Leveraging LinkedIn
Facilitated by Michelle McCullough
- LinkedIn is relevant for everyone, whether you’re an editor, author, or any other type of publishing professional (or aspiring to be one).
- We fill up our marketing plans, and then we’re trying to add one more thing—LinkedIn or other social media, and that’s when everything falls. We’re going to talk about how to add LinkedIn without dropping anything.
- Definition of marketing: Sharing the right messages to the right audience through the right medium so you can make money (directly or indirectly).
- When you’re considering adding something to your marketing plate, ask whether it will help you share the right message to the right audience. So make sure that LinkedIn is right for you.
- Small businesses can only be in one or two marketing channels strongly. If you add too many, then you will struggle to be strongly active in each and may not be as effective.
Intro to LinkedIn
- Tends to be more professional, with more meaningful conversations than with Facebook, Twitter, etc.
- With LinkedIn, you can be a thought leader in a market that’s not oversaturated.
- Facts about LinkedIn:
- Largest professional network; you can reach people in other countries.
- 47% of people accessing LinkedIn daily are using mobile, looking for quick tips, so provide quick, concise messages. Use graphics. Desktop users looking for deeper content. Provide content for both audiences.
- 44,000 daily mobile job applications are submitted; if you’re trying to recruit, make the process mobile friendly.
- Setting up a LinkedIn account is pretty easy. Set up your profile, and then play a little—browse groups, look at job postings, etc. See what is available on LinkedIn and what people are discussing. Search companies to see employees at the company.
- Share content that establishes you as an expert.
4 Types of Posts to Use on LinkedIn (and Other Social Media Sites): Service, Socialize, Signup, and Sell
- How often to post on LinkedIn: start with 3x a day and see how people react—more/less.
- Service (50% of posts)
- Provide tips, advice, quotes, info on trends to help others/provide value (how people are consuming books, how many titles a publisher is publishing each year, etc.).
- Make sure the content isn’t too sales focused.
- Write blog posts and link them to your profile.
- The goal is to become a go-to source for a specific type of information. Make sure your goal is clear, and then make sure your posts contribute to achieving that goal.
- Socialize (25% of posts)
- People come on social media platforms for information and for connection.
- It’s a two-way conversation. Ask good questions—get discussion going.
- Develop a sense of connection.
- Signup (15% of posts)
- Need a landing/lead page on your website to collect viewers’ info. Offer something in return for signing up (e.g., pdf with top five tips to get your manuscript reviewed by an editor).
- An email list can be a very effective marketing tool.
- Cross promote to your other social media profiles. (“Join me on Twitter, where I share quick tips on XYZ.”)
- Sell (10% of posts)
- It’s okay to talk about your current promotions, products, services, etc. Share product, staff, other highlights.
- Create a calendar for the week or month so you know what you’re going to post.
- You don’t need to let LinkedIn take over your life.
- 2/2/15/15—2 hours a year, 2 hours a month, 15 minutes a week, 15 minutes a day.
- Year: overall strategy.
- Month: what to post, when, etc.
- Weekly: look at statistics—which posts got most views, etc.
- Daily: posting and interacting with audience.
- Be consistent so you maintain your audience, you appear active and reliable.
Tips to Use LinkedIn
- Best times of day to post: 7–8 a.m., 11 a.m.–noon, 3–4 p.m., 5–6 p.m. (time zone you’re in, or the time zone most of your audience is in).
- Find or create groups (companies, associations, readers, authors).
- Write an article on LinkedIn (don’t use the same article as a blog post on your site—use original content). List-format articles are popular (“Top 3 Ways to …”).
- Slideshare: A LinkedIn tool like a PowerPoint presentation, can include audio.
- Update profile. You’ll see what posts you’ve written, videos uploaded, etc. The more content you have, the more likely you’ll be to reach people.
- Referrals and recommendations: Ask clients, readers, etc., to add referrals and recommendations.
- Get endorsements for skills you’ve added to your profile.
- Contact Michelle McCullough on LinkedIn and michelle@speakmichelle.com.