One question that seems to be on almost everyone's mind is, “how do I make money with my social media page or account”?
I can proudly tell you that LinkedIn is one platform that will not only provide an answer to your question, but will leave you satisfied afterwards.
Why do I say so?
Well, it's no secret that it's the biggest business-to-business platform today.
So if you'll like to generate those leads and celebrate those massive wins, the first thing that you'll need to do is to ensure that you have a good LinkedIn profile.
Yes!
Having a professional LinkedIn profile is the building block that you need to critically consider if you want to make it big on LinkedIn.
For you to set up your LinkedIn profile for success, we will be looking at three major elements. And those elements are as follows:
I'm sure you must have heard the saying that a photo says a thousand words. So, if you think that your LinkedIn profile photo doesn't matter, think again.
It is essential that you often take a good look at your LinkedIn profile picture and see if it's professional enough.
The reason is that it's the first thing that people will notice when they're trying to connect with you or offer you a business proposal.
Not having a profile picture at all even makes things worse because it instantly sends a red flag to your prospect.
And if they can't trust your profile enough to do business, then you can't generate those leads.
With that being said, what are the things that you need to do to make your profile picture stand out from the crowd?
The first on the list is that you have to take closer headshots for your profile.
And it doesn't stop there, as you will need to ensure that you're looking straight into the camera and not away from it.
Next, try to put up a smiling face (even if you're not really in the mood).
And then, you should ensure you have a neutral background.
It would help if you also were sure you're not overly dressed for your profile photo.
Remember, you're trying to get the attention of professional business associates, not the manager of a runway modelling agency.
In that case, remember to keep it simple and try to avoid wearing too much jewelry.
Again, while trying to create a reputable profile picture that speaks volumes, you need to avoid wearing any form of:
Such pictures may appear fashionable and attractive on other social media platforms, but then it's advised you stay away from such practice on LinkedIn because your prospect may either see you as an immature or as a not serious person.
And for a second, do you think they would want to do business with such a person?
Absolutely not!
So with some of these things that I have mentioned in this article about what you should do and what you should not.
The next question in your mind is probably, “how do you know if your profile photo is good enough”?
You can start by asking people close to you, such as your friends and family.
Or, you can visit Photofeeler.com to know how professional your photo appears before your prospects.
Photofeeler.com is a free website that analyzes your profile image based on how well people tend to like your photo, the amount of influence your photo is likely going to have when you're trying to convince your prospects.
Now that we have established the fundamental steps you need to have a professional picture, the next thing is to look at your background photo.
Is it empty?
Secondly, you need to ask yourself, does it have the same tone and vision as your brand?
It's also crucial that you work on your profile background image because it will further help your page have a professional and reputable outlook.
So at all times, ensure that both your LinkedIn profile picture and your background image are both effectively communicating your brand strategy.
The second element or factor that you need to critically analyze if you want your profile to stand out on LinkedIn is to look at your headline.
Your headline is the information that is displayed under your LinkedIn profile name as text.
You need to review what you have in your headline because it means getting your prospect to realize what your brand is all about and make them want to know about what you do.
There's nothing wrong in stating your job title in your headline, but you need to know that it won't be different from what your prospects have been seeing and will not spark the curiosity that will generate those sales.
The good news is that you can apply the next strategy that I will be revealing to you now to make your headline appear better to your prospects.
And this strategy is simple and easy to use, and it's this;
Rather than use your company name and job title alone, try to include the most important keywords relevant to your brand or industry.
But that's not all that is required.
You also need to include what I would like to call the zing factor.
The first two, which are your job title and company name, are already self-explanatory.
But why do you need to include relevant keywords in your headline to make it stand out?
The reason is that when business people go on LinkedIn to search for associates or other people that have potentials, they will use the LinkedIn's search engine, and that's where the keywords play a vital role.
In that case, you will need to think about the number of keywords and types of keywords that people intend to use to find you or your service on LinkedIn and add them to your title.
Remember, they have to be the most important keywords that both the veterans and the amateurs can use to find you.
For example, let's say you're a real estate agent or company;
What you need to do is to add keywords such as a realtor, real estate email marketer and so on to your headline to make it more discoverable before your prospects.
Now that we're done with that, it's time to talk about the zing factor.
The Zing factor is that element of surprise that you can add to your headline to spice it up.
It could be a clause, conversation starter, or anything that you can add to your profile to attract and retain your listener's attention.
But when doing this, it shouldn't just be any random stuff to draw attention;
Rather, it should be something like a conversational starter that gives a hint about your service.
An example of a zing that you can add to your profile is “helping people in their professional growth.”
You haven't said much in this line, but even the little that you've said is enough to intrigue your LinkedIn profile visitor.
The same way we have the headline under our LinkedIn profile, the next thing that follows your headline is your summary.
And your summary section is where you can enlist where your strength lies and the various skill sets you must have acquired over the years.
If you're the owner of a company or an expert in an industry, this is where you get to tell a story of how you can be of help or value to whoever visits your LinkedIn profile or LinkedIn company page.
Remember not to exaggerate with this and brag, as it could turn people off instead of getting them to want to know about you or your brand.
You can also utilize the hidden power behind the LinkedIn profile summary section by adding social proof such as links to your websites, YouTube videos, blogs or Slideshare.
On LinkedIn, adding these links is easy to do, so don't start panicking about how you can go about this.
CONCLUSION
So there you go, those are the three basic things that you need to consider to create a strong online presence on LinkedIn that will help you generate those leads that you've long anticipated.
