Founded in 2003 as a professional social media site, LinkedIn has become a tech giant that is synonymous to business. It is over this platform where professionals meet, where recruiters look for talent, and where businesses look for clients.
But how does LinkedIn really help your business?
The three major benefits are:
- Better Credibility
- Increased Exposure
- Networking Options
Let us take a look at each of the Top 3 Benefits of LinkedIn for Business in detail.
Better Credibility
LinkedIn is a huge community of professionals. If you are linked to somebody, and that somebody is known by another somebody, you just got for yourself some credibility points. Here, you create business profiles that showcase your portfolio and achievements.
Business is built on trust, and trust is built on relationships. If you have no LinkedIn profile, your business is going to look shady. The only exception, of course, is if you are already an established business entity that is known in the community.
With a profile, you can build your own community of people who know your business. If you do it right, you can even become an influencer in the platform.
LinkedIn has a feature called “recommendation.” You can connect to people you know, and solicit reviews from these people. They can write about their experiences about your business, and people who view your business profile can see these reviews.
Increased Exposure
More than 63 million users in LinkedIn are in a position to make business decisions. If you do not have a LinkedIn profile, you will never get to know these people.
The platform has more than 303 million active users every month, and you can take advantage of this by creating a business profile and by building your connections.
As you keep on adding connections, the platform itself will attempt to recommend people or businesses within your sphere.
You can also advertise on LinkedIn for more exposure. Here, you are likely to have as much as 2X revenue and conversion because it is a place for business. With 63 million decision makers, it is much easier to target those who have the power to spend money than on other social media platforms.
Networking Options
On LinkedIn, your business profile can have a maximum of 30,000 first-degree connections. This is a lot, and we are just talking about first-degree or direct connections. There is really no way a business need this much, considering that in LinkedIn, you must only add people that you know and trust.
With 30,000 connections though, you will have access to the connections of all these people. You can introduce yourself and your business, and slowly build your business reputation.
You can also use the InMail feature if you have a Premium account. In this feature, you can directly send a message to people who are not within your sphere of influence.
LinkedIn is a place where you build connections with people who make decisions. A decision maker who has tried your products or services, and was impressed, will certainly put in a good word for you. Talk about word of mouth, but only online.
As far as networking is concerned, you can also use the platform to find qualified candidates who you can hire as employees. You can use the platform to do a background check, or to simply find out if there are qualified candidates who can help you make your business succeed.
Summary
If you are looking for B2B relationships, then LinkedIn is the place to go. Here, you can find suppliers, business partners, and even investors.
A business is not complete without a LinkedIn profile. While your business may be doing well with your Facebook or Pinterest accounts, the only value you get from these social media sites are business-to-customer relationships.
