6 Common Challenges of Using Your LinkedIn Profile to Generate Prospects

6 Common Challenges of Using Your LinkedIn Profile to Generate Prospects

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LinkedIn is THE social media platform salespeople should embrace to create more sales opportunities and build their personal brand. As reported by the LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Blog, of the 500 million-plus users on LinkedIn, 61 million are senior-level influencers and 40 million are decision makers. It’s not just for job seekers! Salespeople can see high ROI on their use of the platform if they position their profile as a resource for prospective clients, as opposed to a resume. A LinkedIn Profile Transformation from Vengreso can help you do that if you’re not sure how.

After you get your LinkedIn profile set up as a resource, Vengreso CVO Viveka von Rosen says you need to ask yourself two important questions before starting to share content.

  1. Who are you helping? If you’re with an enterprise, you may want to consult your marketing department about your buyer personas. If you’re a small business owner or solopreneur and you haven’t outlined a buyer persona, think about your target buyer.
  2. What can you share to help them? Consult your marketing department or review your website content. Think about testimonials, white papers, checklists, blog posts, etc. What can you share to help your target audience solve a common problem?

Answering these questions will help you identify the content that will resonate with your prospects and clients. You’ll also want to watch Viveka’s Hashtag Communities video to find out how to use hashtags on LinkedIn to reach more people.

Here are some of the most significant challenges of using your #LinkedInProfile for sales. @meaghanmae @LinkedInExpert #SellingwithLinkedIn #SocialSelling #DigitalSalesClick To Tweet

6 Challenges of Using Your LinkedIn Profile for Sales

You may think, “Oh, social media – that’s something the kids can do. It must be easy…”  Hold on a minute! It’s not as simple as creating a profile and sharing a post here and there. Here are some of the most significant challenges Viveka pointed out in a recent podcast episode of Predictable Prospecting with Marylou Tyler.

  1. LinkedIn is constantly changing. It’s a powerful tool but remember – it’s a tool that will continue to evolve as LinkedIn sees fit.
  2. The threat of “LinkedIn Jail.” Viveka says, “LinkedIn is very much against third-party apps.” Even with manual copy and paste actions you still have a chance of getting your LinkedIn profile restricted. Be cautious.
  3. An incomplete LinkedIn profile can cost you and your company credibility. Fill in your profile with more than just the basic information. Hint: leverage your LinkedIn headline!
  4. Knowing what to share and what not to share. This deserves a post of its own. You may want to share a few personal posts to let people get to know you, but remember, it’s not Facebook!
  5. Consistency. Once you start using something – be it LinkedIn Publisher, long-form posts, or video – you build expectation and maybe even new followers that are interested in that specific form of content. Stay with it. Viveka recommends using an approved third-party tool or putting it into your calendar and making time for it.
  6. Posts with links are getting less visibility. She reminds us that “even though it’s in their name, LinkedIn – like Facebook and Twitter – is starting to limit visibility on updates that have links in them.” You should share a good mix of content and pay attention to algorithm changes.

In the end, LinkedIn is a tool and it’s something you’ll need to learn how to use. You can overcome the challenges and enjoy great success in using your LinkedIn profile to generate sales leads.

An incomplete #LinkedInProfile can cost you and your company credibility. Learn 5 other challenges that you may face when #SellingwithLinkedIn. @meaghanmae @LinkedInExpert @maryloutyler #SocialSales #DigitalSellingClick To Tweet

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