Written by – Kylie Chown
The first half of 2020 has seen a change in how we work, live and play, with workplaces more than ever before embracing remote work options. People are online longer and more frequently. This change in the workplace has resulted in businesses looking at their digital presence and assessing what this means for their business today, and the future.
Earlier this year, my team provided project management services to national clients considered experts in their field. Previously, there sales process was dependant on face-to-face meetings, however they wanted to educate the market regarding their service offering online. We worked collaboratively to reposition their narrative to appeal to clients operating in today’s escalating online world.
Prior to working with this team, there were:
- Inconsistencies key individuals LinkedIn profiles and a misalignment to the key deliverables in the overarching marketing strategy.
- Positioning not reflective of the individual expertise and market offerings.
- Limited social proof and demonstration of expertise and knowledge.
Outlined below are some practical actions you can adopt:
1. Plan
Situations are ever-changing, which makes planning difficult, however now is a time to be proactive and plan your approach. Identify your objectives and determine your desired outcomes. These may differ from your business goals. A client I commenced working with at the beginning of the year to generate business leads changed their objective to grow their reputation by reflecting they are a trusted authority. As a result, they were approached twice within the first month, by other publications to provide (or share) their expert commentary.
Actions
Develop a LinkedIn strategy highlighting goals, objectives, measurable KPI’s and keywords whilst addressing the question, “How will this strategy serve my future (personal and/or business) growth?”
2. Review your profiles
Your profile is the anchor for your initial digital impression. Therefore, it is critical your profile reflects your current business service and market offerings. The Influencer Marketing Hub reported 55% of decision-makers use this content to determine which organisation to work with. 1 in 5 investors proclaim, LinkedIn the best platform to learn about a topic, The primary question your profile along with your team members, is “How can this help me in today’s world”? or “How can we help in today’s world?”
Actions
Update critical data: Your contact details, your visuals, for example if your banner includes an image of you delivering a training workshop not aligned with your service offering and delivery, then replace with a relevant image.
Review: Your profile along with all team members). Will the profiles resonate with your ideal audience and align with challenges they need to address?
3. Engage
LinkedIn is a great platform to participate in the online world. How are you using LinkedIn to connect and participate in the narrative? Are you sharing relevant content adding value for your audience?
Actions
Some engagement tips include leveraging newer features including LinkedIn Stories, ideal for sharing commentary in a personal manner, facilitating LinkedIn events either from your personal page of company profile or implementing a LinkedIn Poll to drive engagement and communicate more meaningfully with your connections. Create your participation plan and contribute.
Our project management services client was able present a consistent image online reflecting their individuality and company offering. They were positioned positively to implement a successful reach-out campaign and transition their face-to-face sales strategy to a highly effective and successful online market offering.
As we move into the second half of 2020 changes in the shifts regarding how we work will continue. Social media is will assist your business growth if you are leveraging the benefits to captivate your existing and potential clients and capitalise on capturing a greater audience.
Kylie Chown is the founder of Kylie Chown Consulting, helping businesses use LinkedIn to attract the right opportunities, grow their business and showcase their expertise.