If you ask ten different people that question, you’ll get ten different answers. Some business owners swear by LinkedIn and will tell you it’s the key to their success. Others will tell you they know nothing about it. And you’re likely to hear plenty of people telling you they have a profile but haven’t done much else with it.
Connect with Other Professionals
Connecting with other professionals in your industry is one of the primary activities for LinkedIn users. It has a newsfeed similar to FaceBook, but unlike other social media channels the articles and information shared on LinkedIn is exclusively business related.
With LinkedIn, as with any other program you would consider using to grow your business or make work easier, you need to first identify what you hope to get out of your investment.
And using this tool is most definitely an investment. There is a cost element with the premium version, which starts out at around $50 per month. The cost goes up from there based on plans tailored for specific purposes, such as sales or hiring. But there is also a free version that can be quite valuable for basic networking.
Regardless of which plan you choose, there is no way around the investment of time it takes to produce results with LinkedIn. If you are going to utilize it in any way and expect to get results, you need to schedule time to work on it.
A Plan for your Business
Using LinkedIn is a bit like exercise. If you work out consistently over a period of time, you’ll notice a difference in how your body looks and feels. If you work with LinkedIn consistently over time, you’ll notice a difference in the size and quality of your online network. And, a bigger network with more qualified leads is the way to close more business, right?
So, if you do want to take the plunge with LinkedIn, exactly what should you be doing?
- Connect with your current network on LinkedIn
- Ask for referrals from people in your network to other professionals you want to connect with or hope to do business with
- Join groups to follow trends or learn more about a specific industry
- Join groups to share your knowledge and experience and make new connections
- Read, comment on and share articles that may be useful to you and others in your network
- Endorse and recommend people you’ve done business with
- Write and publish articles to gain exposure and demonstrate expertise in a certain field
- Go to the LinkedIn Learning tab for training on a variety of subjects to increase your skill set
There is quite a bit more that you can take advantage of with LinkedIn. But to go back to our original question, is LinkedIn worth the time and money? You’ll have to try it and decide for yourself.
**
Delray Executive Suites not only offers great office spaces and support services, we also strive to provide useful information to all kinds of business professionals.
Did you find a new idea in this article? We sure hope so. Sign up for our weekly blog post for fresh new strategies to keep you moving forward.
Maybe you know someone who could use a dose of inspiration. If so, share this blog with them.
And keep in mind, working at Delray Executive Suites is another great way to expand your network!