Have you ever wondered why some people seem to find lots of opportunities on LinkedIn and others, often in the same business, don’t?
The secret and it’s a bit of an open secret, is better soft skills. LinkedIn is designed around the individual, it is at heart a relationship building tool not a tool of mass communication. Those people who realise this and behave accordingly will prosper on the platform.
I suspect you would not go up to a complete stranger at a business networking event and pitch your business to them without first engaging them in conversation and learning more about them; but that’s what people do on LinkedIn every day.
That’s just one example. What about the folk who carpet bomb groups with their blog posts and never hang around to join in any discussions on their own or other peoples’ posts?
So here are my suggestions for soft skills that will lead to a prosperous 2017 on LinkedIn:
1. Respect.
Take time to learn the etiquette of LinkedIn. For example, don’t hijack someone else’s discussion by posting links to your content. Always ask permission before adding a LinkedIn connection to your mailing list.
2. Empathy.
Foster rapport with your connections and target audience by putting yourself in their shoes. Consider how you can help them achieve their objectives? Look for common connections or experiences to build trust.
3. Social-ability.
Unfortunately, too many people focus on the last “media” part of social media and forget the first “social” part. LinkedIn offers dozens of opportunities to reach out and engage with your audience. Be sociable, not only is it more fun it is a great way to raise your profile.
4. Observation.
You can learn a lot by simply observing what people share about themselves on LinkedIn. From what their hobbies are to which groups they join, to what business topics fire their interest.
5. Usefulness.
In business, we all have requirements, big and small and these are continually changing. Watch out for opportunities to be useful to your connections. That could mean passing on a recommendation about a plumber or a CRM provider. Personally, my policy is never to accept an introduction payment of any kind, that keeps things clean.
6. Reliability.
Consistency and reliability are probably two of the least sexy but most important qualities for any business provider. Posting regularly will keep you in front of your target audience. Always replying to messages or comments on your posts will inspire confidence that you will be there when people need you.
7. Club-ability.
This is a little like social-ability but it is a little more inwards focused. An example would be a group you have started or joined which focuses on a topic of common interest. Another example would be an informal network of people (internal or external to your business) who enjoy and share each other’s posts; if you don’t already have a network like this I strongly recommend that you begin building one.
8. Educator.
One of the key ways of building your reputation is to share your knowledge generously on LinkedIn. To educate your audience. Not only does this position you as the go to person for that topic but it creates a sense of trust and loyalty in your audience, so when a need arises you are the first port of call.
Conclusion
I am reminded of President Kennedy’s famous inaugural speech which finished with the line:
“Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country."
This is the attitude to bring to LinkedIn. Become a valuable RESOURCE for your target audience, focus on relationships, sales will follow.
Finally, it is instructive to see that LinkedIn describes the four stages of social selling as follows:
- Create a professional brand
- Focus on the right prospects
- Engage with insights
- Build relationships
The words sales or selling do not appear at all.
Greg Cooper is an independent LinkedIn consultant and trainer based in Bristol. He runs regular public and in-house courses for business owners, managers and sales people.
He is a Fellow of the Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing. Find out more about Greg Cooper on LinkedIn or contact him on greg@frontofmindcoaching.co.uk or 07917 360222.
A version of this article was originally published on LinkedIn.
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