Using LinkedIn for Business Development

Many people are asking, I’m making all these connections – so now what do I do with them? How do I turn these connections into money? Today I talked with LinkedIn expert Brynne Tillman about how to leverage your LinkedIn connections. Here’s some highlights from our interview:
First, a review of the basics: don’t sell, do give help and information. Position yourself as a ‘thought leader.’
Get in a group. If you want to find more prospects that want what you’re offering, join LinkedIn groups. You can find many groups that are filled with your ideal target market. Another bonus: you can email directly to members within a group – you don’t need to be directly connected.
Search. If you’re unsure which groups to join, do a search – not sure what to look for?  You can review your current clients and see what keywords they have in their profile, and then search for similar ones.
It’s All About Them. So now that you’re in a group, what do you talk about? Focus on what your prospects want to know about, not what you want to tell them. This can be a difficult mindset to get into if you’re not used to thinking in this way. Here’s a few things worth sharing: blog posts, articles, a survey, or share poll results.
Taking it Offline. How do you take it to the next level? Make an effort to reach out to someone you’d like to get to know better – invite them for coffee or a phone meeting to learn more about what they do. Then work on establishing that relationship.
Source: Business Development University
To listen to this segment in its entirety, go to: Marketing Chat with Nancy Sipera, 10/9/13