ReportWire

Tag: Linkedin

  • Why Networking Is a Must for Successful Entrepreneurs | Entrepreneur

    Why Networking Is a Must for Successful Entrepreneurs | Entrepreneur

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Despite its widespread recognition as a valuable tool for entrepreneurs, many individuals still struggle to use networking effectively. Starting and running a business can be both exhilarating and intimidating, and it’s easy for founders to get consumed by the day-to-day tasks of running their company. Personally, it wasn’t until I started dedicating time and effort to building my network that I realized the full potential of what my business could achieve.

    After devoting time to connecting with other entrepreneurs, I established valuable relationships with potential investors who believed in my business and provided the necessary support and funding to take it to the next level. I’m sure building a network of connections is not just an optional activity for entrepreneurs but a vital tool that can lead to new opportunities, partnerships, and growth. Here are some tips on organizing your network effectively and with minimal time consumption.

    Related: Want to Earn Trust? Don’t Break Any of These 4 Links in the Chain of Credibility.

    So, what can one get from networking?

    There is a specificity of networking among entrepreneurs – it appears to be much more effective. People in our community are often aware of the benefits that connection can bring and are more readily open to building mutually beneficial relationships, which is done by:

    1. Establishing valuable connections with potential investors. I list this opportunity as the most important because finding investments is indeed one of the most challenging tasks for an entrepreneur. The personal connection allows you to build relationships with individuals who can provide support much more effectively than reaching out to them as a “cold” audience.
    2. Expanding your knowledge and learning from other founders and professionals. Exchanging best practices with people who are not your direct competitors but are present in the same region as you are or have a similar type of business in another market provides you with precious insights. You can learn from their experiences, pick up new ideas, and stay up-to-date on industry trends.
    3. Gaining access to partnerships and collaborations. In the case of B2B, people are four times more likely to purchase a solution from someone they know themselves or their friends recommended. So being open to new connections may significantly broaden your business opportunities.
    4. Building your personal brand and increasing business exposure. Apart from helping you at the moment, establishing a connection with someone can be extremely beneficial for you later on. The chance of that is higher the more you show your expertise and interact. You never know what will happen with the person you once met at a conference — maybe they will launch a successful business or become famous someday.

    Without establishing connections, each of these actions might take much longer and be more challenging. But when you get to know the person who can help you, you will reach your goals almost naturally.

    Related: 3 Powerful Networking Strategies that Never Fail

    How to make networking most effective

    The main thing to understand about networking is that it’s a two-way street. To be truly effective, it must be mutually beneficial for both parties involved. It’s not enough to be confident when approaching others, which is probably the most common advice for those looking to master this skill. To make the most of your networking efforts, it’s important to focus on building strong relationships, which requires dedicated time and effort.

    So, when choosing who to network with, it’s important to consider what you can offer in return. Think about the skills and expertise you can share, and seek out individuals who you can help and who can help you. Building relationships based on mutual respect and a give-and-take mentality will result in stronger, more meaningful connections. For example, it’s a bad idea to start the connection by asking for help. Rather, I prefer to explain how I can help the person and why the relationship would be mutually beneficial.

    One way to build strong relationships is to dedicate time each week to focus specifically on helping others. For me, it’s two hours weekly, during which I interact with people exclusively to help them. For example, have lunch with an entrepreneur who contacts you on LinkedIn or participate in an event organized by someone you know.

    Of course, it’s impossible to contact everyone, so one should focus on the potential value they will get. If a person contacts you first, I suggest you create a set of rules to follow when thinking of them or not. Personally, I pay attention to the following:

    • The size of the business: Founders of early-stage startups will find business books more useful for themselves and are unlikely to help me in return.
    • The industry: As an EdTech entrepreneur, I usually agree to meet people within the industry. However, this approach may vary depending on your goals and amount of free time.

    Make it easier for you

    Networking can be challenging for entrepreneurs for a variety of reasons. Some may feel intimidated approaching new people, or some may find it ineffective. However, the most common challenge is that one may have limited time and resources to dedicate to networking activities, making it difficult to balance with other responsibilities. By following these tips, you can reap the benefits of investing in networking:

    1. Start by participating in industry events and conferences, even if you won’t be attending with the intention of networking. Taking part in them allows you to showcase your expertise and thought leadership in your respective industry. This can increase your exposure and help build your personal brand, which, in turn, affects your network pretty directly. When starting my business and drawing attention to it through public speeches, I underestimated its impact on networking. But then I found that many people who later helped me a lot came to me on their own.
    2. Practice with friends. If you’re feeling nervous about meeting new people, start by modeling networking with friends and family. We usually give the same advice to salespeople who are afraid to call their clients at first: this helps build their confidence and gives them a solid foundation to reach out to new contacts. I’m sure there is no book or simple rule that will help one overcome fear without practicing, even in an artificial environment.
    3. Utilize LinkedIn and other social media platforms. If you’re unable or prefer not to network in person, LinkedIn is a valuable resource for connecting with others in your field. First of all, it has the same effect on the industry: it’s a great platform to share your expertise. Many underestimate how powerful a connection on the platform can be: for example, it once allowed me to reach out and negotiate calls with all the largest EdTechs in India within just one week!
    4. Don’t underestimate other people’s connections. If you fail to reach a person, ask the people you know to recommend you or get to know them to connect you with your target person. For example, when I fail to reach a venture organization, I try to connect to representatives of their portfolio companies, provide suggestions, and then ask them to connect me with the organization. Guess what? This works extremely effectively, even if it’s just via LinkedIn.

    These easy techniques will help you utilize your time most effectively without investing too much effort.

    Related: 3 Steps to Make Networking Easier

    Never stop expanding your network.

    Networking is a critical tool for entrepreneurs looking to grow and succeed in their businesses. Only by investing time and effort into building strong relationships can you unlock the full potential of your business. The broader your network is, the more opportunities you gain, and the more time you have to find them. Starting may be challenging, but it will become natural eventually.

    [ad_2]

    Roman Kumar Vyas

    Source link

  • 4 Ways to Grow Your LinkedIn Following in 2023 | Entrepreneur

    4 Ways to Grow Your LinkedIn Following in 2023 | Entrepreneur

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    The future of TikTok is uncertain. Twitter is in a period of tumult. Instagram engagement is down. So what social platform is best for entrepreneurs to focus on? Consider the ever-sturdy LinkedIn.

    By building a strong network on LinkedIn, entrepreneurs can establish valuable connections, share insights and thought leadership, and establish themselves as industry experts.

    I asked the people making the biggest waves on LinkedIn what they’re doing right. Here are their tips.

    Related: 5 LinkedIn Content Ideas for Entrepreneurs to Boost Growth and Visibility in 2023

    1. Share the real you

    Gone are the days when LinkedIn was all about buttoned-up, conservative posts meant to show how professional you are. My own best-performing post was one where I included my first rejection letter—from when I was 12 years old—adding my thoughts about staying determined.

    Honestly, I owe most of my success on Linked to Justin Welsh, the founder of The Diversified Solopreneur and creator of one of the most popular courses on LinkedIn around (it has helped over 10,000 students—including me—rack up 3,497,000,000+ impressions on LinkedIn).

    According to Welsh, generic “Here’s how to be a better leader” content may have worked in yesteryear. Still, now that entrepreneurs have started flooding LinkedIn, it takes a lot more than the general stuff to get the right kind of follower.

    “Everyone will share things like ‘The ten steps for this or that,’” he says. “But the person who writes things that show their unique journey will stand out and attract a sticky kind of follower that goes on that journey with them.”

    Executive LinkedIn Trainer and Advisor, Tara Horstmeyer, believes that the emergence of AI means video, and going “live” will become more critical since video increases the authenticity angle.

    “Any time you can get your face, your words, your voice, just your personality out there visually, it’s going to help,” she says.

    On the other hand, Welsh avoids video and instead emphasizes writing posts that go against the grain.

    “It’s not just about what you write about but also what you’re against,” he says. “I write a lot about building your own business as an entrepreneur, but I also write about the opposite of that, which is how I’m against the traditional nine-to-five. In a world of 4.9 billion Internet-connected people, contrarian viewpoints help you stand out.”

    2. Remember that it’s human psychology first, algorithm second

    Because LinkedIn consistently rolls out new features, it can be easy to be swayed by people who swear that the algorithm favors newsletters or content posted through scheduling platforms won’t be seen as widely. Ultimately, no algorithm can beat out a basic understanding of what makes people tick.

    “Human beings have worked the same way for hundreds of years,” says Welsh. “The person that grows the most in 2023 will ride the wave of trends but also get the basics right by knowing their audience and their ideal customer profile, telling stories, being empathetic, learning copywriting, and understanding the customer journey.”

    3. Engagement is the name of the game

    While success on any social media platform involves interacting, on LinkedIn, it’s crucial. That means seeking out people like you and commenting on their posts, as opposed to just responding to comments that people make on your posts.

    Still, it’s not just about tossing a thumbs up or writing “Great post” and going away. It’s about reading(sometimes quite long) posts and providing thoughtful responses.

    An advantage to commenting on other people’s posts is that, according to Horstmeyer, “you find your voice, you find how you like to write, and you find your people.” The currency of LinkedIn is, she says, support and reciprocity. “That generosity you’re already giving is going to come back to you as people start to support your content,” she says.

    Welsh agrees. “If you come in you drop a piece of really high-quality content and go away,you can still reap the rewards of publishing quality content but you won’t grow as fast or grow an audience as deep as if you interact on a regular basis,” he says.

    4. Embrace the journey

    Unlike TikTok, where one well-timed post can send you into virality, there are no get-big-quick schemes on LinkedIn. Welsh, who has over 340,000 followers and can attract thousands of comments and likes on his posts, has been showing up consistently for over four years.

    Welsh and Horstmeyer each estimate that they spend between 45 minutes and an hour a day on LinkedIn, with their time divided into posting, replying to comments, and engaging with other people’s posts.

    In the end, just like anything worth having, the unsexy act of showing up day after day is what’s going to be effective in 2023.

    “I always tell people, ‘Removing friction from consistency is the most important thing,’” Welsh says. “So, for example, I like to write, so I write — every day.”

    [ad_2]

    Anna David

    Source link

  • Man Asks Woman Out Via LinkedIn: ‘Red Flag’ or ‘Classy’? | Entrepreneur

    Man Asks Woman Out Via LinkedIn: ‘Red Flag’ or ‘Classy’? | Entrepreneur

    [ad_1]

    The internet is debating whether or not looking for dates on LinkedIn is a “classy” move or a “red flag.”

    [ad_2]

    Emily Rella

    Source link

  • 7 Ways to Supercharge Your Brand Visibility on LinkedIn

    7 Ways to Supercharge Your Brand Visibility on LinkedIn

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    As a SaaS brand, chances are that a lot of your target users are on LinkedIn. The platform has about 90 million of its 830 million registered users as senior-level influencers and 63 million users who are in decision-making positions.

    This makes LinkedIn the preferred organic content marketing hub for 95% of B2B content marketers and a great place to build brand visibility. With the right visibility, you can leverage the opportunities on LinkedIn to generate lots of leads and conversions for your B2B SaaS brand.

    Here are seven ways to supercharge your brand visibility on LinkedIn to get the best results:

    Related: 7 Ways You Can Use LinkedIn To Blow Up Your Brand

    1. Create and optimize your LinkedIn page

    First things first, create a company page for your brand. LinkedIn allows you to create a company page simply as you would create a personal page. This is the first step to giving credibility and visibility to your SaaS brand on LinkedIn.

    However, there is more to be done than just creating a company page with your company name. Optimizing your page is a necessary next step.

    LinkedIn helps you through the process of optimizing your page by identifying steps you should follow to provide useful information that helps your brand visibility on LinkedIn. Optimizing your LinkedIn profile page helps you appear easily on related searches and suggestions. This means you can become easily visible to your target users.

    Here are a few ways you can optimize your profile page:

    • Add an image to your profile page

    • Write compelling and interesting “About” information

    • Write a strategic headline

    • Put up information about your products and/or services

    2. Use keywords for SEO

    LinkedIn is one of the largest platforms that can make you easily visible on search engines. Content published using the LinkedIn Publisher tool is available on Google searches. Also, there is a good chance for your LinkedIn page to pop up during Google searches related to your industry. This is the power of keywords at work.

    Even more, LinkedIn serves as a go-to search engine for professional content for many people. This is why you must create the right content that attracts traffic to your page during searches.

    Using keywords to boost your brand visibility is great if the keywords are related to your company’s specialties. For example, a CRM brand can use keywords like customer journey, workflow automation and customer relationship in its page description and content.

    3. Post valuable content regularly

    To be successful at brand visibility for your B2B brand on LinkedIn, you need good content. You also need to constantly make updates. There is a high demand for content on LinkedIn, so chances are that your post will reach a lot of people. Doing this often means a more engaged audience and more visibility.

    Posts could be on industry trends, user case studies, updates on company activities or useful information on your products and services.

    Related: Use These 5 Simple Hacks to Become a LinkedIn Marketing Master

    4. Data analytics measure performance

    One of the best ways to improve results is by checking your performance indicators. Analytics allows you to observe what you are doing right. This is in terms of knowing the kind of content your audience engages in the most.

    LinkedIn insights show you the engagements, impressions, discovery and performance of your content. This helps you decide if you are reaching the right demographic of users and the best way to deliver your content on LinkedIn.

    5. Use relevant plugins

    These could be in the form of sales tools, automation tools, engagement tools or marketing tools.

    Plugins can be free or paid, but with them, you can get access to many features that can be game-changing for your brand. Some of the tools you can find valuable are LinkedIn Sales Navigator, SocialPilot and plugins like LinkedIn Alumni Tool and LinkedIn Autofill.

    A few others are:

    • LinkedIn Connection Revealer: This tool reveals the people your connections follow. Knowing who your connections roll with can help you decide which of your connections has the target audience you can leverage.

    • Headlinr: This is a paid chrome plugin that helps you generate the best headlines for your content using keywords. This is great because the right headline can attract great traffic to your content and improve your brand exposure.

    6. Make the right connections

    LinkedIn is built for connections. Unlike other social media platforms that give you a “follow” button as an option, LinkedIn comes with a “connect” button instead.

    True to its name, you can form connections with over 830 million users in different industries. However, the best way to get the most out of your LinkedIn connection is to connect with users in your industry. This includes employees that work in brands that may have a need for your products.

    To build your connection, you can connect with users that you know or have worked with. You can also check out prospects who view your page content and invite them to connect with you. Also, LinkedIn connections are all about creating a network. You can join groups on LinkedIn that focus on your industry. You can find people to connect with in these groups, and you can also share your content if it is permissible.

    Related: How To Build Your Brand On LinkedIn, According to LinkedIn and Branding Insiders

    7. Use hashtags

    Like in any other social media platform, hashtags make your content viral faster to a target group of users who engage with the hashtag you use. This works just the same for LinkedIn. Your content can reach more than just your connections if you use engaging content to draw other users in.

    For example, using #mondaymotivation for thought leadership content or #dataanalytics for content on that topic can make your content visible to people who look those topics up. This is one of the easiest ways to gain more connections and exposure on your LinkedIn.

    So, while LinkedIn is the preferred organic content marketing hub, some businesses have yet to maximize their use of LinkedIn for brand visibility. Whether you are just starting or you are looking for new ways to improve your brand visibility on LinkedIn, this article will give you a good start.

    [ad_2]

    Toby Nwazor

    Source link

  • 5 LinkedIn Content Creation Ideas for Entrepreneurs in 2023

    5 LinkedIn Content Creation Ideas for Entrepreneurs in 2023

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    LinkedIn is an untapped opportunity for entrepreneurs that are looking to stand out in a cluttered marketplace. For over 20 years, the platform has grown into a thriving social media ecosystem for business leaders to connect with customers in their networks. Today, it’s one of the best personal branding channels for entrepreneurs to position their expertise and attract a much wider defined audience.

    As an entrepreneur, LinkedIn is your entryway to making authentic business connections that lead to growth and sales. With over 8.2 million C-level executives on LinkedIn, it’s the right place for you to spend your networking time. It offers you access to connect to business leaders with the potential to boost your visibility and credibility in front of these important project decision-makers.

    Content is the main ingredient to make this happen. And you have to post quality content that is insightful, educational, original, and personable — to stand out in this crowded space.

    Here are the five types of content you can post on LinkedIn for more growth and visibility, which will position you as a thought leader in your industry while also placing your expertise above the competition.

    Related: When LinkedIn is Good for Entrepreneurs, and When It Isn’t

    First, define your main message

    Before you can publish content, you have to establish your main brand message.

    As an entrepreneur, defining your main message takes personal reflection. Your message is one-half: the core service that you provide and how it helps your clients. The second half is about you: what makes you unique, how you help clients and your defined expertise in a specific topic. How do you want to be known in your industry? What is the main story you want to tell?

    Defining your brand message is the first step. It’s the core ingredient that can turn unsuccessful content into thriving, sales-generating content. Once you have the core message, you can start defining sub-topics that you can eventually turn into written content.

    Your main message will be a centerpiece of your content creation, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have the opportunity to write content outside of your core. A collection of content around your main message, personal interests and your brand’s success stories — that content is what translates to long-term growth.

    You need all the pieces of this working formula.

    Next up: Determine your boundaries

    Every entrepreneur has a different comfort level regarding what they share on social media. Some like to share a lot — and some like to keep certain topics private.

    That is absolutely okay, but your boundaries need to be determined early on. Mainly, because personal content does perform well on LinkedIn, but it’s a slippery slope for many.

    You will have to get personal on LinkedIn, but it’s within your power to determine how much. Remember, you want to both entertain and educate your audience. Both pieces are important to reaching your LinkedIn goals.

    Related: 7 Ways You Can Use LinkedIn To Blow Up Your Brand

    5 types of content to post on LinkedIn

    Here are five types of content that you can start publishing on LinkedIn today.

    1. Trends, reports and predictions: Educate your audience on the latest industry insights from your sector. Simply research the latest reports, add a paragraph or two of your personal insights and tag the resource. This is great content to position yourself as a knowledgeable person who understands what is happening within their industry. Insider tip: Share the content “as a document” PDF.
    2. How-to guides: Many LinkedIn users want to learn from others in their industry, so share your expertise. How-to or informative guides are a great way to share your knowledge and insights. Insider tip: Share the content “as a document” PDF.
    3. Personal events content: Did you determine your boundaries? The fact is that personalized content performs well on LinkedIn. You have to get personal to create authentic connections and humanize your brand. My go-to advice: connect a personal experience, hobby or event to a business lesson.
    4. Company brand content: People want to share in your success, but you have to share the content correctly. Business leaders often share content directly from their brand’s company page. This is extremely boring. Again, you want to give your personal input and ideas about what is happening at the company. Share what those announcements mean to you personally — or maybe, what the journey was like to get to that achievement. That is more interesting.
    5. Stories of growth: Everyone loves a good story. Tell the story of how you worked through and overcame a specific challenge. As an entrepreneur, you can share regular insights into the struggles of building a team or product — and the obstacles that you had to overcome.

    Related: 3 Ways to Supercharge Your LinkedIn Marketing Today for Tomorrow’s Growth

    These are five topic ideas that you can start using on LinkedIn today. Your success on LinkedIn is greatly dependent on posting a collection of educational and entertaining content. Take these ideas — and write your own topics to get started.

    [ad_2]

    Megan Thudium

    Source link

  • How to Add Twitter to Your Marketing Strategy

    How to Add Twitter to Your Marketing Strategy

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When you think about social media ads for business-to-business marketing (B2B), Twitter is not the standard choice. Twitter often serves as an afterthought that only a few companies leverage their campaigns and invest their efforts in. LinkedIn is still the titan for finding leads for B2B marketing. After all, it’s the melting pot of all things business – from tech leaders, emerging startups and solution seekers to networking with industry giants.

    Twitter is an entirely different beast. For one, it displayed a significant growth plateau in 2014, leading to analyst downgrades and stock drops. Plus, the steadfast growth of Facebook, Google and LinkedIn made Twitter secondary for B2B marketing. That being said, it’s no stranger to redemption. In fact, 2022 research shows that advertisers could reach up to 486 million active Twitter users — a 4.5% increase in just three months before July.

    Effective leaders understand the goldmine behind this platform. While you need to have LinkedIn for qualified leads and finding people hungry for solutions, a multi-channel distribution strategy is the difference-maker. Remember that social media is all about engagement and connection, and optimizing your ads on many platforms is critical.

    What’s paramount is knowing how to efficiently navigate the Twitter ad space, including the type of ads to use, learning your customization options and the quality of your content. This will not only help you reach your target audience effectively, but it will also drive bottom-of-the-funnel clicks to apps, landing pages and websites successfully.

    Related: You are Missing Out if You Don’t Use Twitter. Here’s 3 Reasons Why.

    1. Promoted ads

    Like boosted posts on Facebook, Twitter’s Promoted Ads are some of the most common features marketers use to reach a target demographic. They look like regular tweets and come with a promoted tag at the bottom-left corner – relatively simple yet yield a high ROI.

    Promoted Ads are flexible. Whether you want to include images, links, or videos, the multitude of content you can use for brand awareness amplification is abundant. This allows marketers to showcase products, solutions and company culture in a straightforward yet nuanced manner.

    Related: 10 Marketing Strategies to Fuel Your Business Growth

    2. Follower ads

    A proven way to gain a broader reach on Twitter is through Follower Ads. This enables your account to be at the front and center of suggested Twitter users in the Who to Follow section. Not only does this put your brand on a pedestal, but it can also help curate your circle of who’s interested in what you offer, ensuring a junk-free network through a condensed base of followers. As with Promoted Ads, Follower Ads come with a promoted tag that serves as a distinction from other account recommendations. According to Business Twitter, users who follow you through Follower Ads are more likely to convert into advocates or fans, producing not just one-time customers but long-lasting relationships.

    3. Trend and timeline takeovers

    Trend Takeovers are premium ads designed explicitly for massive accounts to occupy the top spot of their targeted users’ trending section on mobile apps and web browsers. This is ideal for enterprise brands with optimal resources, a solid following and an established identity, as self-managed accounts don’t have access to this. If you want to take it a step further, Trend Takeover+ adds a video to your message, creating an immersive story that’s not only eye-catching but is also a proven conversation starter.

    On the other hand, Timeline Takeover puts your brand on top of your targeted user’s feed, giving you instant visibility as soon as they open their app. Twitter’s mass awareness ad package is exclusive and lasts for a day. And just like Trend, Timeline also comes with an auto-play video that instantly gives users a visual narrative of your campaign.

    Related: Fake Accounts and Bots: Is Marketing on Twitter Worth It?

    4. Twitter live

    There’s a common misconception that Twitter Live is strictly for business-to-consumer marketing (B2C). Forward-thinking leaders and marketers know that this feature is also essential for B2B brands for selling products and solutions and providing off-the-cuff nuances that hyper-personalize and humanize brands. For example, companies can use this feature to broadcast business events and seminars that instantly drive conversations with their followers.

    Other Twitter ad features

    Other Twitter Ad features that help brands increase the functionality of their campaign include polls, conversation buttons or CTAs, app buttons, website buttons, branded notifications and branded hashtags. These amplify your chosen ads that trigger click-throughs, engagement and retweets.

    Ultimately, the goal is to have a bulletproof set of tactics and strategies for exploring the targeting capabilities of social media. With Twitter, the key is not to confine your brand to outdated practices for B2B. While it targets business folks, it’s important to remember that humans are susceptible to creativity, humor, out-of-the-box thinking and engaging storytelling.

    Learn what ad type fits the brand best, back it up with high-quality content, and maneuver your campaign with smarts and wits.

    [ad_2]

    Yoel Israel

    Source link

  • 3 Ways to Supercharge Your LinkedIn Marketing Today for Tomorrow’s Growth

    3 Ways to Supercharge Your LinkedIn Marketing Today for Tomorrow’s Growth

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    LinkedIn is “the place to be” for online professional networking. But why is that? Why do more than 830 million business professionals from over 200 countries use the platform?

    There’s no simple answer, but there are a few foundational reasons to employ a LinkedIn marketing campaign: to grow your professional network, to identify high-quality leads, to drive targeted traffic to your website and to share thought-leadership content.

    Knowing why you should use LinkedIn is a good start, but it’s only that. A generic approach isn’t likely to generate the results you’re seeking. You need to supercharge your LinkedIn marketing efforts, and here are three of the best ways to do so.

    Related: 7 Ways You Can Use LinkedIn To Blow Up Your Brand

    Ask your team for help

    You can make a lot of noise on LinkedIn as a single person, but there’s no reason to stop there. Ask your team to get involved. As the most reputable and reliable advocates of your brand, they can expand your reach in just a few short minutes each day.

    Ensure that all employees have updated their profiles to reflect their position at your company. Request that they follow your company page. Encourage them to share personal and brand-related updates. And of course, support them on their quest to provide value to their audience.

    Another idea is to create a LinkedIn Group related to your industry. This is a win-win. It’s a place for your team to share news, guidance, and advice with interested parties, while also building an audience that you can use to your advantage in the future.

    If resources allow for it, hire a dedicated employee or contractor to manage your LinkedIn marketing strategy. With a singular focus, this person can make a bigger impact in a shorter period of time. It’s not required, but keep it on your radar.

    Related: 8 Tips to Help You Grow Your Business on LinkedIn

    Consistently publish relevant, insightful content

    A social network with so many users is sure to generate quite a bit of low-quality content, but you don’t want to be part of this group. Be part of the group that consistently publishes relevant, insightful and actionable content. That’s how you stand out from the crowd.

    Creating engaging content is a trial-and-error process. It takes time to pinpoint your audience’s needs and find a cadence that works for you, so don’t jump ship too soon. It could take days, weeks or even months to hit your content-related goals for the first time.

    Increase your odds of success by:

    • Consistently sharing content (1x/day, 2x/day, 5x/week, etc.).
    • Publishing unique (not rehashed) insights
    • Tracking what does and doesn’t work and adjusting accordingly

    Also, keep in mind that publishing original content is only one piece of the puzzle. It’s good practice to engage with your audience in the comment section of their posts. Share your take, answer questions and — when appropriate — send direct messages to continue the conversation in private.

    Don’t bite off more than you can chew early on. Start slowly to gain your footing and to better understand the wants and needs of your audience. As you settle in, ramp up content production without sacrificing quality. A slow and steady ascent is the best approach.

    Related: Navigating the Great Reshuffle: Why Your Employer Brand is Key in Recruiting Talent

    Get serious about analytics for your content

    This one word — analytics — can be the difference between success and failure on LinkedIn. Creating content is only the start. Knowing what’s resonating with your audience is what really matters. This allows you to continually adjust your strategy with the goal of reaching a larger audience and boosting engagement.

    You can view analytics for all types of LinkedIn content including short-form posts, articles, videos, images, polls and events. This includes data such as:

    • Engagements
    • Discovery
    • Impressions by demographics
    • Article performance
    • Video performance

    These insights are needed to understand the impact your content has on your audience. Soon enough, you’ll have the data you need to determine what type of content generates the best response. You can then create more content that matches what’s worked to date.

    While it’s important to get serious about analytics for your LinkedIn content, don’t let it cloud your vision. Know what matters most to you — such as making industry connections or generating leads — and create content that points you in that direction. Vanity metrics will make you feel good, but they don’t always have the intended impact on your bottom line.

    Related: The Underrated Power of LinkedIn Content Creation

    Repurpose your LinkedIn content

    The guidance above will help you supercharge your LinkedIn marketing, but it can do more than that. It’s a good jumping-off point for growth on other platforms and channels marketing professionals will use to their advantage.

    Examples include repurposing the content for publication on Twitter and Facebook, using it as a foundation for blog content or sharing it with your email list via a weekly newsletter. When you repurpose content, you give it new life. And with that, you’re taking the steps necessary to establish your authority and grow your brand on other platforms.

    [ad_2]

    Austin Rotter

    Source link

  • Boost Your Brand Using Social Media Platforms That Are Often Overlook

    Boost Your Brand Using Social Media Platforms That Are Often Overlook

    [ad_1]

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Did you know that there are at least 133 social media platforms in existence? Clearly, with so many, it’s not practical to be on all platforms. Therefore, it’s key for you to choose the networks that make sense for your brand strategically.

    Instead of focusing on the most common social media platforms out there (think Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and Instagram), we’re going to discuss some extremely invaluable social networks that brands quite often overlook. Let’s discuss their benefits and how they can assist you in connecting with your customers, boosting brand awareness and increasing leads and, thus, sales.

    1. What type of business do you have?

    Are you a business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C) brand? You want to establish a social media presence where your core target audience is. A B2B business, for example, fares better with networks like LinkedIn, where you can establish a digital relationship with key individuals within organizations you wish to enter into business with. B2C companies (especially those with physical products) can thrive on a picture-based site like Pinterest or Reddit, where super fans can start discussion threads.

    Related: The Business of Harnessing the Power of Social Media

    2. Which channel best fits your social goals?

    Knowing your audience is essential, but so is being aware of your social goals. Are you looking to interact with customers and get feedback? Do you want to showcase your offerings? Or are you simply looking to sit in chat rooms to hear what the masses want? There’s a unique platform for each of these needs. Below are five such platforms and how each can align with your social media strategies.

    3. Which channels are competitors using?

    You know how the saying goes: Keep your friends close, keep your enemies closer. An easy way to see which platforms could work best for you is to simply research which networks your current competitors are active on. You’ll be able to see their engagement, the type of content that’s popular and how often you should post. Instead of trying to acquire as much social media real estate as you can, focus instead on what’s working for others.

    Now, onto platforms that brands often overlook and why they should be considered to help increase your brand awareness, reach your target audience and drive sales.

    Related: How to Succeed on Social Media By Using Your Competitors

    The world’s largest professional network: LinkedIn

    Most professionals use LinkedIn, but are you using it to boost your brand awareness? As of July 2022, there was a whopping 849.6 million worldwide users — its top users being boomers, Gen X and millennials.

    The platform gives you a powerful search engine to conduct market research and learn who’s who in your industry. It enables you to link up directly with peers you wish to collaborate with. It also acts as a lead generation funnel through features like the LinkedIn Creator Accelerator Program. Here you can learn and gain resources, such as how-to guides on building a robust newsletter list and guidance on developing content ideas to grow your audience.

    You also have the opportunity to build your brand by becoming a thought leader when you publish authoritative niche content. The best part about using LinkedIn is that you can build a massive network with just their basic free service.

    The leading local business connector: Nextdoor

    As of July 2022, Nextdoor boasted 69 million users. With a user demographic consisting of boomers, Gen X, and millennials, this B2C platform is best used by those seeking to boost brand awareness and desire to market locally.

    Founded in 2008, Nextdoor is a social networking platform explicitly designed to help people from different neighborhoods stay up to date on the latest neighborhood news and find local service-provider recommendations.

    The best way to connect with buyers is to claim your free business page. This helps you establish a presence within your local community. Secondly, you can ask loyal customers to leave recommendations to help rank your page, so your business appears in neighborhood search results.

    Stay in touch with the community through business posts where you can share news and press releases. Lastly, advertising your sales and promotions via Nextdoor Ads is a cost-effective way to generate leads and convert them into willing buyers.

    Related: Are Nextdoor Ads the Best New Way to Gain Local Customers?

    The biggest visual discovery engine: Pinterest

    Pinterest is like a storehouse of pictures. It’s a repository where you’ll find images to draw inspiration for your own campaigns. 85% of people on the platform use it as the starting point for new projects.

    The platform’s global reach means it has a strong following, with 433 million worldwide users as of July 2022. It’s a popular site among millennials, but Gen X, Gen Z, and boomers also command a strong presence.

    Pinterest is B2C-focused and can be used for brand discovery. Use it to establish and curate your brand through visual means. You can successfully leverage this social media platform by investing in quality product/service pictures and optimizing them as you upload them to Pinterest. Moreover, by ensuring your pictures link back to your website, Pinterest becomes a vehicle that drives your sales and traffic. Just look at the numbers: 80% of active Pinterest users claim to discover new products and or brands while browsing the platform.

    That’s not all, however. Thanks to Pinterest’s high domain authority, any published content on the platform has greater visibility on different search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo.

    The new kid on the block: Clubhouse

    Clubhouse was all the rage in 2020 when the platform first launched. The audio-only app’s biggest marketing hack had been its elitist “invite-only” strategy.

    However, as the platform moved from its iOS-exclusive offering and more people joined, the hype died down. That’s not to say B2B and B2C companies can’t use it to engage the mostly millennial user base. With a strong user base of at least 10 million and a plethora of virtual discussions taking place in different rooms, there’s no shortage of places where you can learn from other professionals within your industry and the needs and wants of your consumer.

    You can also take advantage of the platform to hear reviews directly from your consumers in real time. Host live discussions, Q&A sessions and different types of virtual events. Participate in relevant conversations by joining industry-specific rooms and collaborate with peers by engaging in their conversations.

    You can gain insight into new campaigns and even products by paying attention to different niche conversations. By actively listening, you can easily identify gaps in your industry that you could potentially meet based on what people are complaining about.

    When it comes to drawing attention to your brand and generating leads, you can do this by hosting brand-affiliated interviews, fireside chats and panels. In addition, you can also sponsor room events. Team members can engage in these events if needed. Otherwise, most hosts are happy to give sponsoring brands a shoutout to promote your product or service during the session.

    Related: 5 Foolproof Ways to Generate Leads Through Social Media

    The go-to social news site and forum: Reddit

    Reddit is nearly as old as Facebook, having been founded in Medford, Massachusetts, in 2005. And like most social media apps, it is free to join hence its 48 million monthly U.S. user base. The platform is a news website-slash-social-forum making it great for both B2B and B2C brands. With 64% of Reddit’s users being 18 to 29-year-olds, the site positions itself as a powerful marketing tool if your products or services have this demographic as a target audience.

    Growing your brand on the platform can be done in various ways. You can interact with customers by asking them to share pictures of themselves for shoutouts or to win prizes, start sub-Reddit threads to discuss features of your products or answer troubleshooting questions, create sub-Reddit threads with brand-loyal super fans who’re willing to monitor and curate threads, and announce your latest news and any upcoming conferences, webinars and events.

    The point is there are more social media platforms besides Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram. So take time to develop a social media strategy for each new platform. Curate your presence within the different subcultures and communities existing online.

    [ad_2]

    Adebukola Ajao

    Source link