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Every day someone asks me what's working on LinkedIn.

I ask them what they're trying to accomplish on LinkedIn.

Some say lead generation.

Some say they want more exposure.

They all say they want more clients.

I ask about their LinkedIn strategy.

"I don't have a formal LinkedIn strategy."

"I log in a few times a week, search for job titles and invite 50-100 people to connect."

"I use software to send 3-5 follow-up messages inviting them to a Zoom call."

I'm embarrassed to say that was my LinkedIn strategy in 2013.

Spray and pray.

When I work with clients we start with their LinkedIn strategy.

What are you trying to accomplish on LinkedIn?

People who get results on LinkedIn have a clear strategy and defined goals.

Are you using LinkedIn to build your referral network?

Are you trying to get sales appointments?

Are you looking to hire new employees?

Clearly define your LinkedIn objective and create a daily plan.

Log off as soon as you achieve your daily goal so you don’t waste time.

If your goal is to connect with new prospects, use LinkedIn Advanced Search to search for content related to the problems you solve.

When I was searching for prospects by job title, I was guessing they needed my help.

I would search for "executive coach" and invite 20-30 per day to connect.

60% of LinkedIn users log in less than once a month so most of my invitations were never seen.?

When you have hundreds of outstanding invitations, it raises a flag with LinkedIn.

A bigger problem was most executive coaches didn't understand the importance of marketing their practice in 2013, so my LinkedIn strategy was flawed.

When you search for content, you are engaging with active LinkedIn users who are talking about problems you can solve.

Start conversations in the comment threads.

The author of the content will notice you and often invite you to connect.

If you think they would be a valuable member of your professional network, invite them to connect.

Customize your invitation and say something like, "I enjoy your content about XXX".

This is the simplest LinkedIn strategy.

Focus on building relationships, not selling.

Sales and referrals will come later.

Would you like to talk about your LinkedIn strategy?

Leave a comment and let's talk.

- Ted

Ted?Prodromou, America’s Leading LinkedIn Coach, is the award-winning, best-selling author of Ultimate Guide to LinkedIn for Business and Ultimate Guide to Twitter for Business (Entrepreneur Press).

Ted?has been featured on?Entrepreneur.com ,?Forbes.com , Twitter Revolution on CNBC, The New York Times,?HuffPost.com ,?and many other popular websites.

Ted?is a social selling expert and the founder of Search Marketing Simplified, LLC, a full service social media marketing agency. The SMS team creates advanced LinkedIn and social media lead-generation campaigns for small to medium-sized businesses with over $100 million in revenue generated for their clients.

Get your free LinkedIn and social selling training at?www.YourLinkedInCoach.com