LinkedIn is the number one social media platform for business professionals.
Whether you work for a corporation, are looking to score your dream job or want to promote your small business, LinkedIn is a tool that should absolutely be utilized. Currently, there are more than 347 million registered users, according to the site.
Keep in mind that LinkedIn is not just for business owners and professionals, but rather a network of influencers.
It's the best way to build connections with those you admire, those that inspire you and those that are achieving what you one day wish to achieve yourself.
There are many ways to use LinkedIn to benefit your business, including:
- Promote your website - As a small business owner, having a website is a must. If you don't have one, create one now or hire someone to design a site for you. Even if your business is local and brick-and-mortar, you want a website so customers can give you referrals, so you can share company updates with customers and so you can grow your customer base. LinkedIn can be used to promote your website and give it exposure to other similar businesses and potential customers.
- Connect with experts in your field - It's very difficult to become an expert at something all on your own. When it comes to building a business, many successful people had a few mentors in their life to help them stay motivated, learn from their mistakes and know where to make improvements. It's impossible to be perfect at marketing, accounting, product sales, hiring and firing, social media promotions and all other facets of a business, so use LinkedIn to connect you with people who have already been through it.
- Grow your business - LinkedIn is a great tool to find qualified candidates in your area. While you can still use traditional means of hiring - such as placing an ad in the newspaper or on an online job board - using LinkedIn can get you high-quality candidates the other sources may not. This can be done both for free and for a small fee. You can also post a job ad on LinkedIn to alert candidates that you're hiring.
- Build valuable connections - LinkedIn doesn't just help you advertise online and hire qualified candidates. More importantly, it helps you build solid online connections that can lead to offline marketing opportunities - such as speaking presentations, media engagements and more. The more people you expose your business to, the more successful you are likely to be.
Make It Your Business to Use LinkedIn
If you're a business manager, you'll want to be using LinkedIn, too.
The article "5 LinkedIn features facilities managers should be using" suggests facilities managers should upload work examples, endorse and recommend people, connect with alumni, customize your profile URL and use LinkedIn's resume building tool.
Whether you're a small business owner or a manager, LinkedIn is a crucial social media platform to be using.
You never know who you're going to meet, what you're going to learn and how you're going to get your business up and running.
LinkedIn is here to help - take advantage of it.