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A Guide to Prospecting Ideal Clients and Hiring Rockstar Talent

STEP 1: DETERMINE THE PURPOSE OF YOUR LINKEDIN PRESENCE

If you’re going to do any kind of business development, prospecting, or hiring on LinkedIn, the first thing you need to focus on is optimizing your LinkedIn profile. And, when we say “focus” we mean like a laser beam! Let’s start with determining your goal in using LinkedIn. Answer the following questions below to get more clarity and direction on why you want to leverage LinkedIn:

What Are Your Objectives? Brand awareness and engagement Lead generation or client acquisition Hire talented people Share a mix of relevant links, blog posts, and engaging content Promote upcoming events Engage with influencers Other

How Are You Measuring Success? X number of posts per week Page follows Comments, likes, and shares Group participation Referring traffic Lead generation/new clients/new job applicants Other

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Boost Your Summary and Finish Completing Your Profile

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STEP 2: UPDATE YOUR PERSONAL PROFILE

People examine you first before they ever look at your business, so here are a few tips to ensure your personal profile page is doing what it should:

Attract Interest by Enhancing Your Personal Photo, Headline, and Title

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Upload a professional image - one that shows your personalityand uniqueness – and remember to smile!

Draft a compelling headline that summarizes who you are andwhat you can offer.

List your current position and at least one past position toestablish yourself as an expert with experience.

Use the summary section to concisely explain what you do andwhy a client should choose your firm. Add relevant keywords and include links to your website and blog. Use the template to the right to guide your writing.

Create a personalized URL for your public profile, fill in missingdetails of your company description, and make all information publicly available to maximize searchability. Achieve that “All-Star” status!

SUMMARY TIP: Make your message client-focused.

WHAT I DO: I help {My Target Audience} achieve {Their Desired Outcome} by providing {My Firm’s Skill or Service Offering}.

WHY WE’RE DIFFERENT: {My value proposition: What makes our firm different/better/unique versus others who offer similar skills, products, or services.}

WHO WE WORK BEST WITH: {Insert description of your ideal client and how you work with your clients to address their specific challenges.}

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Connect with Those You Know and Convert Activity into ROI

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Promote offline events, appearances, and speaking engagements. Create a following by posting newsletters, articles, and blogs. Upload a company video, if you have one, to reach additional audiences and increase visibility. Develop relationships with local professionals in complementary businesses, such as attorneys and CPAs, through the use of groups. LinkedIn will notify you when people in your network change jobs or receive promotions. Use this opportunity to congratulate them and offer a review of their retirement plans. If your clients are on LinkedIn, browse through their connections and ask for introductions to people you would like to meet.

Use LinkedIn’s advanced search to proactively discover those who may be a good fit for your firm. Simply click on “Advanced” next to the search icon.

STEP 3: CREATE A COMPANY PAGE

Your LinkedIn Company Page is an online beacon for both current and prospective clients. Not to mention the huge advantage it gives your firm when attracting new talent. As such, it is a truly unique space on the web. One that blurs the lines between a knowledge-sharing platform and relationship-building tool. So, to help you make the most of LinkedIn, here are a few basic steps to begin creating a company page of your own. Appoint a social media “champion” to coordinate this effort, create the page itself, and track performance.

1 Login to your Personal Profile, select “Companies” from the Drop-Down button next to the Search Bar. Then, under the right-hand column, click on the “Create” button.

Setup Your Company Page Using Your Personal LinkedIn Profile

After entering your company name and email address, get started by populating your page with valuable information: Company Description/URL/Industry Logo and Banner Image Company Specialties/Expertise Featured Groups

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TIP

STEP 3: CREATE A COMPANY PAGE

2 The first step toward making your company page more effective is by making an addition to the verbiage you just inserted in the summary section. Write a concise call to action that explains to your visitors exactly what it is you'd like them to do. Maybe you want them to call, email, download a document, or visit your site to sign up to your mailing list. Whatever it is, make it clear. (You can't expect people to read your mind.) Other examples of things you can do to attract interest are: Encourage your team to start promoting the page – after all, they’re your biggest advocates. Incorporate SEO keywords. Announce your new page with a blog post or email newsletter. Add a “Follow” button to your website. Share regular updates packed with value-added content tailored to your specific audience. Post new positions you’re currently looking to fill within the organization.

Attract Followers and Talent

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3 The best relationships are rooted in great conversations – and your tool for starting those conversations is the Company Update. Every update should convey your brand promise and values. But don’t forget that LinkedIn members want informative, insightful, inspirational content – not self-serving promotion. By delivering useful and engaging content, you’ll foster engagement and help your message spread faster. So, what makes a good status update?

Engage

Be helpful and friendly, not salesy Post at least once per weekday

Consider timing Link to great content

Updates posted in the morning usually earn highest engagement, with a slight bump occurring again after business hours.

Company updates containing links tend to have a higher follower engagement than those without links.

STEP 3: CREATE A COMPANY PAGE

4 When you post content to your Company Page, your followers can like, share, or comment on your updates, amplifying your messages to reach their first-degree connections, too. Another way to extend your reach is by creating and participating in LinkedIn groups. Networking and gaining credibility are two goals many advisors have when joining LinkedIn. Luckily, both can be achieved by using groups. To help figure out where to begin in amplifying your own presence, see the following list of ideas: Develop a “Careers” page featured on your Company Page Create a “Showcase” page to highlight specific audience segments or a particular initiative Join LinkedIn groups relevant to your area of expertise and network with Centers of Influence Leverage LinkedIn’s publishing platform to position your advisors and your firm as experts

Amplify through Your Network

5 In any marketing campaign, success depends on your ability to measure performance and use that data to optimize content. LinkedIn’s analytics tools empower you to do just that, ensuring you have the insights you need to strengthen follower relationships.

Analyze and Refine Your LinkedIn Strategy

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Monitor the impressions of each update Track clicks in your updates Check your total reach Compare your page success to others See visitor demographics

“Every like, comment, and share increases your reach. Prompt your followers to take action on your updates by asking thoughtful questions.” --LinkedIn

CREATE YOUR PAGE AND DRAFT COPY

ATTRACT FOLLOWERS AND TALENT

ENGAGE YOUR AUDIENCE

AMPLIFY THROUGH YOUR NETWORK

ANALYZE AND REFINE

“Make it easy for the right people to find your Company Page by adding SEO terms in the description and 'Specialties' sections.” --LinkedIn

Use this checklist to help you track many of the high-level steps involved in establishing a Company Page:

“Keep your Company Page fresh with rich cover images that reflect your company's accomplishments, events, and offerings.” --LinkedIn

LINKEDIN COMPANY PAGE CHECKLIST

“Get insight into what's working and what's not by using Company Page Analytics to test frequency, topics, and formats.” --LinkedIn

“Tie all of your LinkedIn communities together by using Featured Groups to show Groups you manage or participate in on your Company Page.” --LinkedIn

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HIRING ROCKSTAR TALENT WITH LINKEDIN

Craft An Irresistible Job Description Save the creativity for the description, NOT the title Share specifics that make your firm a great place to work Highlight the position’s impact with examples

As the world’s largest professional network, LinkedIn gives you access to

the same pool of talent as bigger companies on one centralized platform.

It gives you the ability to distinguish yourself as an employer of choice

without a large staff or budget.

Post and Promote Share your new posting via an update Target your outreach - search for the most suitable candidates by using the LinkedIn search filter Broadcast your new position in any relevant groups InMail your most qualified candidates to show your interest Build a hiring network to source from by connecting with your team on LinkedIn

Measure and Improve Job Post Performance See exactly who is engaging with your jobs Examine how and when they are interacting with your job Review who has viewed your profile once you’ve posted a job

DID YOU KNOW? 50% of job posters are at companies with fewer than 50 employees.

STEP 4: POST A JOB ON LINKEDIN

1 Post your new position by selecting “Post a job” from the Business Services tab.

Fill in your company description, position details, and skills required

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3 Determine if you’d like any other positions posted and select “Continue” to pay the fee for a 30-day posting.