Linkedin advice: Linkedin’s real secrets

Here’s a rundown of the Linkedin Tips:

1. Create a Client-Focused Profile for Yourself

Although I don’t believe many clients actively search for potential service providers on Linkedin, they will almost always check you out there before speaking with you or meeting with you if you connect in other ways.

As a result, having a good LinkedIn profile is critical.

Most people make the mistake of treating Linkedin like an online CV.

They concentrate on their jobs, their accomplishments, and the responsibilities they’ve held over the years.

While that may be of interest to prospective employers, it is of no value to potential clients.

My best LinkedIn profile advice is straightforward: make your profile client-focused.

A client-focused profile will emphasize who you work with and how you assist them.

It should be more like how you would introduce yourself at a networking event rather than a resume.

You want a potential senior client to read it and think to themselves, “This guy could help us — and I think we could work with him.”

So concentrate on what your clients gain from working with you — and possibly include some testimonial quotes from them as well.

2. Join together Broadly speaking, but with a specific goal in mind

When I first joined Linkedin, I followed the advice to only connect with people I knew well.

In retrospect, that was a mistake.

Linkedin can be a useful tool for establishing new relationships as well as maintaining those with people you already know.

Now, I’m not saying you should connect with everyone.

However, if you have the opportunity to connect with people who may know potential clients for you, take advantage of it.

Use it as an opportunity to start a relationship with them.

After you connect, send them a message to start a conversation.

After all, you wouldn’t spend the entire time at a face-to-face networking event talking to people you already knew.

3. Use Linkedin to Boost Your Referrals

This is without a doubt the most effective Linkedin Tip I’ve given over the years for gaining new clients.

Referrals are by far the most effective strategy for acquiring new clients.

The problem is that we often don’t know who the people we know are related to.

As a result, we end up making broad requests for referrals to “any small business” or “senior executives” that rarely come true.

But imagine how powerful our referral requests would be if we knew who our contacts knew and could specifically ask for referrals to the ones who would be great clients for us.

That is exactly what you can do with Linkedin.

You can begin by investigating the connections of people you know well. People in whom you have faith would give you a strong recommendation.

If you see someone you’d like to introduce yourself to, give your contact a call or an email (but preferably a call) and politely ask them to do so.

Alternatively, you can begin by conducting a “Advanced Search” on Linkedin to look for people in the ideal industry sector for you, with the appropriate job titles, and in the appropriate geography.

Alternatively, with a premium Linkedin subscription, working in the right type of business at the right level of seniority.

When the search function returns a list of people who meet these criteria, choose to view only 2nd order connections (i.e. the connections of your direct contacts), and the list will tell you who connects you.

You can continue as before if you know them well enough. Call them and politely request an introduction or referral.

This strategy, more than any other, is used by those who have the most success using Linkedin to win clients.

However, you must ensure that you are connected to all of the people you know who are likely to be connected to your potential clients.

4. Use Groups (and Your Lead Magnet) to Convert Cold Contacts to Warm Contacts

One little-known but extremely effective strategy is to use Linkedin’s feature that allows you to send direct messages to people in the same group as you even if you’re not connected.

That means you can send them a message if you join groups that your potential clients have joined (even if they aren’t active in discussions).

You must now exercise extreme caution. Spam is an unsolicited message that attempts to sell yourself or your services to them.

And it’s even worse on Linkedin because it’s such an intimate medium, with messages primarily between people who have agreed to connect with each other.

However, if you use the message to offer them something of value (your lead magnet), you will transform a cold contact into a communication that the recipient will appreciate.

I recently ran a test campaign using this strategy, and more than 20% of the people I sent messages to offering a copy of my Pain Free Marketing Blueprint either downloaded it directly or messaged me back to thank me and request a copy.

If you’re familiar with response rates in direct mail and email marketing, you’ll notice that 20% is significantly higher than the norm.

However, it only works if you have something of value to offer rather than a sales pitch.

Utilize These Linkedin Suggestions

These are the straightforward strategies I’ve found to be the most effective for connecting with high-potential clients on Linkedin.