With all the attention being paid to the importance of social media in your overall marketing mix, you’d think more businesses would be building out their LinkedIn company profiles to the hilt. However, LinkedIn continues to be one of the most underutilized marketing and lead gen opportunities in the B2B space.
Not only can you reach prospective customers on LinkedIn, but you can also make it easier for the media to contact you as a resource, your participation in groups can help you stand out as a thought leader and you can set the stage to attract the best and brightest new employees to join your team.
If your LinkedIn company profile is languishing due to lack of attention, there’s no better time than right now to spruce it up and take advantage of every feature available to you on this powerful social platform. Here are the essential first steps to LinkedIn success.
Build Your Company Page
If you haven’t created a company page for your business on LinkedIn, do it today. LinkedIn has a great Help/FAQ section designed to answer all of your questions and get you started. Of course, there are certain rules and guidelines to follow, but they’re clearly explained and easy to follow. Visit the LinkedIn company page FAQ here. LinkedIn offers a 45 minute webinar every Wednesday at noon (CST) called “How to Build Your Company Page for Business Success” and you can find the link to sign up here. It may be the most valuable contribution you make to your business all week.
Optimize Your Company Page
It’s not enough to create the framework of your company page and leave it at that. Like all social profiles, your LinkedIn company page has the potential to show your business at its best. An appealing banner draws visitors in; G& K Services has done this well with an attractive, branded image that promotes their friendly, professional team.
LinkedIn provides a step-by-step guide to walk you through the process of developing, optimizing and promoting your Company Page. You’ll find the Five Steps to Engaging Followers here.
Make the Most of Your Products & Services Page
Pay special attention to the Products & Services tab, where you can call out individual product groups and service offerings. You’re limited only by the time and effort you choose to devote to this section. Consider adding calls to action and offers to the Products & Services page – a tactic used by very few companies, but often with great success.
Careers
LinkedIn may be best known for its ability to connect job seekers with open positions, providing ample opportunity for individuals to develop and nurture valuable business relationships. LinkedIn provides you, as an employer, with a well-lit stage from which to promote opportunities at your firm.
One of the best examples of a LinkedIn Company page is for LinkedIn itself. Each section has been crafted with care, taking advantage of all the features available to present the company in the best possible light.
Recent Updates are timely, relevant and interesting…
Products & Services pages are completely built out and optimized…
Content is useful and relevant…
In short, LinkedIn has provided a great example of how to make the most of all Company Page features. Take a look and take their examples to heart. Consider making the creation and optimization of your LinkedIn Company Page a goal for your Q2 digital marketing program.
