LinkedIn is a significantly underused, underrated and misunderstood tool for professionals when it comes to business development.
With LinkedIn global account numbers heading towards 750m and UK accounts approaching 29m there is a wealth of opportunities for professionals who want to grow their network and find new clients. What is it that stops people getting their LinkedIn approach right? I see one underlying major issue time after time. That issue stems from a simple question:
Why are you on LinkedIn?
Most people don’t have a clear answer for this, instead they have vague notions of ‘growing their personal band’ or ‘raising their profile’. Others have a clearer picture of why they are on LinkedIn, or rather they did have a clear picture when they Joined LinkedIn, it was to find a (new) Job. Finding a Job on LinkedIn is a great idea, I see and speak to so many people who have done just that. The challenge starts when our ‘why’ on LinkedIn starts to change. If you start from a position of looking for a job your LinkedIn profile and approach are centred around a really engaging CV. Once you have your Job, you might decide to use LinkedIn to find new clients, which is a great thing to do.
The disconnect happens when we realise we are approaching clients with a LinkedIn profile that has been designed to find you a job. You are using a powerful tool in a way that may well not connect with potential clients. Think about it this way, if a client phoned you up to ask about a new piece of work, would you offer to email then your CV? Unlikely, and if you did choose to send the CV would it get you the piece of work? Even more unlikely! If you want to find new clients on LinkedIn (if that is your “why”), you need to build a profile and presence that aligns with this. You need to have a profile that quickly and easily tells me how you might benefit me in some way. This sounds like a really simple thing to do, and it is something I have asked numerous professional to do. The starting point is a question like “what is you do to benefit your client?” Answering this question is tougher than it might appear on the surface. To get it right spend a little time thinking about the ultimate goals and issues your clients typically have and then draw up some examples of what you have really done to help, serve and support them. With those ideas and answers in mind, here are the most important things you need to do: Represent yourself well, sharing what you do, how you actually help, serve and support your clients. Build trust in every interaction and engagement. Be yourself, be authentic and personalise what you do. Spend time writing and editing your profile so it matches you current ‘why’. Tailor your profile so it leans towards your ideal clients. Doing these five things will help you get so much more from LinkedIn. It will help you engage, start a conversation with, and build relationships with potential clients. How do you go about achieving these key areas above? Spend time thinking about who your ideal clients are. Document this and have it in mind for everything you do on LinkedIn. Be specific and if you can get right down to the job titles and companies you really want to engage. This clarity of your goals will help you focus and refine what you do to move towards your ideal outcome. Look at every part of the profile that LinkedIn provides you with and ask – “how do I tailor and complete each section so it speaks to my ideal clients?”
LinkedIn gives you lots of support and help to really focus your profile building, so take some time to read their articles and review their advice. Start sharing, commenting, and engaging with content. Again, do this thinking about your ideal clients, asking yourself: Will this help my ideal clients?” “Will they want to listen to or engage with this content?” When you have done all of this you can start to build and grow your network towards your ideal clients.
With nearly 750m accounts I think you will be pleasantly surprised by how many opportunities there are for you on LinkedIn, if we can get beyond your CV based approach!
