Personal branding and linked in prospecting

Creating Your Personal Brand

&

LinkedIn Prospecting

By: Joel Katz Sales Engineering Manager Joel.Katz@Centurylink.com

407-628-6624

LinkedIn is an invaluable resource for

reaching B2B buyers.

You can use it to promote yourself as a

thought leader, stay top of mind with

your customers, and gain valuable

information on prospects.

• 84 Million Users in USA (259 Million Worldwide) • 184 Million Unique Visits to Linked In Monthly • 40% of Linked In Users Check Everyday • 38% of Linked In Visits Are Via Mobil Device • Average Time Users Spend on Linked In 17

Min./Month • 3 Million Business Pages & 1.2 Mil. Featured

Products and Services. • 2.1 Million Groups on Linked In • Average Number of Groups Members Join 7 • Most Used or Over Used Adjectives: Responsible,

Creative

* Stats According to Digital Marketing Rambling

78% of those who use social media in sales outperform those who don’t .

— The Impact of Social Media on Sales Quota and

Corporate Revenue, A Sales Guy Consulting

Creating Your Personal Brand

The Wikipedia definition of brand begins with

“Branding includes a name, logo, slogan, and/or design scheme

associated with a product or service”

The Wikipedia definition of brand begins with

“Branding includes a name, logo, slogan, and/or design scheme

associated with a product or service”

Awareness

Awareness Trust

Awareness Trust

Perception

Awareness Trust

Reputation Perception

on

BRANDS ARE BORN OF

EXPERIENCE AND REFLECT

TRUST

IT IS A MEASURE OF

REPUTATION

PERC

EPTI

ON

S IN

TH

E M

IND

OF

A CO

NSU

MER

.

SEARCH =

COPY =

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“A brand is the sum of all feelings, thoughts and recognitions – positive

and negative – that people in the target audience

associate with a company, a product or service.”

- Steve McNamara, AdCracker.Com

“A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person.

You earn reputation by trying to do hard things well.”

–Jeff Bezos

More solid brands mean strong identities both for the products

and for the people using them.

–Jeff Bezos

“We choose one over the other on the basis of

our ‘perception’ of its reputation”

–Shivam Dhawan

Perceptions are verbs:

• “Apple Thinks Different

• IBM Solves

• Nike Exhorts

• Virgin Enlightens

• Sony Dreams…”

- Jean Marie Dru, Disruption

Just like PERSONALITIES

What is your

BRAND?

WHAT do I DO?

WHO do I do it FOR?

HOW am I UNIQUE?

(WHERE do I do it?)

= YOU: The Brand

Develop A Personal Brand for Yourself

For Most of Us Linked In is our Online Brand (Remember the four components of branding)

• Awareness – Who we are: Name, Title, Photo, Summary

• Trust – Our Credentials, Our Experience • Reputation – Skills, Achievements,

Recommendations • Perception – Interests, Personal Details, overall

feeling from profile (Hopefully a Verb) • YOUR PROSPECTS ARE CHECKING YOUR PROFILE

OUT TRY TO DIFFERENTIATE YOURSELF!!!

Awareness: Good Use Of – Photo, Name, Title, Summary

• Use a professionally done head shot photo if possible (Smile)

• Change your default work title, Try To Say: – What you do

– Who you do it for

• Change Linked In URL to your name.

• Make The Summary Engaging: – Say how you do what you do

– Make It measurable if at all possible

– Write It from your prospects point of view

– Have a call to action if at all possible

– Include Samples of your work

Trust and Reputation

• Highlight Work Experience

– Especially if you can show how you helped prospects achieve measurable results

• Highlight Special Skills

– Trainings

– Certifications

• Ask and Use Recommendations:

– Others vouching for you is great, especially if it is customers

– Best way to get recommendations is to give them

Let’s Look At Some Examples

•Good Photo •Good Title •Good Summary

•Good Examples of Work

•Good Use of Recommendations

•Good Photo •Good Title •Good Summary Different Style

•Good Use of Recommendations

•Good Title: Who I am what I do, and for who

•Good Summary, (A Bit To Long Though) Sample of my Work and Who I Am Following at Bottom

•Good Use of Recommendations • CTL Company Link Included

•Good Photo •Good Title

•Don’t Do This!!! •Look at the Title!!! •But Funny though •Certainly a Differentiator

Let’s explore some ways to use

LinkedIn for prospecting.

Searches and Advanced Searches

• You can search contacts

• You can search companies (you can follow them as well)

• You can save searches and it will notify you of changes in your search profile

• Searches will show you 1st, 2nd, and 3rd level connections to that person.

• Prospecting Class on BMI Social Warrior Site – http://bmi.corp.intranet/bmgq/social-

warrior/prospecting

Groups!!!

• Choose Groups Where Your Contacts Are – Industry Based

– Education / Charity Based (Alumni Associations, ETC.)

• Max Group Membership 50 Different Groups

• Observe First

• Ask Questions On Discussion Threads

• Start Relevant Discussion Threads

• Post Relevant Articles To Group

• NOT SALES INFO OR ADVERTISING

• Groups Allow You to Send In Mail To Other Group Members Even if They Are Not Your Contacts

Develop Contact Based Prospecting !!! • Often Takes Between 10-12 Emails and Phone Calls

Before You Have Relevant Contact With Prospect • You Are More Likely to Get Sales Call Returned if You

Have Personal Connection – Check Profile to see if you have people in common – Check if you have University or Company in Common – When you reach out to them make sure you mention

commonality. This increases your odds 3x – When Mutual Connection calls on your behalf for

introduction , this increases your odds 4x – When you contact direct connection odds increase 12x

• Cultivate contacts similar to your ideal prospect. – Go Where they are off line and online – Initiate Conversations – Keep in touch with them

Keeping In Touch With Prospects • Become a Content Provider

– Sift through info. to find articles valuable to prospects. (Doing this Daily or Weekly is best.)

– This elevates your credibility in prospects eyes

– Be Constantly on look out for relevant info. • Industry News Letters

• Business Press

• Videos and Magazines Prospects likely to read

– Send your Prospects short note with article link attached. Can send same note to multiple prospects.

• Share Articles online via Linked In, Face book, Twitter. – Simply click on share icon for relevant service

– Post to your profile, or actually send to your contacts or group.

– If you post to profile, when contacts sign on they will see your post.

Other Relevant Info.

• Social Warrior Success Stories – http://bmi.corp.intranet/bmgq/social-

warrior/success-stories

• Social Warrior Tutorials – http://bmi.corp.intranet/bmgq/social-

warrior/tutorials

• Don’t Be A Pest: LinkedIn Settings Mistakes – http://www.forbes.com/sites/cherylsnappconner/201

4/01/25/the-important-linkedin-settings-most-people-miss/

“Do what you want to be famous for

Because you are famous for what you do” - Kristian Anderson

?

Thank You

Joel Katz Sales Engineering Manager Joel.Katz@Centurylink.com

407-628-6624