My LinkedIn Profile is Optimized, Now What?

Critical Privacy Settings

On any social media platform, one of the first things you want to do is select your level of security. You have the option of being “transparent” to other users or “anonymous.” The transparent setting allows anyone to see your profile and notifies them if you have viewed their profile, too. Use this if your goal is to visit a lot of target market profiles with the goal of getting them to look back at your profile out of curiosity. An added reward of using transparency mode is being able to see who has looked at your profile as well. Anonymous mode is a better option if you are using LinkedIn before meetings or functions to profile people, or if you’re using it to get introductions from current connections. You can switch back and forth between the two settings at any time.

The next setting you need to choose is deciding who can see your connections. Showing them is good for social proof and allows people to see the power players and mutual connections you know. Showing them can also hurt if you aren’t connected to a lot of people who are in your target market segment, and it could lead to client poaching. Deciding which way to go really depends on who you’re connected to and whether or not you’re concerned with competitors trying to steal your clients.

Turn On/Off Your Activity Broadcasts

Your activity broadcasters let your contacts know when you have made changes to your profile or joined a group, for example. Toggle this on and off depending on what you’re doing, but leave it off as default. Turn it on when you add a new interest, award, organization you’re affiliated with, or a new address if you’ve moved offices. It’s also a good idea to turn it on when you update your headshot. This simple way of putting you in front of your contacts can lead to a casual conversation that closes business for you. Turn it off when you’re updating positions, titles, and headlines on your profile because you don’t want to give a wrong impression and seem unstable.

Set Revenue-Related Goals

Before you actively use LinkedIn, ask yourself one question: “What do I want to achieve?” An example of a good goal may be to generate revenue by meeting new people you do not currently have any connection to, or you may wish to generate revenue by increasing lines of business with current clients. Lastly, your goal may be to generate revenue by getting referrals from your current connections.

Thoughts on Connections

The more quality people you are connected to, the more powerful everything you do will be and the faster it will all work. Do connect with all clients, centers of influence, and friends/family who don’t make you look bad. Don’t connect with competitors, strangers trying to sell you things or people who present themselves in an inappropriate way.

One way to get connected with people is to invite your email contacts. It only takes a few minutes, and the payoff is huge. The requests can be sent to all of them, or just the ones you select. LinkedIn will also give you many connection requests and suggestions. To find them, click on “My Network” at the top of LinkedIn. You’ll see suggestions for people you may know. They are based on who you are already connected with, so a lot will be from your target market segments. Request to connect with the people you do actually know, and check back often.

The Law of Reciprocity

When you do something nice for someone, they will have a deep-rooted psychological urge to do something nice in return. Are you permitted by compliance to give and receive endorsements and recommendations? If you can, this is a great way to build up social proof, increase existing lines of business, and attract referrals. Give endorsements and recommendations to your connections on things you personally know or have experienced. They are notified and will often reciprocate by endorsing or recommending you.

Posting “Pulse” Content

People see your content two ways: when vetting you or in their LinkedIn news stream. Make sure everything you post shows your target market that you understand them and have your finger on the pulse of what matters most. Share links to blog posts or new information on your website. Share interesting articles with your two cents added in the post. You don’t ever want to be off-putting by sharing too much about your business that seems salesy, so follow the 4:1 rule of sharing non-industry and industry related posts.

Samples of “Pulse” Content

What are some good examples of pulse content? Here are a few examples if your target market is business owners:

• Share an article with tips to help business owners motivate their people better
• Post a quote about success from John Rockefeller
• Share a picture and something “behind the scenes” from your office
• Share an article about how the new tax laws are impacting local businesses
• Post a link to a blog post you wrote about succession planning secrets

Interacting with Other People’s Content

Interacting with other’s content is just as important as what you post yourself. Spend a few minutes each day commenting on or liking content posted by your connections, but be careful with compliance rules about liking/endorsing financial and investment topics. Look for personal things to comment on such as someone sharing they’ve won an award, hired a new staff member, or gotten a job promotion. When you do this, it gets your name in front of them.