping you find your next job, to helping your next employer find you, to promoting your business, to being up to date in your professional field, to even generating more client sales. In this article, we’ll explain how to use the LinkedIn profile to create a strong first impression with potential customers.

1) Create a high quality profile

A LinkedIn profile is actually the business card of your professional brand on the Net. However, many professionals create a LinkedIn profile that looks like a resume. If you are trying to attract new clients, a list of your past employers can be the most boring content on your profile. Instead, it’s preferable to create a profile that shows the “person” behind the profile.

Profile image quality and updated URL coordination

The first visual impression is very important. Therefore, the profile picture for your LinkedIn profile must be a high-quality, professional picture. LinkedIn is not the place to upload a picture better-suited for Facebook. Make sure the image you’re using is of high quality, with your face well-lit, and at least 200 x 200 pixels. It is not recommended to use an image smaller than 200X 200 because it will be pixelated and blurry. After uploading a picture, customize the URL of your profile so people can easily find you online. The URL should be your full name, without anything else. To customize the URL in the LinkedIn profile, click on the “Me” icon at the top of the LinkedIn home page and select “View Profile”. On the profile page, click “Edit public profile and URL” on the right. Then, under “Edit URL,” click the “Edit” icon next to the URL of your public profile. Enter your full name with no spaces and click “Save”.

Attractive title Optimizing your title, which appears directly below your name, is especially important because it is visible and searchable. The title is limited to 120 characters, so use keywords that are often used by your target audience. To add or edit the title, click on the “Me” icon at the top of the homepage and select “View Profile.” On the profile page, click on the “Edit” icon, which opens an “Edit Intro” dialog box where you can enter new content for your introduction. When finished, click “Save”.

 Customize contact information When we fill in the “Contact and Personal Information” information, LinkedIn rewards us with maximum exposure for the profile. To further optimize your information, change the default “Contact Labels” (such as “personal website” or “company blog“) to reflect keywords that your target audience may use to find your product or service. To add contact details and customize these labels, click on the “Me” icon at the top of the homepage, and select “Show Profile.” In the left column, click the “Edit” icon next to contact information and personal information. In the “Edit contact details” dialog that appears, click “Add a Website” and “Copy and Paste” your URL in the appropriate field. Then, select “Other” from the drop-down list so that we can enter our description in the “Type” field. When finished, click “Save”.

Use videos to advertise your product or business Video is a great way to tell stories, share customer testimonials, and, basically, explain what you are doing. When you introduce yourself through video, with your face and voice, your profile becomes more personal. Using video, you can stand out more, especially if your competitors do not include video on their profile page. Currently, clicking “Upload” does not allow you to upload a video to your LinkedIn profile. So, you have to upload the video to the “Host” site and then share the video link in your LinkedIn profile. You can also share videos on LinkedIn from any of the following video sites: Facebook, Ustream, Vimeo, SlideShare, YouTube. Once you upload the video to the “Host” site, you can add your intro video to your LinkedIn profile. At the top of the LinkedIn homepage, click on the “Me” icon and select “Show Profile”. Then, on the left, click on the “Edit” icon next to “Profile photo” and scroll down until you see the “Media” section. Click on “Link”, paste the link to your video, and then click “Add”. The “Edit Media” dialog box appears. Add the “Title and Description” for the video, and at the end, click “Apply” and then click “Save.”

Skills, skills and recommendations The ‘Skills and Talents” field of your profile is a shelter for keywords. Think about all of your skills and highlight the most relevant ones in this field. To add skills, click on the “Me” icon and select “Show Profile”. Scroll to the “Skills & Profiles” section of our profile and click “Add New Skill”. After typing the “Skill Name” in the text box, click “Add”. To rearrange our talents, move your cursor over the “three rows” icon on the left, and when the cursor changes to the “Move” icon, click “Drag Skill” to reorder. In addition, you can also display customer testimonials, which will help build confidence in your business and product. Professional background, degrees, and certificates Education is a core and significant criterion in LinkedIn, so completion of this field is very important. Even if you did not study at a university level, mention the high school where you studied. To add details about your education, click the “+” sign in the top right corner of the “Education” section. In the dialog box that appears, provide details about your school, degree, studies, and activities. You can even add a relevant video. There is a special section for achievements where you can add additional certifications, awards, publications, and other important details like your professional qualifications and employment experience. To add an achievement, click on the “+” sign in the top right corner of the “Achievements” section and select from the list that appears. A selection-specific dialog box will then appear where we can enter the relevant information.

2) Sharpen content and communication with the readership

Your profile is not a resume, thus, we advise you to write your profile in a more personal and authentic way, as if you were having a conversation with someone. Write in the first person, in order to allow your personality to come through the writing, and so that readers can connect to the text. Publishing regular updates also helps to improve your LinkedIn profile. One of the pillars of social media success is consistency, so you want to update your profile status daily with content that delivers value to your target market. Advertising content consistently on LinkedIn gives you more exposure based on the platform’s algorithm. You can also improve your visibility and exposure by writing articles that are interesting and attractive to your audience. To open the LinkedIn advertising tool, click on “Article Writing” at the top of the update.

 Since LinkedIn updated its algorithm in February 2018, LinkedIn allows all sorts of content including long-form articles, videos, or short status updates (added by writing a short post at the top of the feed). By using a mix of content and sharing other people’s content, you can get more exposure in the LinkedIn vein. For additional exposure, you can also share your articles in relevant groups.

 3) Increase and maintain useful relationships A great way to extend your reach is simply to garner new connections and recommendations from more people. Use previous employers, teachers, instructors, colleagues, customers, and friends at school. Use the “search” feature to find people in your target audience. Tip: You should use an email address contact list if you have one, and from there you can import customer emails or email marketing lists, and synchronize it with your LinkedIn profile. This tool will give you an excellent base to reach out to people who share mutual relationships with current and former clients. To find the feature that generates your LinkedIn contacts, click the “My Network” icon. On the left, click “More Options in Your Connections Area.” Now you can enter your e-mail address or choose the “Service Provider” from which you want to import the contacts. If the LinkedIn importer does not support the email provider, you can still invite people to connect via email.

LinkedIn groups are an excellent way to increase your network connections. There are all kinds of groups, so you can almost certainly find groups related to your target audience. These groups give access to many people who are important to your business. To find groups that reflect your interests and goals, we encourage you to explore which groups of people with similar interests and goals already in your current network. Search for groups by name or keyword by using the search box at the top of the homepage. Type “Keywords” or “Interest Group Names,” and click “Search.” On the search results page, click the “Groups” tab.

4) Developing inbound links

By increasing the number of incoming links to your profile from other places on the web, Google will see you as a more reliable and popular profile. As a result, your LinkedIn profile will appear higher in search results. Increase inbound links by link your other social media sites to your LinkedIn profile. Publish articles or posts on blogs on other sites that you will link to your LinkedIn profile. In addition, add a link to your LinkedIn Profile on these pages’ “About” section.

 In conclusion

Whether you are just starting to work with LinkedIn, or have already used it as a marketing tool for a while, optimizing your profile is vital to your success.

With a profile built using valuable content and a broad network, you can be sure to attract more attention and, ultimately, get better business results.

Looking to take your business to the next level? Contact us today!