LinkedIn is a social media resource that many people overlook. In the past, it was used mainly for finding a job or connecting with colleagues. But it has made changes since to allow companies to be more involved with their pages by being able to share company updates, connect with other companies, etc. It can be a powerful resource if used properly. Let’s take a look at the basics of setting up a LinkedIn Company page and see the best way to get the most out of LinkedIn.
Set up a Profile
Setting up a LinkedIn Company Page is fairly easy. All you need to do is enter in your Company name and your email address at your company. It will ask you to confirm that you are an official representative of your company and can act on its behalf in creating the page. Once you confirm that, your page is created, but you should take the time to sit down and fill out your company’s profile. This profile page will be what most people look at when they are on your LinkedIn Page. Therefore, fill out the company’s history, information about the products and services your company offers and maybe your company’s mission statement.
The Professional Headline
Can be 120 characters and you want to use keywords and list your skills so that you can be better found in searches. If you are the CEO, it is essential to list some of the key phrases for the solutions that your company brings to the market.
Connect with others
LinkedIn is the preferred business social networking tool in a business-to-business environment. Therefore, you want to spend time connecting with other businesses. First, if you have job openings in your business, this is a great place to advertise for talent to fill those vacancies. Second, connect with your current employees. Have them create their own personal profiles and elaborate on their jobs at your company. This is beneficial in several ways. With the newer LinkedIn set-up, users can see company statistics and some of it is pulled from the employee information on LinkedIn. One example is that LinkedIn has a graph that will compare how many years your employees worked at your company to employment length of a similar company. This can demonstrate employee satisfaction if you have employees staying with you for a long time. You can also connect with suppliers or vendors to see what they are currently doing.
Be Active
Outside of connecting with other people and companies, it’s important to stay active. LinkedIn isn’t a place where you can just upload information and leave it be for awhile. You need to stay active by posting news about your company or joining in on industry discussions. Try to get involved with various groups on LinkedIn. This will allow you to connect with more people and get your company name out there. As part of the process of being active, start to build followers on your Company page. Once you have a group of followers, it’s even more important to keep updating your Company activity to let them know what your company is doing. Use LinkedIn Answers to ask questions relevant to your target customers or to share your expertise with potential clients.
LinkedIn has grown from a job search board to a business social networking site. It is another means to follow companies and people, but it’s geared towards the business and removes all the other noise that Twitter can cause. While you may think because you’re just a small business, you don’t need a LinkedIn page yet, you’re wrong. It’s a great way to grow your company by connecting with other people in your local area and in your industry.
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