LinkedIn Marketing

LinkedIn can play a significant role in the effective marketing of your business. With 200 million members in 200 countries, this site offers companies opportunities to reach their audience while they are making decisions. In 2011, according to Entrepreneur Magazine, market-research firm Lab42 found that top-level executives and entry-level workers use LinkedIn differently: Younger members use the site mostly to post résumés and network for jobs, while more experienced professionals use it to demonstrate thought leadership and expertise, promote their businesses, conduct market research and - perhaps most important - win new business.

There are many ways you can successfully use your company's LinkedIn page as an effective marketing tool. Building your connections and keeping your account updated is the start. Posting regular updates, participating in active group discussions and sending messages and invitations to those in your network can help establish you as an expert in your field. You can also reach your audience with targeted display ads placed on prominent pages of LinkedIn's website. As an advertiser, you specify which LinkedIn members view your ads by selecting a target audience by job title, job function, industry, geography, age, gender, company name, company size or LinkedIn Group. Control your advertising costs by setting a budget and only pay for the clicks or impressions that you receive.

• LinkedIn account basic set-up personal
• Add job details to your profile
• Add education to your profile
• Choose your vanity URL
• Import your address book
• Enable your public profile
• Add your resume
• Ask for recommendations
• Import your resume
• Join groups
• Follow companies that are relevant to you and your industry
• Connect your other websites (personal and work)

• LinkedIn account basic set-up company
• Add basic information, website, services, etc.
• Customize profile picture
• Claim your vanity URL
• Make sure employees link to your business page
• Connect your Twitter account
• Add news about your company
• Post jobs and internship positions

• Ways to use LinkedIn for your business

• Publish your LinkedIn URL on all your marketing collateral, including business cards, email signature, email newsletters, websites and brochures
• Use the search feature to find people by company, industry and city
• Share useful articles and resources that will be of interest to customers and prospects
• Research your prospects before meeting or contacting them
• Answer questions in Questions and Answers: show expertise without a hint of self-promotion
• Find experts in your field and invite them to be a guest blogger on your blog or speaker at a future event
• Export your contacts into other applications
• Buy a LinkedIn direct ad that only your target market will see
• Find vendors and contractors through connections

To learn more about marketing with LinkedIn and how Blue Interactive Agency can create a marketing strategy for your company, call 954.779.2801.