11 effective ways to use linkedin for business development

LinkedIn & Social Selling for Business Developmentby Brynne Tillman contributions by (YOUR NAME HERE)

Webinar Included

11 Effective Ways to Use LinkedIn for Business Development

by Social Sales Link

Linkedin.com/in/brynnetillman | SocialSalesLink.com | 888.775.5262Copyright © 2013-2014 Social Sales Link, LLC – All rights reserved.

Business Development is a broad term. It is certainly sales oriented, but also falls under prospecting, lead generation, launching new products, penetrating new verticals, even implementing specific marketing endeavors and beyond. But, all these efforts are for one goal: developing and implementing growth opportunities with multiple organizations.

Throughout this e-book, you will learn 11 key strategies that will help you listen to your prospect better, educate them through thought leadership, while positioning through leveraging your existing network and position yourself as the subject matter expert and the one to engage!

- Brynne TillmanCEO of Social Sales Link

LinkedIn for Business Development


Table of Contents

1. Crafting an Engaging Profile pg. 1 2. Leverage LinkedIn Groups pg. 2

3. Listen to What They are Saying pg. 3 4. Share Content that Impresses pg. 4

5. Curate Great Content to Share pg. 5

6. Organize Your Contacts pg. 6 7. Get More Client Referrals pg. 7

8. Make Networking More Effective pg. 8 9. Checkout Who has Checked You Out pg. 9

10. Advanced & Saved Searches pg. 10

11. Create a Plan and Commit to It pg. 11


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1. Crafting an Engaging ProfileYour LinkedIn Profile represents your professional brand. In fact, your profile may recieve more first time visitors than your website. Therefore, you need to be sure that you are communicating your value proposition, not your resume. This is an opportunity to share with your prospects and network what you bring to the table and why your customers value you.

1. Your picture needs to represent you as a professional. If you would put it on your website, you canputitonyourLinkedInprofile.

2. YourHeadlineisthefirstimpressionyourviewershaveofwhoyouare;makethemostofthis realestate!Thisisanopportunitytoshareyourmessagein120characterssodon’twasteit onyourtitleandcompany.Instead,talkabouthowyouhelpyourclients.

3. CustomizeyourLinkedInURL,itjustlooksbetter,youcanbefoundeasierandyoucan publishitonyouremailsignatureandbusinesscards.

4. Pleasecompleteyourcontactinformationboxwithemail,phone,websitelinksandconnect your Twitter account.

5. Unlessyouarelookingforajob,don’tmakeyoursummaryaresumeparagraph,makeit educationalandimpactful.Sharetipsorstrategiesthatpositionyouasathoughtleaderfrom the start.

6. CompleteyourExperienceatleast10yearsbackandconnectyourjobstocompanypages. Thelogoisappealingandishelpfulwhenyourviewersarelearningaboutyou.Besuretoadd yourcontactinformationheretoo;thismakesthismucheasierforpeoplenotconnectedtoyou to contact you.

7. TakeadvantageoftheProjectsandPublicationssections.ThePublicationssectionallows youtohyperlinktopagesonyourwebsiteoranywhereyouwishtodirectthem.If youhavealeadcapturepage,thiscouldbeagreatwaytodrivetraffic.TheProjectssectionis anopportunitytocrossmarketyourselfonprofilesofpartnersandclientsthatyouworkclosely withonjobs.

8. Completeyoureducationandaddothersectionsthatarerelevanttoyouandyourexperience. Themorecompleteyourprofile,thebetteritwillworkforyou.


2. Leverage LinkedIn GroupsMost LinkedIn users are members of groups, but they don’t exactly know why! Groups are a powerful opportunity to identify who you are looking to meet and engage them.

1. Jointherightgroups.Therearetwogreatwaystofindgroupswhereyourprospectsare hangingout.First,lookatgroupsyourclientsarein,thereisagoodchancemorepeoplelike themaretheretoo.Second,takeadvantageofthesearchfeaturesonLinkedIn.Fromthetop drop-downbar,choosegroupsandtypeinthetitleofyourprospect.LinkedInwillgiveyoua listofGroupswherethosefolksarehangingout.

2. Postingisagreatwaytobeginafollowing.Besurethatyouarepostingcontentthatyour prospectscareaboutandwouldenjoybuildingaconversationaround.Stayawayfrom promotingyourselforyourbusiness.Ifyouhaveablog,thisisagoodwaytodrivetrafficto yoursite,butbesuretogiveenoughvaluableinformationintheactualpost.

3. Commentand“like”otherpeople’sposts.Besuretomeanitthough!Thisisaterrific opportunitytogetonthegoodsideofaprospect.Heck,theypostedtobeseen,andwhen theynoticethatyouspentthetimeandacknowledgedtheirhardwork,thefirstimpressionof you is stellar!

4. Clickonthenumberofmembersonthetopbarandasearchboxopensup.Thismakes Groupsinvaluable!Youcansearchbytitle,locationandkeywordstodrilldownthemembers ofthegrouptoyourtargetmarket.Onceyouhavethislist,youcansenddirectmessagesto eachoneindividually.Besurethatyouareofferingvalueandacalltoaction.Notjust‘connect withme’,butIwantedtosharewithyouthisgreatarticleon…itdoesn’tevenhavetobeyour article,justapowerfulpublicationthatwillmattertothem.

5. Witheveryonethatresponds,sendaconnectionrequestandbereadywithanengaging welcometomynetworknote.Hereismine:

ThankyouforconnectingwithmeonLinkedIn.Asanetworker,Ialwaysliketostartoffanew relationshipingivingmode.Iwanttosharewithyouoneofourvideos-LeveragingLinkedIn forBusinessDevelopmentsoYouNeverHavetoColdCallAgain! -letmeknowifyoufindthishelpful.

Brynne

IwillalsoaddyoutomyLinkedInemailtips-sopleaselookforthose!

6. ClickheretojoinLinkedUserGroup

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3. Listen to What They are SayingHow can we engage our prospects if we don’t know what it is they care about? You might think it’s your serivces and your prices. But what I am talking about is uncovering what they care about online and what will draw them in?

1. Lookattheiractivityfeedonallsocialchannels.

2. Whatdotheycommentonand‘like’?

3. Whatarethetopicstheyaresharing?

4. Whoaretheynewlyconnectedto?

5. Whatgroupsaretheyin?Jointhemandlookatwhattheyaretalkingaboutinthegroups.

6. Whatdotheysayaboutthemselvesintheirprofiles,whatskillsdotheylist,wheredidthey workprior,wheredidtheygotoschool?

7. Doyouhavesharedconnections?Ifyes,makeaphonecallortwo,becausethephonedoes still work!

8. WhathastheircompanypostedontheirLinkedIncompanypageandothersocialsites?

9. Ontheircompanypage,lookat‘peoplethatviewedthispagealsoviewed’–givesyoualistof theircompetitors(savethisforprospectinglater).

10. Lookuptheircompetitionandreadwhataretheyaretalkingabout.

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4. Share Content that ImpressesThe goal is to build a reputation as a thought leader and subject matter expert. Make sure you are the one they go to because they know how you help, the one that they refer others to because you have proved your value.

1. Ifyouaresharingyourowncontent,besuretoestablishthefoundation. a. Chooseaplatformforblogsandlandingpagesonyourwebsite,WordPress, Blogger. b. SignupforavideoplatformlikeWistia,Looplogic,Slideshare,etc.

2. Addlinkstoyourcontentinyourcontactinfoboxonyourprofile a. Whenineditmode,clickon‘editcontactinfo’ b. ClickthepencilnexttoWebsites c. Choose‘other’fromdrop-down d. Nameyourblog,videoorarticle e. Save

3. AddmediaattachmentstoyourSummaryand/orExperiencesections a. Whenineditmode,clickonmediaboxwith+ b. Chosefromaddlinkorupload c. Save 4. Usethepublicationssection a. Ifyoudon’thavethissectioninyourprofile,whenineditmodeclickthe+nextto Publicationsonthe‘recommendedforyou’sectiononthetopright b. Namethepublication c. Addthelink d. Fillindetailsandshare

5. PosttoyourHomepageupdates

6. Post to Groups a.Postindiscussions(besureitisalignedwithgrouprules) b.Senddirectmessagestogroupmemberswithalinktoyourcontent

7. ClickheretoreadSocialSalesLinkcontent

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5. Curating Great ContentWhy reinvent the wheel? Social Media is about sharing other people’s content – if we didn’t do this, nothing would ever go viral. There are great ways to get content with targeted topics to use every day. It makes it simple to find and share content that will engage your prospects and position you as a subject matter expert. Check out these resources:

1. Scoop.it-Scoop.itismy1stchoiceinsocialcontentaggregatorsforafewreasons.First,it issosimpletouse.Scoop.ithasacontinuousstreamofcontentandconnectsdirectlywithmy socialmediaplatforms.Youcanalsoscoopyourowncontentandshareitontheplatform.

2. Feedly.com-FeedlyhasbeenaroundforawhilebutbecameverypopularafterGoogle Readerwasdiscontinued.Feedlywillprovideanewsfeedofcontentaroundcategoriesand allowsyoutoaddcontentbyURL,title,andtopicsaswell.

3. GoogleAlerts-GoogleAlertssendsyoudailyemailsofcontent,blogsandarticlesbased oncriteriayouprovide.Inadditiontousingthisasacontentaggregator,itisalsogreatfor monitoringthewebforinformationaboutyourcompany,you,yourprospectsandyour competition.

4. Tagboard-Tagboardsarelivecollectionsofsocialmediapostedwithhashtagsandarranged inadynamic,visualmosaic.Youcandomorethanjustviewsocialpostsona tagboard;youcanengagewiththem.

5. HootSuite - AlthoughHootSuiteisascheduler,itisagreataggregatoraswell.Createnews streamsbasedontopics,hashtagsorspecificinfluencersandcurateandshare contenttoallyourplatformsfromhere.

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6. Organize Your ContactsAlthough LinkedIn is not a CRM, there are some great features that can help you stay organized in your business development efforts.

Begin by clicking the Relationship button on the profile you are looking to follow-up.

Sync email and calendar -Whenyousyncyouremailaddressbooksorcalendarfromothersources,youimportcontactinformation,meetings,andemailsforeasyaccessinoneplace.LinkedInContactskeepsyourcontactsandtheirinformationuptodatebyregularlycheckingforanychanges.Typically, your contact data is synced once each day.

1. Hoverover NetworkatthetopofyourhomepageandselectContacts2. Click the Settingsicononthetopright3. OntheContactsSettingspageyouwillseeyourchoices;clickSyncnexttoanysourceyou’d like connect to and follow the directions Tip:Ifyoueverchangeyourpasswordforoneofthesesources,gobacktothispageandclick ChangetoupdateitonLinkedIn.

Notes –LinkedIntimestampsyournotesandallowsyoutoseeastreamofyourinteractions.

Tagging–Thisfeatureisgreatfororganizing.Youcancreatetagsthatcanworkasdistributiongroupsformessaging,orsimplykeepyourconnectionsineasytosearchcategories.Taggingisaverypowerfulmarketingtool.Youcantagoruntaganyonewho’ssavedinyourLinkedInContacts.TheycanbeaddedfromyourcontactsprofileorinContactsunderNetwork.Besuretotagnomorethan50contactsinagroupasthatisthemaximumyoucanemailatonetime.

Reminders–Youcansetauparemindernotificationforacontactforoneday,week,monthorreoccurring.LinkedInwillsendyouamessageanditwillappearatthetopofyourContactspageasanitempendingcompletion.

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7. Get More Client ReferralsTypically, a good business development person will tell you that much of their business comes from client referrals. They ask for referrals all the time, and it may sound something like this:Salesperson:“Ms.Client,areyouhappywiththeproductsandserviceswehavebeenabletohelpyouwithoverthelastfewmonths?”Client: “Ohyes,Mr.Salesperson,wehavebeenveryhappywithyouandyourcompany.”Salesperson:“Terrific,Ms.Client.Thewaywegrowourbusinesshasalwaysbeenthroughintroduc-tionsandrecommendationsfromourhappyclients!Byanychance,doyouknowofanyoneelsethatcoulduseourproductsandservices?”Client:“Hmm,letmesee,Ican’tthinkofanyoneoffhandrightnow,butifIdothinkofsomeoneIwillcertainlybehappytointroduceyou.”

Bummer–Notexactlyhowwehadhopeditwouldgo,butnowwehaveLinkedInasapowerfultoolandthisconversationwillbemuchmoreproductive.Beforevisitingyourclient,dothefollowing:

1. Connect with your client on LinkedIn2. Check out their contacts 3. Makealistof5prospectsthattheyknowandbringthelistwithyou

Here is how the conversation may go now with the help of LinkedIn:

Client:“Hmm,letmesee,Ican’tthinkofanyoneoffhandrightnow,butifIthinkofsomeoneIwillcertainlybehappytointroduceyoutothem.”Salesperson:“Ms.Client,whenweconnectedonLinkedInInoticedthatyouwerelinkedtoafewfolkswhowouldbegreatintroductionsforme;woulditbealrightifIranthembyyou?”Client:“Ofcourse,Iwouldbehappytohelp!”Salesperson:“Thankyousomuchforofferingtomaketheseintroductions.YoucanjustcopyusbothinanemailandIcantakeitfromthere.Tomakeiteasierforyou,wouldyoulikemetosendyouashortintroductionparagraphthatyoucanuse?”Client: “Thatwouldbegreat,thanks.”

Ifwedidjustthisforeachofourclients,ourpipelinecouldeasilydoubleormoreandthebusinesswillfollow!

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8. Make Networking More EffectiveThe next best referral is from a strategic alliance or networking relationship. Often we meet for coffee, it’s an hour of time, and we learn all about each other’s respective businesses and then ask…

You - “So,whodoyouknowthatcouldusemyproductsandservices?”Thencomestheblankstare.

Them -“Ican’tthinkofanyonerightnow,butifsomeoneshouldask,Iwillcertainlyreferyou!”

Bummer–Notexactlyhowwehadhopeditwouldgo,butnowwehaveLinkedInasapowerfultoolandthisconversationwillbemuchmoreproductive.Beforeyougoonyournetworkingmeetings,dothefollowing:

1. ConnectwithyournetworkingpartneronLinkedIn2. Sendthemanotethatsays, “Iamlookingforwardtoourmeetingnextweek.Pleasefeelfreetolookatmyconnectionsand writedown10orsopeoplethatyouthinkwouldbegoodforyoutomeet,wewilltalkthrough themandIcanmakesomeintroductionsforyou.”3. Nowlookattheirconnections4. Makealistof10prospectsthattheyknowandbringthelistwithyou5. Reviewthelistinyourmeeting6. ExchangeIntroductionParagraphs: Ex.IwouldliketointroduceyoutoBrynneTillman,CEOofSocialSalesLink.Ithought itmightmakesenseforthetwoofyoutoconnectandinvestigatehowyoumight worktogether.Brynnewillbecontactingyouinthenextcoupleofdays,pleasetakeher call;Ibelieveitwillbewellworthyourtime.IfyouwouldliketoreachouttoBrynne,her contactinformationis: [email protected] | 888.775.5262 http://www.linkedin.com/in/brynnetillman7. CopyyournetworkingpartnerandyourconnectioninanemailorLinkedInmessagewiththeir paragraph.Yourmeetingjustbecamethemostproductivehourofyourweek!

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9. Check who has Checked You OutI love Caller ID, don’t you? That is how I see the ‘who’s viewed your profile’ section of your LinkedIn account. This is a fantastic opportunity to reach out to people who have called but have not left a message:

1. Fromtheright-handsideyourofyourLinkedInHomepage,click‘Who’sViewedYourProfile’

2. Thefreeaccountallowsyoutoseethelast5visitorstoyourprofile.Iftheyhavetheirsettings asanonymous,youwon’tbeabletoseetheirname,andifyouareanonymousyouwon’tbe abletoseeanyofyourviewers.Thepaidaccountallowsyoutoseethelast90daysof viewersandwillallowyoutoseethevisitorsevenifyouareanonymous.However,youstill can’tseetheviewersthatareanonymous.

3. Identifyviewersthatyouwouldliketoconnectwith,checkouttheirprofileandsendarequest toconnectwithanote:

‘Thanksforvisitingmyprofile,Ilookedatyoursandbelievethattheremaybesome synergiesbetweenus.Let’sconnectandexplorewayswemaybeable toworktogether.’ 4. Ifyouarealreadyconnectedbuthaven’tcultivatedarelationshipyet,andtheyareagood prospect,clicktheemailiconandwrite:

‘HelloNAME,ithasbeensometimesinceweconnected,andIthoughtitmightmake senseforustoscheduleatimetoexplorewayswemaybeabletowork together.IhaveMondaymorningavailableforacall,does thatworkforyou?

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10. Advanced & Saved SearchesThere are many ways to leverage advanced searches, and we urge you to spend some time exploring them. This is quintessentially “working smarter not harder.” Advanced Search quickly lets you know who in your warm market knows whom you want to meet. The prospecting power when leveraging this tool is endless.

1. ClickontheAdvancedSearchhyperlinknexttothemagnifyglassonthetoprightofthe drop-down.

2. Choosekeywordsand/ortitlesthatrepresentyourtargetmarket.

3. Fromthedrop-downyoucanchoosecurrent,pastorboth–inaddition,youcan useBooleansearcheshere.

4. Filloutgeographicpreferencesandindustrychoices.

5. Chooserelationships(1st,2nd,3rd,Group)

6. Searchandyouwillgetalistofexactlywhomyouarelookingfor.

Themagiclivesinthe2nd,sobesuretoclick2ndinRelationship.Thiswillgiveusalistofwhoknowsthepeoplewewanttoknow–andwecanaskforintroductions!

The SaveOnceyouhaveyourperfectsearch,youcansaveitforlater.Justclick‘SaveSearch’onthetoprighthandsideofthesearch,nameitandsaveitforlater.YoucansavethreesearcheswiththefreeLinkedIn account.

Newfolksenteringyournetworkwhofallunderthesearchcriteriawillbeaddedtothelisteveryweek.

EveryMondaymorning,IlogintoLinkedIn,clickonmysavedsearches,andseethatIhave10newprofessionalsinmynetworkthatmeetthatcriteria.Ithenclickthehyperlink“view”andthefulllistcomesupinthewindow.Icanthenclickonsharedconnectionandaskformywarmintroduction.POWERFULstuff,right?

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11. Create a Plan and Commit to itRemember the old adage, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”? Well, all these activities are great, but only if you do them. Put together a plan in SMART goal format to ensure that you will do the activities that will help you reach your goals:

S pecificM easurable A lignedwithyourgoalsR ealistic Timed

1. Defineyourresultsgoals,whatyouwanttogetoutofLinkedIn.2. Committoatimeframe.3. Identifytheactivitiesyouneedtoreachyourgoal.4. Schedulethem.5. Dothem;andifyoudon’t,reschedulethem.

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If you are looking to learn more about LinkedIn for social selling, check out SSL’s book on Amazon:

LinkedInBook.info - LinkedIn & Social Selling for Business Development

Brynne Tillman, CEO of Social Sales Link teaches LinkedIn workshops and classes, is a Keynote for Sales and Marketing Teams and works with sales trainers to teach this curriculum.

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11 effective ways to use linkedin for business development

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