LinkedIn is an online social network of business professionals from CEO’s to Vice Presidents to solo-preneurs, all networking together to further their businesses and stay in touch with potential clients. LinkedIn has over 26 million users so you can imagine how great this is for promoting and advertising a business.
You need to sign up for LinkedIn and create a profile before doing anything else. This is free to do and only takes a few minutes. Be sure to fill out your profile with as much information as you can so you appear more professional. LinkedIn provides room in your profile for your employment and educational history, so fill it out as completely as possible.
Once you are logged in and have your profile filled out it is time to join some groups. There are hundreds of groups in many different niches. Find the ones that best fit with your type of business and ask to join. You can then start posting and getting yourself and your business noticed.
Just like other social media sites, LinkedIn works on the 6 degrees of separation platform, which can be extremely beneficial if you connect with the right people. You can use the site to connect with other professionals in your field, promote your existing business, or recruit people to help you promote your business.
The only downfall is this you have to know someone before you can ask them to connect with you, so make sure you build a nice reputation for yourself in the group forum so others will let you add them.
You can also give and receive recommendations on LinkedIn from people you have worked for or worked with on a project or job position. Recommendations can go a long way toward connecting with new people, so use them regularly and appropriately.
The possibilities of promotion are endless on LinkedIn. Once you have built your network you will receive updates about your connections and who they connected with etc. The only thing you need to do is to actively pursue your potential leads and customers and keep promoting yourself to reap the rewards.