LinkedIn: Your More Than Capable Business Partner

  • mannette
  • April 1st, 2022
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Content updated April, 2022.

There’s so much more to this app than showcasing your past work experience!

“I’ve never really looked at LinkedIn.” 

“I’ve been told my business needs to be there, but…I just don’t know how it works.”

“Isn’t it just an online resume?”

I often hear these and similar refrains from business owners, potential clients, networking attendees, and…well, the list goes on and on.

LinkedIn seems to be this distant social media cousin that no one’s quite sure what to do with. Most people I talk to get into a good marketing groove with other applications like Instagram, Facebook, or even Tik Tok, but LinkedIn just isn’t a part of their conversations.

I’m here to open your eyes.

LinkedIn may not be the most popular social media tool, but don’t be fooled! Using LinkedIn for business can help you get noticed, generate leads, and build partnerships that take you to the next level!

There are more people on LinkedIn than you think

At least 775 million people use LinkedIn, and that number is expected to increase to 840 million by the end of the year.

If those numbers aren’t impressive enough, here’s another – in 2016, 40 million of them were high-level decision-makers. I can only imagine what that number will be by the end of 2022. 

LinkedIn is also the most used social media platform amongst Fortune 500 executives

This means that creating a profile and/or a business page on this application offers a great opportunity to market yourself, your product, or your service to the right people. 

These ‘right’ people are the all-important decision-makers that sign service agreements and get you paid.

They’re CEOs, Directors, Vice-Presidents, District or General Managers, and Principals of small to large businesses or corporations. They are the people that allocate money and determine who to spend it with.

Let’s say I told you about a great networking space, less than a 1 mile from your home, where the top 5 CEOs in your industry stopped by every single day to mingle, meet new people, find new business solutions, and maybe, make purchases. 

Would you make it your business to be there E-V-E-R-Y D-A-Y? Of course, you would!

Well, that’s LinkedIn.

With over 260 million business people logging in every month, there’s always SOMEONE available for you to connect with…SOMEONE looking for the product or service you offer.

So, here’s the takeaway from your last 2 minutes of reading. 

If you’re a business owner, especially in the business-to-business market, you NEED to have a presence on LinkedIn. If not, you’re missing a huge opportunity to grow your brand and your profit.

Take advantage of a space that’s not content-saturated

Only 1% of LinkedIn users log in and do more than make connections or like someone else’s posts in their feed. ONE PERCENT.

Translation: MOST USERS ARE MISSING HUGE BUSINESS-BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES!

LinkedIn is similar to other social media applications in its ability to help you present yourself as an industry expert. There may be 120 businesses similar to yours on LinkedIn, but if you’re the only one actively providing valuable information and resources to a network, you stand out. 

via GIPHY

If you’re in the hospitality industry, conventional wisdom tells you to connect with all of the general managers, directors of sales, revenue managers, and management company executives you can find. 

Most people would take just enough time to request or accept a few connections, then like, comment “Great post”,  or share an industry article they found once a month. 

There’s so much more to do! 

To make more of an impact, you might also consider sharing:

  • Tips on how to increase revenue during a slow season
  • Data on customer meetings expectations
  • Video of behind-the-scenes preparation for an upcoming event
  • Any of this information in an industry group

Simply having a login and profile isn’t making the most out of the application. Offering content gives you the opportunity to market your company and ideas alongside Fortune 500 companies sharing this very same space.

Use the application as an industry monitoring tool

LinkedIn also offers you the ability to keep an eye on influencers and industry changes. By connecting with or following industry leaders, you can maintain a grasp on hot topics and trends that can inform your content, in-person conversations, and business decisions. 

Let’s go back to the hospitality example above. If you’re interested in doing business with Marriott International, you might decide to follow the company page, as well as its CEO, Anthony Capuano.

This allows you to see what the company deems important and what the CEO is involved in. Has he been honored in any way? Did he give his own views on the future of the industry 20 years down the road?

In addition, LinkedIn has now fully vested in using hashtags to index content. So, you can also search and follow hashtags like #HotelTrends, #HotelRevenue, or even #AnthonyCapuano. Likewise, when you produce content and include hashtags, others can use them to find your posts or articles.

Linkedin can open your business to so many growth opportunities. But in order to take advantage, you’ve got to be there and be active.

Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are great! But LinkedIn, if utilized correctly, can work as your long-term, 24-hour, digital business partner!

Creating a social media or content marketing strategy If you’re looking for help in establishing your social media or content marketing strategy, let’s start with a conversation. We’d love to assist you in finding your digital voice to positively impact your overall business goals.





4 Ways to Improve Your Small Business Communications

  • mannette
  • October 18th, 2018
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While most people don’t recognize it, taking shortcuts with your small business communications can be detrimental to the success and growth of your business.

We’ve all done it, whether typing an email or responding to a text.

Well, here’s my story.

I recently created content for my social media consulting business. As part of the strategy to increase my exposure and awareness, I reached out to a few of my connections via LinkedIn Messaging in hopes they would click the link, like the content, and forward to their own connections.

Two days later, I hadn’t received any new page traffic, let alone likes. What happened? Why didn’t they click the link? Did they even see the message?

Of course, I went back to review the message and confirmed that quite a few of them saw it. So, what was the problem?

*Scanned message, scanned message, sca…GASP!!!*

A BIG OLE, FAT, FUNKY TYPO!

A few colorful words flew out of my mouth – words that I won’t type here. I sat there for a few moments with my head in my hand thinking, “Really, Monica…really?!” It wasn’t the typo itself that upset me, more than the immediate awareness that I hadn’t taken the time to review and edit the message before sending. I had to be honest with myself. This wasn’t the first time I’d communicated with someone on LinkedIn without first reviewing the message.

My next thought – “I have GOT to do better”.

It’s so easy to get caught up, distracted, or just way too busy to review the communications we send out to the world.  But, here’s the reality – passing up the 5-minute review on a piece of content that’s supposed to represent you and your small business can have serious consequences. It can mean the difference between a potential customer clicking a link to review your story, or deciding to move on. I mean hey, if you can’t be bothered to double check your own stuff well, you know the rest.

So, I’m being transparent in hopes that we can do better together! Take a look at four ways to help you purposely slow down, review what we’ve written, and make better impressions to your digital network.

Don’t Use Your Smartphone to Produce Important External Communications

Listen, I get it. It’s 2018 and technology’s convenient. Why wait to get to a desktop, laptop, or even your tablet when you can just whip out your phone, download an app, and thumb that note or response from wherever you are?

The problem with using our phones is that they provide a huge opportunity for mistakes. Small screens, smaller keyboards, and fat fingers can be a recipe for disaster! Okay, your fingers don’t even have to be fat! But, how many times have you sent a note from your phone and it went to the wrong recipient, you forwarded the wrong document, or auto-correct just went completely off the rails?

I know these things could also happen on your computer, but my experience has been that smaller devices increase the error probability. And while I haven’t found any science to back this up, handling business on my phone seems to project a false sense of urgency – a need to type faster and get the task done with super-shero speed. My advice? Wait until you can get to a device with a larger screen so errors are easier to spot.

Use a Word Processor to Create and Review the Content

And this leads to my next suggestion. Whether you’re responding to a social media comment, completing an online job application, or sending a note to potential customers, typing your masterpiece into a word processing application first can be a simple, yet extremely useful step in making the best impression possible. We all know Microsoft Word, but the online or smart phone versions, along with other free options such as Google Docs and Zoho Writer, is just as effective in correcting spelling and grammatical errors.

Now, I know some of you are already saying, “Just download a grammar checking app like Grammarly or Ginger to give it a once over”. True, but for me and my GenX brain, there’s nothing like reviewing my email or message right there in all of its full screen, black and white glory before sending it into “can never take back” oblivion.

Use a Talk – To – Text App

Talk-to-text apps are not a new thing but can be really helpful in making sure you communicate your best…to a point. I love my Google Text-to-Talk app, but, do I trust it completely? Absolutely not!

You’ve still got to take time and review what you’ve created before sending anything of importance to anyone. I typically use the app to create a short message, then make manual adjustments and corrections.

Have Someone You Trust Review for Errors and Flow

It’s a simple and old school concept with no fancy-schmancy technology needed.

Ask someone you trust to review your content for accuracy, grammar, spelling, and flow. Is everything spelled right? Should it be “access” or “assess”? Does your message make sense, or are you rambling a bit? A second set of eyes can be a lifesaver from the pain and embarrassment of an unnecessary typo or misguided thought forwarded to the masses.

Don’t have any wordsmiths in your life that you trust with your business communications? Hire someone. You can hire a freelancer from Upwork, Freelancer, or Guru for a few bucks to review and edit your work. Rates can vary depending on the work and freelancer experience, so buyers beware, but it’s definitely a viable option.

Now, say it with me, “We’ve GOT to do better!” Building a small business is a huge, complicated, and game-changing experience. However, we can alleviate a bit of the challenge by simply committing to better communication.

How do you keep your small business communications errors to a minimum?