Internet Marketing Tools

I call the next three areas Power Points on your Linkedin Profilef your profile.  These are critical areas for achieving your goals on Linkedin.  Spend additional time completing these three items.

Recommendations

Three months ago, I was in the process of buying online a winter coat for my wife.  This is always dangerous because you need to get the size; the color and the style right or you get the product returned!  I found a coat I liked and ask my 13 year old daughter, what she thought.  She liked it.  Good sign for dad!!  Then she began reading the reviews about the coat.  She told me, “Dad, you don’t want to buy this coat.  Read the reviews.  Most of them have bad things to say about the coat.”  I did not buy the coat.  This example shows the power of social media, recommendations and reviews.

You should have at least three recommendations about you on your Linkedin profile.  Like customer testimonials for your products and services, these should be regularly changed.

Visitors read recommendations.  You are a stranger to them.  Recommendations give them insights into what you can do for them.  Request recommendations from others much like you would request a reference from them for your resume.  Make sure the recommendations are diverse enough to give the reader a good picture on how you can produce results for them.

Here’s another tip.  Give Recommendations to others on Linkedin.  You can ask each other to exchange recommendations.  Every time you make a recommendation for another person, it gets noted on your profile.  Users see this and see that you understand the business process of giving as much as you gain!

Recommendations are an important part of your Linkedin profile.

Your Photo

Experts say that 65% of the people on today’s internet social networking programs join a connection or become a friend because of the photo of the other person.  If people like what they see, they like being connected with you.

Use a professional photo head shot for your Linkedin profile.  A quick browsing of Linkedin will show you how different a professional photo stands out over the pictures of a person taken at their family more recent picnic.  Who would you rather do business with?  It’s a simple process to upload your photo from your computer.   Let your photo help achieve your Linkedin goals.

Status

You have an opportunity to type in on a regular basis the current status on what you are doing.  You know about Twitter which is the fastest growing social networking program on the internet.  Twitter has made its mark from this one feature “What are you doing now”.  You are allowed only 140 characters to complete this sentence.  Millions are joining Twitter each month. (If you are linked to Twitter, your Twitter lines will appear on your Linkedin page).

The Status Line on Linkedin can be used much like the Twitter 140 character line.  It keeps people informed.  And each time you change your status word goes all the people connected to you.

This is a very useful tool to keep fostering your business efforts.  In advertising they have the expression, “Top of the mind awareness” which means keeping your product in front of people.  You can use the Status Line function to keep yourself in front of your connections.

Since this is a business social network, most often I use the Status function to keep my business in front of my connections.   For example, I wrote recently in my status line, “Just finished a new website for a client, check it out www.dhisprinklers.com”.   I will occasionally put something more personal in this status line to show people that all work and no play make Jonnie a dull boy.

You should be updating your Status line 4-5 times per week.  It will take less than five minutes to do so.  Think of the exposure you get with this five minutes?

To be continued, your comments are welcomed…

Al Hanzal

Linkedin is a social network program.  Whether you’re looking for a job, wanting help with your business or using Linkedin to market your business, you must maximize your connections you make on the Linkedin program.

Chris Muccio, David Burns and Peggy Murrah are the authors of an e-book called 42 Rules for 24-Hour Success on Linkedin. They suggest you expand and enhance your network by using their “CAP” method.  As they describe it, you want to be more than a “billboard in a jungle”.  You want to become a “Linkedin Magnet.”  Here is their CAP approach.

C equals Content.  People want new, they want unique, they want original.   While there are standard formats and tools in Linkedin that does not mean you need to be boring.  Be as original as you can be.

A equals Awareness. Make you self known to search engines, RSS feeds, other social networkers and fellow bloggers.  Publish your URL address every time you make a post.  If you are not going to promote yourself, who is going to do it? You are competing with millions of other people outside and inside of Linkedin.

P equals Passion.  Participate properly and consistently.  Otherwise you will become the “movie of the week” and then totally forgotten.

These are simple and powerful reminders on how to make Linkedin a tool to maximize your business and professional goals.

To be continued.  Your comments are welcomed…

Al Hanzal

Before you do anything on Linkedin or use any of its functions, clarify your “Why!”  Why are you doing Linkedin?  What do you want to accomplish on this social networking program?  How will the Linkedin program fit with your other small business marketing efforts?

If you are clear about your “Why” or your purpose for using Linkedin, you can leverage your time and communications.  What is your “Why”?  Here is how others are using Linkedin.  You may want to use some of these reasons or add your own.

•    Using for job searching
•    Building and enhancing your career
•    Adding to your expertise status
•    Generating leads for your business
•    Keeping informed about your industry and competitors
•    Finding business resources to solve your business problems
•    Improving your internet presence for Google searches
•    Fostering your brand recognition
•    Increasing visibility for you and your business
•    Selling your products and services
•    Finding affiliates and joint venture partners
•    Increasing the number of business relationships
•    Finding additional talent for your business
•    Developing social relationships
•    Identifying other personal or business goals

You can have more than one “Why” or reasons for using Linkedin.  However, the more clear about a central purpose for using Linkedin, the easier it will be use this program effectively without wasting large chunks of time.

I suggest you print out this list of reasons and come up with a set of reasons that fit your situation.  We will begin to use this in the next blog entry where we create a Linkedin plan of action.

To be continued.  Your comments are welcomed…

Al