How to Set Your Customised Profile URL on LinkedIn

LinkedIn has reached the 100 million member mark and remains the top professional social network worldwide. From 50 million users in 2009, LinkedIn has increased its members to 70 million as at May 2010 and now to 100 million.

Being on LinkedIn has great advantages for professionals and business owners. Other than via their own website or blog and the various other social media accounts out there, people and companies can establish a professional presence on LinkedIn and use it for a variety of purposes.

Using this social network is certainly one effective way to use for connecting with the right people and groups and attracting potential employees, employers and business partners.

Establishing your presence on the internet requires not just putting up a website or blog and signing up on social networking sites.

An important thing to remember is to choose an appropriate website URL that will be your own unique identification and one that will allow you to be easily searched for and found on the internet.

On LinkedIn, this is also an important aspect of your profile to complete, and members are allowed to customise their profile and add a URL.  Once you have customised this URL, it can be used in your marketing and as a way of people finding you when searching online.

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Once you have created an account on LinkedIn, remember to create your customized LinkedIn URL.

To add your customised website URL, go to your profile page and search for your public profile on the main section where your personal details are shown.

Click Edit on the right and you’ll be directed to a new page.

You will then see two sections on the right column – “Customize Your Public Profile” and below it “Your Public Profile URL.”

On the “Your Public Profile URL” section, click Customize your public profile url and a small box will appear where you can set your custom URL.

LinkedIn allows you to use 5 to 30 letters or numbers to create your own URL but there should be no spaces, symbols or special characters.

You can use your full name or the name of your company if you’re creating a LinkedIn business page. Remember, it will be your personal ID on this professional social network so it has to be a real name.

After you’ve checked the spelling and decided on that name, click the Set Custom URL button.

Your final LinkedIn URL should display as http://au.linkedin.com/in/…. with your name in the last part.

Normally, the URL will also show the ID of your country before linkedin.com.

Different industries are now represented on LinkedIn and if you’re still not a member, it’s time you sign up to give yourself yet another avenue to showcase your business and be found online.

You can then start connecting immediately with former colleagues and clients.

Make sure to follow the steps above to set your unique LinkedIn URL and then include this in your profile on any other social media sites where you have accounts, such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

This will allow visitors to your profiles on other social media sites to come and say hello and connect with you on LinkedIn as well.

Related Linkedin Business Account Articles

What Kind of Communication is Spam?

What kind of communication is spam?  You might consider this a ridiculous question, but unfortunately many people do not recognize good communication from spam.  Recently, a colleague told me her husband was taking a course on Internet marketing.  The gist of the course was how to purchase lists of thousands for little money and then how to spam these people.  I was shocked.  My colleague thought this was a fine idea.  What do you think?

Perhaps most of us are savvy enough to recognize that my colleague’s husband was learning the techniques for spamming.  But, how many of you have posted a LinkedIn discussion topic that does nothing but share information about your latest service?  How many of you have auto-responders on Twitter that say, “Thanks for following me.  Check out my whatever?”  This, too, is spamming and bad communication.

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What is good communication and what is spam?  Here are some general guidelines:

·  Spam happens when you provide something to someone that they haven’t asked for.  Good communication happens when you answer someone’s question and share valuable information, either yours or someone else’s.

·  Spam happens when you post content to a Discussion in order to give yourself visibility.  Good communication happens when you post a genuine question on a Discussion board and enter the conversation with others.

·  Spam is one-way.  Good communication is two-way.

·  Spam offends us because it assumes we don’t know what we need.  Good communication includes us and listens to our needs.

·  Spam talks.  Good communication listens.

·  Spam gets deleted and marked as spam.  Good communication creates trust, a relationship and finally some kind of conversion.

The next time you start to post on a discussion on LinkedIn or as a status update on Facebook, ask yourself, is this spam or is this good communication? 

With Google+ and Facebook war, The Social Sharing War Is Fully On

Google and Facebook are at war. This is old news. They both want to be the center of the Internet — but there can be only one center. For a while, it looked like things were quickly shifting Facebook’s way after years of dominance by Google. Then Google+ appeared — already the most compelling social experience Google has ever offered. 

While it’s still far from clear what the actual impact of G+ will be on the Internet at large, it’s pretty clear already that it’s something Facebook is going to have to take seriously. And they are. Despite Mark Zuckerberg downplaying it, Facebook did just launch a video chat feature a week after Google did in G+. And last summer, Facebook rushed to get the new Groups done in time to beat Circles to the same punch. 

But where things are going to be really interesting is on the social sharing front. Facebook has long been in the lead here — and is proud of it. But after just a week, it sure seems like Google+ is seeing some impressive numbers as well (with only a fraction of Google users using it). And a small change Google quietly made yesterday shows just how seriously they’re taking this. 

As we noted a couple days ago, it is possible to track the referrals coming in to your site from G+, but it’s not straightforward. Yesterday, Google made it much more straightforward. 

When you click on a link now in G+, it redirects it through the plus.google.com domain. Why? Because Google+ uses HTTPS to be more secure, but that strips referrer information that would normally be passed to sites like TechCrunch. So they have to redirect to another non-HTTPS domain to pass that data (Dell xps m1330 Battery ). Previously, it was simply through a google.com/url domain (which we were tracking). Now it’s a plus.google.com domain — much easier to track for a casual analytics user. 

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And sure enough, as of yesterday, plus.google.com is showing up as a referrer to TechCrunch — and yes, a big one despite us not actively using it to send out articles just yet (and again, the limited number of users). 

Facebook does a similar redirect to ensure that the pageviews they’re sending others’ way are correctly counted. Others, like Twitter, do not generally do this, which likely makes their sharing stats appear lower than they actually are. 

I suspect we’ll begin seeing all three of these Internet giants begin to more actively monitor and showcase this data. Others, like StumbleUpon and LinkedIn are in the mix as well. 

Remarkably, StatCounter says that StumbleUpon now sends more traffic to sites than Facebook in the U.S. Meanwhile, LinkedIn is showing massive growth in terms of referrals (to TechCrunch, at least) — though, to be fair, their popular LinkedIn Today feature is powered by Twitter data (which again, Twitter doesn’t get the referral credit for at all). 

Nearly two years ago, I noted that the social sharing war was tipping heavily in Twitter’s favor due to the fact that it was far too slow to share content on Facebook. The quick rise of the Tweetmeme button (since replaced by Twitter’s own Tweet button) all over the web showcased this. But things have changed in the past two years. Notably, Facebook has gotten much better at facilitating sharing — hello Like button. And when you do that with 750 million users, sharing will happen. 

Meanwhile, posts like this one show Google already has a team working on a strategy for how brands and companies (like TechCrunch) can best facilitate sharing on Google+. They expect to begin testing this shortly — believe us, they’re rushing to get this done ASAP. 

The Google assault in this social sharing war is now well underway. They’ve failed in the past with Buzz, but Google+ is clearly much better than Buzz. And while the +1 Button on the web seems fairly useless right now, when they further tie it into G+, the sharing situation will get really interesting. 

With another party actively engaged, the question will turn to which of those sharing buttons will you choose to click on? Some people do all of them now. But that won’t last forever. The social sharing war is on. 

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How to SEO Your LinkedIn Profile

Week after week I share with you tips and helps to improve your productivity on LinkedIn, but lots of people I meet say they can’t keep up. There are several who tell me they are saving the emails for their next vacation, and then they are going to sit down and work through them all.  

You don’t know how that bums me out. You are going to blow your next vacation on the beach, in the mountains, or sitting on your dock up north reading my LinkedIn emails?

To save you some time on your next vacation, I hope you can find thirty minutes or so this week to consider my #1 LinkedIn tip for improving your findability when people are looking for your products and services. 

So get out your computer, a pad of paper, and a pencil, and let me share with you:

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1.  Think of the word or words that are the most important descriptor of your business or your person. For me it would be “office furniture” and “LinkedIn Trainer.”

As much as I would like to glamorize what we do–and we do have lots of other products and services–this is what I would pick if only allowed one term for our company and one for myself individually.

2.  Go to Advanced Search and put that word or words in the keyword box and then regionalize the search (if applicable) for your territory or where you normally do business.

3.  See where you show up in the search results. Write down the position (e.g., second page, third slot, etc.).

4.  Go to your profile and add that word or words a few more times throughout your profile. Now, I am not asking you to make your profile unreadable, but think about putting it in your Headline, Summary, Specialties, Position Title (job titles), Skills, Recommendations and in the detailed description of your current job or past jobs, if applicable.

Based on research I have done and information I have read from some of the smartest folks who help people with LinkedIn, adding those words to your Headline and Position Titles will help you make the largest move up in the search rankings and help you tell your story more completely.

5.  Repeat step #3 and see if you have moved up. If you are not high enough on the search, repeat step 4.

You have just performed SEO for your LinkedIn profile for those specific words. You may want to consider doing this for other important keywords as well. I am sure that any upward movement you have made in the search rankings will cause you to be reached out to more often in the future.

 

10 Linkedin Tips To Attract Top Producers To Your Business

Discover these 10 Linkedin Tips To Maximize Your Marketing Efforts On This Powerful Social Network

LinkedIn gives you a status bar that tells you to how much of your profile is complete. This is where you will add a photo, resume, links, awards, hobbies, and organizations you are part of. Follow the status bar until complete and your in business looking professional.

This is your first impression.  Make it attractive. Its should tell us a little bit about who you are, who you help, and how you help them.Create yours and people will be attracted to click on your profile.

For example:

“I Help Entrepreneurs Save Time, Energy, Money by Providing a Cost Effective Social Media Strategy For Brand Awareness.”

In the summary you are able to give a little bit more about who you are, who you help and how you help them. Summarize your experience in a simple and concise way that will give the user visiting your profile value about what you offer to the marketplace.

For example:

Social Media Consulting: I am the founder of Next Level Online Mastery. com. This website teaches you how to leverage the social media technology to create brand awareness, increase relationships, and drive more sales.

LinkedIn gives you 3 websites that you can add to your profile. This is a great way to get organic traffic to your website or blog or even your facebook fan page of your business. You want add 3 then customize the titles to give them a call to action. Instead of listing your BRAND name on it you can say: “A Free Online Source for your XYZ industry” or “Follow me on Facebook.” This is will bring people to want to find out more about you and your brand.

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This one is a huge resource! By importing all of your email and phone contacts into LinkedIn you can connect with everyone. BUT now you are also connected to everyone you know 2nd and 3rd degrees which expands your network and allows you for more connections. This will also bring more people to find you!

This is sure fire way you will get recommendations if you write them! When a user comes to your profile they can read how people recommended you, which will encourage them to purchase what it is you offer. Its a real life testimonial of your service or brand. So write 10 to people you respect and you will get some in return.

In order to connect with people on LinkedIn you need to know them. The system will ask you for the person you are trying to connect with personal email. However, if you join groups you can bypass this requirement. Once you are in the group you are free to contact whoever is in the group. You can write them a personal message to begin networking. So join lots of groups in and around your niche.

The best way to engage people is by asking questions. Post your questions in your status updates for a day or so and  people from your 2nd or 3rd degree will give you answers. This a great way to create a relationship with another professional as well as get an expert to give you valuable information without having to spend too much time searching for it.

Answer other questions in their status updates or group discussion and people will see you as an expert in your niche. This is a another valuable tip to attract more people to you. If they already see you as an expert then your that much closer to doing business with them in the future.

This is the coolest of them all because I am a geek and love gadgets that make work/life easier! LinkedIn has applications where you can import your blog or status updates on another social media platform. You can also have PowerPoint presentations loaded so people can see more about what you do. You can  list the books your reading with the Amazon Application. If your an author you list your books there as well! Explore some of the applications you will be amazed!

Linkedin Masterclass: Writing Effective Messages

Writing Effective Linkedin Messages

“Copywriting” is the practice of selling in word form. It’s employed in every newspaper ad, magazine feature, bill board and even flyer or leaflet you see on a day to day basis.
Its purpose is to catch the reader’s attention with the “headline” which will compel them to read the “Sub Headline” which will again be so intriguing the person will have to read the first line of copy, then the next then the next and so on.
By the time the reader has gotten to the end of the copy they should in a “buying state” and ready to pick up the phone, click on the link or visit the business to make their purchase.

In Linkedin we don’t have the luxury of masses of space to write huge copy written sales letters (well technically we do but it is not effective in the Facebook platform) so the best way we can be effective in our message writing is to employ “Short Copy”.

In many ways Short Copy is the best form of copy writing in the fast moving and fast clicking world of the internet and social networking sites. The average person will give a page between 3-5 seconds before they decide to click away

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Using Short Copy in Linkedin

“Corns Gone in 7 Days or Your Money Back”

The above statement is still the most successful short copy ad that has ever been was produced. Written in the 1930′s to sell a brand of corn cream, it includes 3 of the 4 main rules of short copywriting.

1. Attention:- Your statement must grab the readers attention

2. Specific:- It must offer specific information. So instead of “save ££££” write “save exactly £342″

3. Main Benefit:- If you were selling a car a feature would be “it has air con”. A benefit would be ” it’ll un-steam your front screen in 10 seconds and keeps the air cool and fresh in summer…” Make sure you mention your main benefit not your main feature.

4. Call to Action:- You must tell the reader what to do. Tell them to “Click Here” “Call this number”. What do you want them to do next?

“Corns Gone” = Main Benefit straight away plus filtered the market if you haven’t got corns you don’t need the product.

“In 7 days” = Specific. Not saying “soon” or “quickly” its within 7 days.

“or your money back” Attention grabbing guarantee.

If this was a marketing message the only element its missing is the call to action. A simple “click here” or “call now”
Here is another example of short copy excellence used by the insurance industry:

“Cash if you Die, Cash if you Don’t”

In this example they use 3 “Power Words” out of the 8 words used in the headline. Power words can help you grab attention. The other power words are:

Love Stop Huge

Cash Chop Sex

Die Hate Lose

Win Crash

It’s a good idea to begin a message with either “How” or “Now” e.g
“How to save £500 on your energy bill in 2 easy steps”
“Now, lose 10lbs in under 1 month WITHOUT exercising!”

These are techniques in getting people to pay attention and click your links but remember your “Relationship Marketing” Integrate your sales posts with interesting content and funny/conversational quips or statements about your industry.

LinkedIn messages (Free version) – demo LinkedIn messages is a Google Chrome extension that allows you to save messages as templates and set one default template. Every time you open send message this extension will auto-complete subject and message based on default template Link to extension: chrome.google.com
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Linkedin Masterclass:Using Linkedin Company Pages

The LinkedIn Company Profile Page is easy to use and allows you to:

• Create individual pages about your products and services
• Create an image slider with links to your website
• Add an embedded YouTube video
• Post job listings (paid service)
• View Analytics about visitors to your Company Page
Visitors to your personal profile can click on the icon next to your company listing to view your company profile page.

Setting Up Your Company Page
Use the following steps to set up a company page for your freelancing business:

Step 1-Login to your LinkedIn personal profile page. In the top navigation bar, click “Companies,” and then on the Companies page click “Add a Company” on the right.
Step 2-Add company information. On the Add a Company page, you will be prompted to add your company name and email address at the company. You can’t use a web-based email address for this registration and you must be an official representative of the company in order to create the page.
Step 3-Confirmation. Once you enter your information, an email will be sent to you for confirmation. Confirm the email, and follow the link back to your company page. 
Now you’re ready to customize your company page using tabs.

Using the Overview Tab
Start your customization with the Overview tab.

At the top right of the overview page, click “Edit” to add information to your page. This information is pretty straightforward. On this page, you can add:

Your company logo
A description about your company
Specialties your company offers
The number of employees
Your website address
What industry your company falls under
The year your company was founded
Your location(s)
Your Twitter ID
An RSS Feed (if you have one)
After you’ve entered your information, click “Publish” to save and publish this information.

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Using the Careers Tab
Within your company profile, LinkedIn also allows you to post job listings on the careers tab. At the time of publication, job postings cost 5 for a 30-day posting. Fill out the self-explanatory form to post a listing.

Once you post the listing, LinkedIn will show you people on LinkedIn in your area who match your job description. You can unlock those matches for a fee or simply post your job listing. Fill out the billing information, and your job listing will be posted on the Careers tab of your Company profile page.

Using the Services Tab
Here’s where you really get to showcase your company on LinkedIn. The Services page allows you to add products and/or services that your company offers.

Here are some helpful steps:

Services Step 1-Add Your Information
Within the Services tab, click the “Edit” button to edit the main elements on the page. Enter a title and description of the company. Your logo from the Overview tab will display on this page next to the description.

Next, give your Services page a little life by creating up to three images/text for your page slider. Images should be 640 x 220 pixels. Each image can have its own URL to link through to. For example, on my page I created an image describing three of my top services and have each image linking through to the appropriate portfolio page on my website. It’s a great way to give a visual description of your services and lead potential clients directly to your website.

If you have any YouTube videos describing your company or services, you can add that on this page as well. In the right-hand column, enter a title for your YouTube video, then copy/paste the URL for that video into the URL field.

Go back to the top of the page and click Publish to save and make your content live.

Services Step 2-Add Products & Services

To add a Product or Service click the “Add a Product or Service” button at the top right. On this page, you can:

Add either a product or a service
Select a category that best fits your product or service
Name the item and add a thumbnail image for it
Add a description and a list of key features
Add a URL for users to link through to your website
Associate a particular employee to this product or service
Add a promotion or special price for this product or service
Add a YouTube video specific to this product or service

You can create versions of this page to be served to audiences based on their profile content. For example, you can create a version targeted to people in the United States, and a different version targeted to members in Canada. Once you have created a “default” version, create different versions by clicking “New Audience” below. Name your target, choose your targeting characteristics and click “Save and Exit” to edit your targeted page.

Using the Analytics Tab
The fourth and final tab on the LinkedIn Company page is the Analytics page.

Here you can view:

Information on your page views
Clicks on your ‘more information’ links on your products & services pages
The number of visits by industry
Members following your company

Find More Linkedin Company Page Articles

Linkedin Could Be Your Best Marketing Tool

Any business that offers services to other businesses should understand the value of the LinkedIn social network. I know many people who network, go to BNI meetings and don’t have a clue about LinkedIn. If you’re just starting out with linked in, heeding the advice below might just well get you hooked…and Linked In.

COMPLETE YOUR PROFILE LinkedIn is not about entering your profile and you’re done. But if you’re going to use LinkedIN, take it seriously and take the time to complete your profile. A half completed profile doesn’t say much about you or your company.

ORIENTATION Pick up “LinkedIn For Dummies” if you have to. There are probably hundreds of LinkedIn web tutorials as well. It’s not required. LinkedIn is not all that complicated. If you don’t know anything about LinkedIN, login and look around. It’s about that simple. Just be aware of all of the features available to you for free! If LinkedIn were not free and I approached your business with this great marketing tool, you’d want to buy it! And perhaps the perception is that because it’s free, it’s not worth your time. Nothing could be further from the truth. Get to know LinkedIn!

GET INVOLVED It’s not your profile that will attract the attention of other busnesses, it’s you. Your company didn’t grow in a vacuum. You engaged with people and businesses and LinkedIn is no different? The first thing you should do is search for groups that interest you and that you could perhaps be a resource for and sign up.

Pay attention to the “Answers” section on the bottom right of the page. Magically, you should see requests for information related to the products and services. At the other end of this question is a prospect. By all means jump in and be helpful. This is one of the best ways to reach out. Sharing information is a great marketing tool. You are engaging your business by helping the person that asked the question and anyone who is interested in the same infomation. At the same time, invite the person who wrote the question to link to you. Obviously, he or she is already interested in what your business has to offer. That leads us to the next things we should be doing:

INVITE, LINK and be SOCIAL By becoming associated with groups and by answering questions relevant to your products and services, you are connecting with people who you can probably do business with. Vice versa: ask questions and link up with people who offer you help and solutions. You’ll soon develop a trust and respect for the people who contribute the most. Isn’t that the kind of person you want to do business with? Isn’t that the point?

This video is meant to give you an insight of one of the best online social networking site at the moment and how to take full advantage of Linkedin for business purposes. We’ll cover everything from setting up a profile even your boss will be impressed with to joining the top groups.

More Linkedin For Dummies Articles

Is LinkedIn the most important social media tool for professionals?

LinkedIn is one of the most important sites you and your firm should focus on from the outset and  you should be using it to the absolute limit of its potential.

But let me say this it is not the only one: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other video upload sites,your blog, online Directories, relevant forums, article sites and social book marking sites, they all have an important part to play in your social media marketing strategy and whilst LinkedIn is very important you must develop a strategy and see it in the long term perspective.

Its free, it’s easy to use, it’s well established and liked and it’s powerful for both the individual and firm alike. Do not see LinkedIn,just in the personal context alone see it as a really powerful professional networking tool at the level of the firm itself.

LinkedIn, had an Alexia ranking, July 2010, of 29; this means it has the 29th highest combination of visitors and page views in the world.

LinkedIn has over 70 million users and is perfect because all those users solely focus on using the site for business purposes.

When you join, LinkedIn, you create a profile that summarizes your professional expertise and accomplishments. You can then form enduring connections by inviting trusted contacts to join LinkedInIn and connect to you.

Your network consists of your connections, your connections’ connections, and the people they know; all in all linking you to a vast number of qualified professionals and experts.

As is the case with any social network, it’s important that you take a little time and get to know the culture and appreciate the accepted norms; take it steady.

As such it’s the world’s largest professional network and is growing rapidly as a marketing tool for professionals because of its power to find and share opportunities and to support to build relationships:

It’s a networking tool to find prospects and new clients, network partners industry experts, associates, vendors and business partners.
It allows registered users to maintain a list of contact details of people they know and trust in business.
Many individuals openly promote relationships and deals that they are in the market for.
You can use it to build a sense of occasion for specific happenings around your organization.
LinkedIn, provides a perfect vehicle for getting feedback and undertaking research by simply asking questions.

Through your LinkedIn, network you can:

manage the information that’s publicly available about you and your firm;
find, as well as get introduced to, potential clients, service providers, and subject experts, all of whom will come recommended; that’s the glory of LinkedInIn;
create and collaborate on projects, gather data, share files and solve problems;
be found for business opportunities and find potential partners;
gain new insights from discussions with like- minded professionals;
discover inside connections that can help you to source contracts and close deals; and
post and distribute job listings to find the best talent for your company.

LinkedInIn is growing at one new member every second.and whilst many seeLinkedIn as a career development tool for professional firm business owners it’s primary purpose will be all about making connections.

By the way your contacts in LinkedInIn are called connections.

Never forget that first and foremost LinkedIn is a ‘friend of friends’ networking tool that enables you to make connections, build rapport and gain insights.

As a starter all your key players within the firm need to have there own profile on LinkedIn

As ever the key is to set out your profile with the client in mind, and to get over the essence, in meaningful ways, from the prospects perspective, why & how you’re special.

The key is to ensure that it’s unmistakably clear:

to whom you provide a service;
what you can do for them, expressed in terms of benefits they can relate to;
that you have a clear understanding of the problems/issues/concerns or needs they have and
the results you’ll be helping them to achieve; and most importantly; and
why you’re special in this context.

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Add your photo: this personalises like almost nothing else;
Use links to your blog using Anchor text using the “other” tab;
Use the “Summary” to tell your story or whatever else is compelling way;
Use well focused keywords in the “specialty” section.

LinkedInIn has a status update feature that you should update on a regular basis.

Place links to your LinkedIn,profile in your email signature and elsewhere online.

Make the most of the LinkedIn, Question & Answer facility. By answering questions in substance and with style you can demonstrate your insights and expertise while potentially engaging contacts that are drawn to your knowledge. LinkedIn, has a rating system to reward people who give the best answers with some added exposure.

You can also ask thoughtful questions gaining insights and the basis for starting conversations, with like-minded connections.

LinkedIn site was originally set up as a career development tool therefore you must be selective in how you use it in terms of the information you present under the headings offered.

See the headings in a loose context and write as you see best given your business development and relationship development objectives for the use of the site.

For example in the specialities section provide a list of your services and the benefits those services bring.

When using LinkedIn the first priority is to make quality connections. Then having made a connection the secondary goal is to get those connections [and in turn their connections] to go to your website, a blog or a video where you can really start to build meaningful rapport.

The primary purpose  to sell a service on LinkedIn site; there are many options elsewhere for this to be done; LinkedIn is for building relationships. Full stop

Having established a new relationship then here is where the power of videos come into their own to establish a relationship and in this context its easy to see how important the development of a tactical plan of action is in terms of your 1st finding prospects; then connecting with them then getting them to take action and to view, say a video, or to visit your blog or sign up for your emails

The key is to use of LinkedIn is to find connections using the search function and by using your contacts with whom you are connected.

Obviously the more direct connections you‘ve established, the more opportunities you’ll be afforded to make new contacts and build evermore connections; without the contacts and connections with them you’ll be hard pressed to enjoy any benefits;

To effect a good mix of contacts use the LinkedIn toolbar for Outlook which you can use to invite your Outlook contacts and those on your email list to connect to you.

Firstly, ‘go for quality’ not quantity when building connections.

Whilst the focus is on building a large network list, the priority is quality not quantity.

My advice is to use LinkedIn’s “Trusted Partner Networking” and to avoid the “Open Networking” option where you can build thousands quite quickly but the quality of those people in terms of your service or your ability to communicate with them is low;

I prefer to use Trusted Partner Networking, because you only connect to people you already know and trust.

The second maxim or key to success is, as ever with the social media, to make commitment to what you’re doing and to undertaking consistent activity over time.

This is where the third maxim comes in.

It will only be by dedicating significant time to working ON your business and not in it that you will achieve your objective of taking the firm to the next level and avoiding the feast and famine scenario experienced by so many firms

For most professional firms their geographic target market is well defined as are the niches in which they work and the type of prospects they are wanting to get to know. LinkedIn is brilliant for professional firms, in this regard as it:

allows your search to be highly targeted; especially when searching other people’s listings of contacts; and
you can follow up by asking the connection [contact] on whose list you found someone you’d like to get to know better if they will effect an initial contact on your behalf… et voila.

It really is important that for each of the professional service areas where you offer a service that you present reputable and relevant testimonials in support, which should be complemented by video presentation testimonials.

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This is really powerful if someone is in two minds as to whether they want to connect with you.

A great way to get client recommendations is to give them a testimonial first; reciprocation is then only natural.

This works great on LinkedIn as your client, the one to whom you’re giving the testimonial, has the chance to vet what you’ve said before it goes live on their LinkedIn page and at the same time they’re asked automatically if they’d like to reciprocate with a testimonial to you; which, normally they do.

. If you’re really up for building contacts then an idea is to join one of the many special interest Groups on LinkedInIn. Here you can keep up to date on matters relating to your niche and contribute via postings in the very places where your prospects and clients hang out.

I suggest just going for one or two in the first instance as there are so many and it can become a little daunting if you want to play a meaningful role in each. The more you contribute the better.

This is where you really can add value; the more you contribute the stronger will be your reputation; although this said I caution whether you’ll actually gain any new clients directly as a result of this; but, again, this said if as a result of your contribution you can then get people to go to a video series or to your website where other factors come into play then this is quite another matter.

; this is another useful way to build credibility.

as this is the first thing people see when they find you after doing a search or a follow up after you’ve made contact

As such the professional headline is very important; aim to get it really well focused and absolutely spot-on..

What they see is a box with your name, photo, and this “headline.

If you’re on the ball this doesn’t just give your position but rather sets out what you offer

This heading is filled in by default unless you manually change it in the ‘edit my profile’ section.

By using the right header this immediately indicates to a connection whether or not you might be of interest to them.

My headline, simple and to the point,, which is much better than just giving my job title, is:

Helping professional service firm business owners to get more clients and build trust using social media and online video

You should use Status Updates to open up and maintain a communication.

This is an excellent way of simply keeping in front of people.

Everyone on LinkedIn receives update emails detailing the status of their contacts; they can also see these updates on their LinkedIn homepage.

The key is to ensure that your status updates have something interesting in them.

You can ping other social networks when you add an update, such as Facebook & Twitter so as to have a broader impact;
When you see a previously valued contact update their status, and with whom you haven’t been in contact for some time, this is a good opportunity to get back in touch;anything to restart the conversation; a good ploy is to send them to a blog post that you know will be of interest or to a video, which links them into a further series of videos that they haven’t yet seen;
a great relationship builder is to put your connections into contact with each other; the key here is to be constantly looking for ways to add value in regard to all your connections, whether or not they are past or present clients because you just never know when a chance piece of support will lead to something transformational; and don’t forget
And whenever you’ve just met a prospect or a prospective partner for the first time check them out on LinkedIn; you’ll be surprised at the extraordinary insights you’ll gain.

That’s it for this video; hopefully it was of interest.

And remember if I can be of any help or give you any advice, on a completely non commital basis then contact me using the contact us page; to go there now 

LinkedIn is one of the most important sites you and your firm should focus on from the outset and  you should be using it to the absolute limit of its potential.

But let me say this it is not the only one: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other video upload sites,your blog, online Directories, relevant forums, article sites and social book marking sites, they all have an important part to play in your social media marketing strategy and whilst LinkedIn is very important you must develop a strategy and see it in the long term perspective.

Its free, it’s easy to use, it’s well established and liked and it’s powerful for both the individual and firm alike. Do not see LinkedIn,just in the personal context alone see it as a really powerful professional networking tool at the level of the firm itself.

LinkedIn, had an Alexia ranking, July 2010, of 29; this means it has the 29th highest combination of visitors and page views in the world.

LinkedIn has over 70 million users and is perfect because all those users solely focus on using the site for business purposes.

When you join, LinkedIn, you create a profile that summarizes your professional expertise and accomplishments. You can then form enduring connections by inviting trusted contacts to join LinkedInIn and connect to you.

Your network consists of your connections, your connections’ connections, and the people they know; all in all linking you to a vast number of qualified professionals and experts.

As is the case with any social network, it’s important that you take a little time and get to know the culture and appreciate the accepted norms; take it steady.

As such it’s the world’s largest professional network and is growing rapidly as a marketing tool for professionals because of its power to find and share opportunities and to support to build relationships:

It’s a networking tool to find prospects and new clients, network partners industry experts, associates, vendors and business partners.
It allows registered users to maintain a list of contact details of people they know and trust in business.
Many individuals openly promote relationships and deals that they are in the market for.
You can use it to build a sense of occasion for specific happenings around your organization.
LinkedIn, provides a perfect vehicle for getting feedback and undertaking research by simply asking questions.

Through your LinkedIn, network you can:

manage the information that’s publicly available about you and your firm;
find, as well as get introduced to, potential clients, service providers, and subject experts, all of whom will come recommended; that’s the glory of LinkedInIn;
create and collaborate on projects, gather data, share files and solve problems;
be found for business opportunities and find potential partners;
gain new insights from discussions with like- minded professionals;
discover inside connections that can help you to source contracts and close deals; and
post and distribute job listings to find the best talent for your company.

LinkedInIn is growing at one new member every second.and whilst many seeLinkedIn as a career development tool for professional firm business owners it’s primary purpose will be all about making connections.

By the way your contacts in LinkedInIn are called connections.

Never forget that first and foremost LinkedIn is a ‘friend of friends’ networking tool that enables you to make connections, build rapport and gain insights.

As a starter all your key players within the firm need to have there own profile on LinkedIn

As ever the key is to set out your profile with the client in mind, and to get over the essence, in meaningful ways, from the prospects perspective, why & how you’re special.

The key is to ensure that it’s unmistakably clear:

to whom you provide a service;
what you can do for them, expressed in terms of benefits they can relate to;
that you have a clear understanding of the problems/issues/concerns or needs they have and
the results you’ll be helping them to achieve; and most importantly; and
why you’re special in this context.

:

Add your photo: this personalises like almost nothing else;
Use links to your blog using Anchor text using the “other” tab;
Use the “Summary” to tell your story or whatever else is compelling way;
Use well focused keywords in the “specialty” section.

LinkedInIn has a status update feature that you should update on a regular basis.

Place links to your LinkedIn,profile in your email signature and elsewhere online.

Make the most of the LinkedIn, Question & Answer facility. By answering questions in substance and with style you can demonstrate your insights and expertise while potentially engaging contacts that are drawn to your knowledge. LinkedIn, has a rating system to reward people who give the best answers with some added exposure.

You can also ask thoughtful questions gaining insights and the basis for starting conversations, with like-minded connections.

LinkedIn site was originally set up as a career development tool therefore you must be selective in how you use it in terms of the information you present under the headings offered.

See the headings in a loose context and write as you see best given your business development and relationship development objectives for the use of the site.

For example in the specialities section provide a list of your services and the benefits those services bring.

When using LinkedIn the first priority is to make quality connections. Then having made a connection the secondary goal is to get those connections [and in turn their connections] to go to your website, a blog or a video where you can really start to build meaningful rapport.

The primary purpose  to sell a service on LinkedIn site; there are many options elsewhere for this to be done; LinkedIn is for building relationships. Full stop

Having established a new relationship then here is where the power of videos come into their own to establish a relationship and in this context its easy to see how important the development of a tactical plan of action is in terms of your 1st finding prospects; then connecting with them then getting them to take action and to view, say a video, or to visit your blog or sign up for your emails

The key is to use of LinkedIn is to find connections using the search function and by using your contacts with whom you are connected.

Obviously the more direct connections you‘ve established, the more opportunities you’ll be afforded to make new contacts and build evermore connections; without the contacts and connections with them you’ll be hard pressed to enjoy any benefits;

To effect a good mix of contacts use the LinkedIn toolbar for Outlook which you can use to invite your Outlook contacts and those on your email list to connect to you.

Firstly, ‘go for quality’ not quantity when building connections

Whilst the focus is on building a large network list, the priority is quality not quantity.

My advice is to use LinkedIn’s “Trusted Partner Networking” and to avoid the “Open Networking” option where you can build thousands quite quickly but the quality of those people in terms of your service or your ability to communicate with them is low;

I prefer to use Trusted Partner Networking, because you only connect to people you already know and trust.

The second maxim or key to success is, as ever with the social media, to make commitment to what you’re doing and to undertaking consistent activity over time.

This is where the third maxim comes in.

It will only be by dedicating significant time to working ON your business and not in it that you will achieve your objective of taking the firm to the next level and avoiding the feast and famine scenario experienced by so many firms

For most professional firms their geographic target market is well defined as are the niches in which they work and the type of prospects they are wanting to get to know. LinkedIn is brilliant for professional firms, in this regard as it:

allows your search to be highly targeted; especially when searching other people’s listings of contacts; and
you can follow up by asking the connection [contact] on whose list you found someone you’d like to get to know better if they will effect an initial contact on your behalf… et voila.

It really is important that for each of the professional service areas where you offer a service that you present reputable and relevant testimonials in support, which should be complemented by video presentation testimonials.

This is really powerful if someone is in two minds as to whether they want to connect with you.

A great way to get client recommendations is to give them a testimonial first; reciprocation is then only natural.

This works great on LinkedIn as your client, the one to whom you’re giving the testimonial, has the chance to vet what you’ve said before it goes live on their LinkedIn page and at the same time they’re asked automatically if they’d like to reciprocate with a testimonial to you; which, normally they do.

. If you’re really up for building contacts then an idea is to join one of the many special interest Groups on LinkedInIn. Here you can keep up to date on matters relating to your niche and contribute via postings in the very places where your prospects and clients hang out.

I suggest just going for one or two in the first instance as there are so many and it can become a little daunting if you want to play a meaningful role in each. The more you contribute the better.

This is where you really can add value; the more you contribute the stronger will be your reputation; although this said I caution whether you’ll actually gain any new clients directly as a result of this; but, again, this said if as a result of your contribution you can then get people to go to a video series or to your website where other factors come into play then this is quite another matter.

; this is another useful way to build credibility.

as this is the first thing people see when they find you after doing a search or a follow up after you’ve made contact

As such the professional headline is very important; aim to get it really well focused and absolutely spot-on..

What they see is a box with your name, photo, and this “headline.

If you’re on the ball this doesn’t just give your position but rather sets out what you offer

This heading is filled in by default unless you manually change it in the ‘edit my profile’ section.

By using the right header this immediately indicates to a connection whether or not you might be of interest to them.

My headline, simple and to the point,, which is much better than just giving my job title, is:

Helping professional service firm business owners to get more clients and build trust using social media and online video

You should use Status Updates to open up and maintain a communication.

This is an excellent way of simply keeping in front of people.

Everyone on LinkedIn receives update emails detailing the status of their contacts; they can also see these updates on their LinkedIn homepage.

The key is to ensure that your status updates have something interesting in them.

You can ping other social networks when you add an update, such as Facebook & Twitter so as to have a broader impact;
When you see a previously valued contact update their status, and with whom you haven’t been in contact for some time, this is a good opportunity to get back in touch;anything to restart the conversation; a good ploy is to send them to a blog post that you know will be of interest or to a video, which links them into a further series of videos that they haven’t yet seen;
a great relationship builder is to put your connections into contact with each other; the key here is to be constantly looking for ways to add value in regard to all your connections, whether or not they are past or present clients because you just never know when a chance piece of support will lead to something transformational; and don’t forget
And whenever you’ve just met a prospect or a prospective partner for the first time check them out on LinkedIn; you’ll be surprised at the extraordinary insights you’ll gain.

If you’d like to view more articles like these go to our Online Video for Professionals blog

 

A video overview explaining what LinkedIn is and how it works.
Video Rating: 4 / 5