#Social Saturday- Lets Connect!!

How To Gain More Connections on LinkedIn and Grow Your Network

The expansion of?remote working?and the growing importance of?social networking?for social selling?has many professionals exploring how to gain more connections on LinkedIn, and whether they’re doing everything they can to?enhance their presence.

LinkedIn is the clear leader for connecting with B2B?prospects, potential?hires, and business?partners.

Even so, LinkedIn can be intimidating. New users need to ask not only whom they should connect with, but whom they shouldn’t connect with. At the same time, that hesitation can slow your progress toward?building new connections?and expanding your professional network.

After you’ve exhausted your own contacts list, it can be tough to know if you’re using the most effective methods of reaching out.

So, how can you expand your professional network on LinkedIn and make sure all those new contacts are relevant to your business goals? These tips?can help you grow your network and get results that support your professional success:

1. Personalize your LinkedIn connection requests

It’s critical to recognize how to connect to a person on LinkedIn in a manner that places them at ease. When scrolling via LinkedIn’s listing of “human beings you can know,” don’t surely click on the “connect” button.

Instead, click into the individual’s?profile page?and click the “connect” button there. That will bring up the box shown below and allow you to add a personal note with your connection request, like “Good to meet you last week in Chicago. Let’s keep in touch.”?

If you’re interested in connecting with someone you don’t know, such as a person who works in a?similar?role?at another company, add relevance by letting them know why you’re messaging them. You might say, “I’ve seen your posts and noticed some of your work. I really appreciate your perspectives and would love to connect.”

2. Follow up on in-person networking opportunities

Believe it or not, constructing your community can (and does) nevertheless show up the good, old school manner whilst you meet and have interaction with humans face to face. Actually, as we navigate returned closer to?a?international of doing as a minimum a?few commercial enterprises?in person, possibilities to hook up with humans are at the upward thrust as soon as again. Be certain to make the maximum of them.

Maybe you met someone at a?trade show or conference? Volunteer or serve on a committee for a charity event? What about the?business owner?at your favorite coffee shop, your healthcare provider, yoga instructor, classmates… you get the idea. It’s easy to overlook connections you come in contact with every day, so reach out. You may be surprised at what you learn about them in the context of LinkedIn.

3. Break growth goals down into achievable chunks

Getting from 100 connections to 500+ can seem like an impossible feat. But if you?divide that number?over many weeks or months, it won’t seem so insurmountable. For example, instead of setting a goal of going from 100 connections to 500+, try setting your goal to 175 connections within two weeks; then repeat.?

Remember, the important thing to placing desires is to cause them to practical and time-bound. And don’t neglect about to?work out?warning approximately the way to develop connections on LinkedIn. No?rely on?your desires, it’s critical to maintain proper etiquette?and refrain from spamming people you don’t know.?Quality?matters more than quantity, and spamming connections might not get you either.

Don’t expect all your connection requests to accept your invitations. They may have a?personal LinkedIn philosophy?of assessing potential quality of connections and deciding whether to accept requests. Here are a few questions I ask myself when I receive a request:

1. Do I know you or someone who knows you?
2. Am I familiar with your company?
3. Do you share industry insights I care about?
4. Are you in a geographic market where I do business?

If I can’t answer “yes” to at least one — and preferably more — of these questions, chances are I won’t accept your invitation to connect.

4. Explore LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn groups offer?topic-specific spaces?where you can connect within your industry or specialty to build relationships, share information and expertise, and probe communities for advice. You can select groups that reflect communities within your?target audiences, both to demonstrate your knowledge and to learn more about prospects and customers.

Groups are created and moderated by their own?leaders and gatekeepers?and have their own?sets of rules, so be sure to review rules and expectations before requesting to join.

5. Invite engagement by posting often

This?tip is self-explanatory. When a connection likes, shares, or remarks to your fame update, their connections are much more likely to peer your unique put up of their feed. If your content material appears relevant, those “2nd-degree” connections may take the step to reach out and send an invitation to connect with you.

Posting more often creates additional opportunities for engagement, thus?syndicating your content?across home page feeds everywhere. Don’t be too concerned about annoying people by posting every day. LinkedIn’s algorithms are tricky, and your network isn’t likely to see every post — unless you publish an article natively using LinkedIn’s article tool (more on that later), which does notify your network.

6. Grab attention with visual content

I’m not just talking about your profile picture and banner image.

Adding images to your social posts?increases engagements?with people in your existing network, and?boosts exposure?to potential connections. So mix it up. Don’t always just share links; include visuals.

7. Engage with existing connections

Engaging with contemporary connections places your profile at once in the front?of?their networks, and all it takes is a “like” or touch upon their posts. A simple “Great mind” or “Thanks for sharing” can assist make bigger your attain and, pretty honestly, it’s the thoughtful component to do while someone’s mind or content material resonate with you.

Commenting?with your personal insights or questions can increase engagement and exposure even more. And engagement adds depth and meaning, helping transform connections into?relationships.

8. Promote your LinkedIn profile URL

Social media systems along with Twitter and Instagram usually come up with?an area?for a bio. Use the ones bio areas as a LinkedIn connection-riding system via way of means of encouraging contacts there to discover you and join on LinkedIn, too — mainly when you have a sizable following on the alternative platform.

Social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram typically give you space for a bio. Use those?bio spaces?as a LinkedIn connection-driving machine by encouraging contacts there to find you and connect on LinkedIn, too — especially if you have a significant following on the other platform.?

Don’t be afraid to promote your LinkedIn profile by posting the link in a?status update, tweet, pin, video, photo, etc. This is another great way to take advantage of your presence on other social platforms.

While it’s not a social channel, don’t forget the simplicity and outright importance of adding your LinkedIn profile link to your email signature,?

9. Leverage Keywords in Your Profile

Similar to?optimizing?your website or copy for SEO, LinkedIn gives you the opportunity to attract profile visitors based on the words you choose, so?every word counts. Use common?variations of your job title?and duties to ensure that semantics don’t make you invisible.?

10. Write and publish articles

It’s common practice to?share blog posts?your company and others have written that you feel will resonate with your audience by posting an update on LinkedIn and sharing the URL. When those insights are your own, it’s even more important to put them out in front of people.

The great thing about?content?is that your network is notified every time you publish an article, increasing your chances of engagement and brand exposure. This also points to the importance of not publishing articles every day, or your followers may start to tune out. While a simple?call-to-action?to get in touch or check out additional resources is usually acceptable at the end of the article, nothing will turn off readers faster than an article that ends up being nothing more than?click bait?or a?sales pitch. So only write on topics that truly?provide value?to readers.