USING LINKEDIN FOR SUCCESS

August 2012

AGENDA Why is LinkedIn Important? Optimize your Profile 4 Quick Power User Tips Using Advanced Search Viewing Profiles to Make Connections Sharing Content Using Industry Groups Events Using LinkedIn Answers Using LinkedIn Premium

Using Inmail Using OpenLink

LinkedIn Etiquette Resources, Webinars and Help

WHY IS LINKEDIN IMPORTANT? LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 120 million

members and growing rapidly. Your LinkedIn profile is discoverable through the millions of searches on

search engines and on LinkedIn. You are in complete control over what others see on your profile, so leverage

this to showcase your skills and talents so the right people and opportunities find you.

You can stay in touch with colleagues and friends You can explore opportunities and find experts, ideas, customers and clients

BENEFITS FOR SALES PERSONNEL

Find information about prospects to prepare for your meeting Maintain relationships with prospects or customers Receive recommendations which are visible for everyone and in particular for

prospects and customers.

Visibility, reputation and online branding of yourself and of the organization you work for

Receive notifications when someone changes jobs. In this way you can ask to be introduced to the person who replaces them.

Hear about trends in the market place from customers, prospects and other sales people

Make sure that customers and prospects regard you as an expert (and as a consequence trust you and are happy to refer you and work with you)

OPTIMIZE YOUR PROFILEA completed profile is the best way to:●Earn online trust and credibility●Show off your professional achievements●Provide a good track record with future clients customers●Increase visibility for you as an individual and your company

OPTIMIZE YOUR PROFILE – FILL IT IN

Fill out your profile to at least 85% Upload a professional-looking image of yourself. Add relevant keywords to your profile. Edit profile to claim vanity URL

e.g. www.linkedincom/yourname

Make your profile publicly available and allow anyone to add you. Add connections: colleagues, clients, industry contacts, friends, etc.

Complete the summary section of your profile – this is your chance to describe who you are.

POWER USER TIPS Make it a habit to send a LinkedIn connection invitation to

customers, prospects, partners, colleagues after every meeting Your prospects LinkedIn connections are likely to include other

people working in the same company and colleagues working in similar roles in other companies.

Regularly deliver value to your first degree connections If you plan on asking them for favours and to introduce to

important sales connections then you need to stay in touch with your first connections and deliver value to them

POWER USER TIPS● Get introduced to “Super Connectors”

● “Super connectors” are people with hundreds of first connections. Your goal should always be to be introduced and ultimately connected to these people. Even if they do not fit your profile, they can help you expand your extended LinkedIn network.

● Be active in groups – this helps to raise your credibility and visibility

THE POWER OF CONNECTIONS The real power of LinkedIn is the network. Not your connections but

your connections’ connections. You need to be introduced to your connections networks. This broadens the number of potential customers and clients you have access to and creates a larger pool of people for you to get in contact with.

FINDING CUSTOMERS AND PARTNERS

LinkedIn makes it easy to find your decision-maker.  You can look up people in a specific position in a company in the industry that you’re clients are in.

You can do advanced searches to find those companies and people in a specific geographic area – e.g New York (See example below). Know your target audience well - know your decision-maker’s job title, industry their company is in, and the size of their company. 

A premium paid account adds another layer of filter in search – seniority level

ADVANCED SEARCH RESULTS The advanced search on the previous page lead to Dana Marie, the

Principal Consultant/Engagement Manager at Century Link:

ADVANCED SEARCH USING A PREMIUM ACCOUNT Having a premium account allows you to filter your advanced search

even further. You can use it to figure out hierarchies of companies and specifically target your customers.

You can target according to seniority level within a certain company. You can search asking for “deal-making contacts” and you can search according to company wealth.

VIEWING PROFILES TO MAKE CONNECTIONS

This can work for you in two ways: The fact that someone looked at your profile is a good excuse to reach out with a

connection request If you look at other people’s profiles, a certain proportion will always look back

Even when you get visitors described as “Sales Manager from the Telecom Industry” you can still click on them. LinkedIn will then give you a list which will include the actual visitor.

SHARING Share content to promote your knowledge and

engage. Post content (e.g. an industry article) to your

status or to a group, or share with individuals. Share the updates from the your group and company

page Add value by including your thoughts or why you’re

posting it. Once posted, you can easily click to share with

other groups, individuals, or on your status.

INDUSTRY GROUPS - JOIN & PARTICIPATE!

● Join groups to network and discuss with others in your market and in your professional area (sales/marketing/business development, etc.).

● Search for the right groups, try a few. Good ones have more discussion, less spam.

● Tip: When in the same group, you can send direct messages and connect with other members. If you have targeted customers are in the same groups as you then this is an easy way to approach them.

USING LINKEDIN GROUPS - COLLECTING INSIGHTS FOR GENERATING LEADS OUTSIDE OF LINKEDIN Group Statistics gives you the ability to leverage LinkedIn's potential

in other sales channels as well. The Statistics break down how many people are in the group, their demographics, seniority, geography and more. Think of LinkedIn Group Statistics as free sales data.

LINKEDIN EVENTS Events are a great way to find and connect with people in the industry. Search for listed events (e.g. MWC) or create your own and invite people in

your network. Tell connections which events you are going to, and where by joining and

sharing on your status updates. Check suggestions for fellow attendees you might want to meet

LINKEDIN ANSWERS Use LinkedIn Answers to:

Brand yourself as an expert: Answer questions to show expertise. Ask questions to engage your network.

http://learn.linkedin.com/answers/

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USING A LINKEDIN PREMIUM ACCOUNT You can pay to upgrade your LinkedIn account. This allows you to:

Contact anyone directly using inmail Get a complete list of who’s viewed your profile Save profiles See names of 3rd degree connections Get introduced to companies you’re targeting and much more.

HOW DO I KNOW WHO HAS A PREMIUM ACCOUNT?

When you have a premium account the LinkedIn symbol next to your name will turn bronze for all to see:

USING INMAIL – ONLY FOR PREMIUM ACCOUNTS InMails are only available on paid accounts. The higher level the

account you have, the more you get. On the entry-level business account you’ll get three InMails each month. This means you’ll want to reserve them for when everything else fails. If you don’t get a response to an InMail within seven days, your credits are refunded.

InMail is LinkedIn’s internal email system and allows you to send an email to any LinkedIn user without requiring an introduction. It ensures your email gets through to their inbox. LinkedIn claims that an InMail is 30 times more likely to get a response than a cold call.

USING INMAIL InMail lets you communicate directly with the person you need to

reach: Fast and Direct Delivered to the user’s email address Displayed on the user’s LinkedIn homepage Your professional profile gives your recipient the confidence to

respond Get a trusted introduction to the person you need to reach. LinkedIn will tell you who you know in common

USING OPENLINK WITH A PREMIUM ACCOUNT When you have a premium LinkedIn account you get access to the

OpenLink network. This gives you the option to: Let any LinkedIn user contact you directly - Great for

prospective customers to get in touch. Get information up front - Like all LinkedIn messages, you get

information about senders along with their proposals. Protect your inbox - Receive OpenLink messages without

revealing your email address or phone number. And you can easily decline any message that isn’t valuable to you.

Build your network - When you join the OpenLink Network, you can find and be found by premium account holders who want to meet other professionals.

LINKEDIN ETIQUETTE - SPAMMING Use LinkedIn messaging sparingly. Depending on how much mail a

connection receives from LinkedIn, they may see it as spam and automatically delete. Better to utilize their email address, which is often visible on the profile page after connecting.

Make status updates no more than a few times per day – this is not twitter.

LINKEDIN MISTAKES: TOP 5 WAYS TO KILL YOUR CREDIBILITY Post an unprofessional photo

Have someone objective (a colleague) help chose the photo

Solicit fawning recommendations Only approve the display of recommendations that describe

actions that you personally took. Link to an overly personal web page

As far as possible, keep your personal life invisible to the business world.

Provide a trail to a youthful indiscretion Only provide information that’s relevant to where you’re taking

your career Any misspellings whatsoever

Ask a colleague to go through your profile and fix any errors

RESOURCES TO LEARN MORE Infographic – How to really use LinkedIn Smart ways to use LinkedIn Using LinkedIn for Sales How To Use LinkedIn to Connect with Your Contacts LinkedIn Learning LinkedIn Training LinkedIn New Users

RESOURCES - LEARNING CENTER

http://learn.linkedin.com/

RESOURCES - WEBINARS

To help you get started using your account or to learn more about the features and functionality, LinkedIn offers free online presentations:

LinkedIn 101: The basics of LinkedIn: Your Profile, Joining Groups, Settings, Search and moreWhen: Wednesdays at 1 pm CST

LinkedIn Pro: Get the Most Out of Your Premium AccountWhen: Tuesdays at 1 pm CST