How To Use LinkedIn For Business In 2022

If you’re a small business owner, you’ve probably already built up a presence on social media. But are you using the right types of content on LinkedIn? This platform is about so much more than just keeping an eye on your professional network or advertising job opportunities – stopping there could see you miss out on a marketing goldmine. 

Here, we identify some key components of a LinkedIn marketing strategy, including:

• Building your personal and business page
• Showcasing the personality and knowledge behind your brand
• Interacting with your network and industry
• Using images, video and targeted ads

Ready to take a deeper dive into the benefits of these areas? Let’s look at how to use LinkedIn for business… 

Optimise your personal LinkedIn profile 

Personal branding is bigger than ever, and making sure your LinkedIn profile is portraying the story you want to tell prospective clients is crucial. If you can’t remember the last time you viewed your profile to check it’s an accurate reflection of what you do, it’s probably in need of some TLC before you start investing time in using this platform for your business.

Start by making your headline more than just a job title – you might share your title with thousands of others in your industry, so what is it that makes you different? Similarly, use your bio to outline what you do but make it more than just an online resume. What inspires you? What are you most proud of? 

Be sure to include relevant keywords to help your profile rank in search results too, as well as in LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index. Getting your SSI score can show you how well you’re already performing on LinkedIn, and it also gives you actionable tips on where to focus your personal activity.

Set up your LinkedIn business page

Now you’re ready to invest time in your company’s page. LinkedIn may not be the sexiest social media platform, but it still provides plenty of opportunities for you to flaunt your brand’s personality – from the ‘About’ tab to your pictures. 

It’s also worth considering the hashtags you use. These are a great tool for reaching a wider audience, and you can also scroll through hashtag feeds to see what other people have to say about industry topics. 

When it comes to developing a trusting relationship between you and your audience, transparency is key. Being open and honest about who you are, what you do and what you offer ultimately makes you more relatable and approachable – both qualities that prospects are much more likely to respond to.

Show off your brand and its expertise

With your profiles complete, you can get to work on putting them in front of the right people. Never underestimate the power of showing off your expertise – it’s one of your greatest assets, after all. So, if blog posts are part of your marketing strategy, share them with LinkedIn as a status update. Or if long-form content isn’t your thing, you can share:

• Personal news relevant to your brand
• Something you’ve worked on recently
• Funny office conversations or rituals 
• Something that made you smile this week

Ask questions, run polls, and offer up your opinion on industry news too. These are all great ways to position yourself as a thought leader with your finger firmly on the pulse.

Next up is how your brand looks. It’s no secret that content with great images increases engagement – and LinkedIn is no different. Why not give people an insight into the humans behind your organisation by attaching a carousel of staff pictures to your posts? This puts faces to names, and helps your audience connect more effectively with your brand.

Along with pictures to supplement your posts, don’t be afraid to use video content. Videos auto-play in the feed, meaning you can increase your chances of views and engagement. Our top tip? Add captions for the viewers scrolling by on mute.

Involve and engage your professional network

It goes without saying that your activity on LinkedIn shouldn’t be one-way. If you’re not considering how your network fits into the picture when posting, your reach and engagement is bound to be limited.

So, how can you avoid this? We recommend making use of tagging and sharing features to shout about any clients or customers you have. Supporting the content published by affiliate brands or those in your networking groups is a great way to align yourself with them – and they may even return the favour. Also, look out for comments on posts and mentions of your brand, and respond to messages in a timely manner.

Your team members can help too. Get them to stamp you loud and proud on their work experience section – as well as interact with your statuses – and you’ll merge your network with theirs to boost your reach. 

Last but by no means least, carving out a presence in niche industry groups is another proven method of providing real value to qualified audiences. Since you’re interacting with people who are already interested in what you’ve got to say, your posts should go down well here. Just remember the golden rule: only ever posting salesy messages about your product or service is a big no-no.

Generate leads organically and with targeted ads 

Although marketing goals may vary from business to business, lead generation is a mainstay in any strategy. Unsurprisingly, as a platform made up of professionals with purchasing power who are already eager to network, LinkedIn is the perfect place to brush shoulders with them. And there are a number of ways to do it:

• Organic – Expand your network and invite people to connect by leveraging your personal profile. Of course, there’s no guarantee that everyone will want your services straightaway, but this is a short-term gain and a long-term strategy. Not only does a connection make for a friendly wave, but it also puts your content on prospects’ feeds so they can get to know you and your brand over time.

• Organic – LinkedIn’s ‘Who Viewed Your Profile?’ feature gives you a sneaky heads-up as to who exactly may be interested in your services, and allows you to examine the types of people who are viewing your profile. For instance, perhaps a lot of people from a particular company or industry have been scoping you out. You can then go on to consider content that uniquely appeals to their needs or interests.

• Paid-for – When you’re ready to go one step further, consider advertising on the platform. LinkedIn’s targeted ads allow you to get to the heart of the audiences you’re trying to reach based on profile data like industry, company size, job title, function, and seniority. This also allows you to access your identified target market beyond your network of connections.

• Paid-for – Recently, LinkedIn even introduced nifty lead gen forms to ads and sponsored InMails. Users can send you their professional info in exchange for things like a downloadable, webinar access, or a product demo. 

How can Making You Content help?

As you can see, LinkedIn’s marketing potential goes far beyond filling job vacancies – it’s capable of growing your business by attracting, engaging and nurturing your ideal audience. Think of it as your brand’s shop window, as well as a crucial direct line of communication.

At Making You Content, we recognise the power of this platform. With our social media expertise, we can build a strategy that allows you to get the very most out of LinkedIn – and any other platforms where your target market hangs out – with a mix of organic and paid social support. If you don’t already have one, we can even create a LinkedIn business page for you – taking care of the initial set-up all the way through to community management.

Ready to tap into LinkedIn’s potential? Let’s talk! Our team will discuss how best to share your message with the world.