LinkedIn has become the social media platform of choice for professionals. Users leverage the site to establish credibility and demonstrate knowledge on trending business topics. Most users view the platform as a place to profile leadership, gather competitive intelligence, learn industry news, and express thought leadership. Therefore building and maintaining a LinkedIn profile is an important extension of your business persona.
As an active user on LinkedIn, the articles, blog posts and professional achievements you share are broadcasted to your connections on the website’s newsfeed. It is important to be sharing relevant and compelling content in order to build interest in your expertise from your business connections. You want users to begin actively seeking out the business insights you have to offer in financial advising.
We recommended you implement a quarterly strategy for LinkedIn. Here’s a simple to-do list for your daily, weekly, and quarterly postings.
Daily:
- Check Notifications. Every day you should take the time to accept new requests to connect. Often times you will receive a request from a professional you may not know and you will need to consider whether or not to connect. We recommend accepting all requests unless you have a valid reason not to.
- Monitor Updates. When one of your connections announces a new position or is celebrating a work anniversary send personalized congratulations. A meaningful message not only makes your connection feel good, but it also makes you look good. Taking a second or two to write a little note over simply liking the post can go a long way to strengthening your relationship.
- Respond to Inquiries. Now that you have built a great network it’s time to start using it. Try to respond to direct messages from your connection within 48 hours since you received it. Don’t alienate a connection by ignoring their inquiries.
- Scan Newsfeed. Use the posts your connections are sharing as a way to stay current on financial trends and major company news. This is an opportunity to learn about others’ interests and build the strength of your relationship.
Weekly:
- Find New Connections. You want to be continually adding to your network; however, do not be adding just anyone. Use second level connections to find new first level connections. When sending requests, we advise only sending requests to professionals that you have met at least once. Do not send the generic message generated by LinkedIn. Send a thoughtful request. This will increase the likelihood of expanding your network. Aim to for three new quality contacts a week.
- Learn about Clients. Research your clients’ pages to learn more about their professional careers and skills. Gaining insights into their world will ultimately enable you to advise them better on investments that match their interests.
- Engage with Content. Find information from news sources who’s opinions you value and trust. Then add a personal touch by sharing your own thoughts and comments. You can schedule when to share the content, too. Like, share, and comment on updates from your connections and business profiles you are following as well.
Quarterly:
- Review Connections. Start recognizing who your most engaging and valuable interactions are with. Are they a qualified lead or merit a follow-up message from you?
- Evaluate Content. Search for trends in the amount and frequency of engagement you are receiving from the content you have shared. What types have topics does your network seem to be liking or commenting on the most? This information can help you develop a more interesting and interactive profile.
- Update Profile. Make sure you are staying up-to-date with your own profile. Add new positions, awards, volunteer work, banner images, and profile photos. An insufficient profile could discount all of the efforts you put into developing yourself as an expert on financial advising and other related topics.
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