Are you using LinkedIn as a marketing tool? I am often asked why we push LinkedIn as a key to connecting with clients. People who have a profile on LinkedIn, but have rarely used it, see it as two things: an electronic rolodex and a place to either search for or advertise job openings. While LinkedIn is both of those things, it also can be a very powerful marketing tool, especially if you are in a B2B environment.

Company pages

LinkedIn company pages are a great place to link to the content marketing you are posting in other forums, such as blogs and news items on your web site. But company pages also provide an opportunity to communicate and promote your brand. You can use it to announce new product lines, let customers know what trade shows you will be attending, showcase your corporate philanthropy, and recognize key milestones such as new hires or work anniversaries. Beyond this, we like to showcase the work companies are doing. When it is appropriate, we like to get photos of work being done for a specific client, mention them, and recognize their business. These types of posts typically get a lot of social engagement, which is key to making any social networking medium work for you.

Publish on LinkedIn

Another level above posting on your company page is to publish an article. These are produced by individual users on LinkedIn, not a company. However, when you can become a thought leader, or write something for the executives at your company to post, you are raising the awareness of your people as experts in your particular field of commerce. This is the sort of thing that works very well on LinkedIn.

Keeping track of your target market

Another way we like to use LinkedIn is to keep our finger on the pulse of what is happening in a target market. Moods can change and we want to be aware of anything that would impact our brands, whether it be good or bad. There are a few ways of doing this. First, pay attention to what your clients are posting and re-posting. LinkedIn makes it very easy to follow thought leaders and these type of articles end up in your news feed when one of your connections engages with it. Second, become a member of industry groups. Groups are making a comeback on LinkedIn. They were a big deal several years ago and then faded. LinkedIn has announced a concerted effort to boost them once again. Most groups are very easy to join - simply search for a topic or industry and ask to join. These are controlled by administrators (other LinkedIn members who typically created the group).

Look at your analytics

The proof of your success on LinkedIn is easy to see. Any administrator of a company page or an individual who has published an article can see the response it is getting by looking at the statistics offered by LinkedIn. In the case of a company page, take a look at both your Followers and your Visitors to the page. See what posts are generating the most response. Also take a look at the industry and job title demographics in your analytics. You will see very quickly who is following you and how successful you are at engaging them. In the case of an individual who posts an article or a post, you can see specifically who has liked and shared your message.

If you are in charge of your company’s marketing efforts, take a look at LinkedIn as a marketing tool. It has a huge following (over 530 million users) and is business friendly, unlike other social media sites. The site has grown to be so much more than just a place to list and find a job. It has become the new way to connect with your market. Use it to your advantage.