Connecting with Other Users Via LinkedIn
LinkedIn works in much the same way as the majority of social media platforms for marketing available online; one person will be able to send another a request to connect, where the recipient will be able to either confirm or reject the person that has asked to get in touch. Once connected, the ability to message, market to and generally interact with like-minded professionals can be substantial and this is one of the main ways that businesses engage with one another, or market their products/ services. But to use this platform effectively LinkedIn Training is highly recommended.
Some businesses create pages to represent themselves while others create individual profiles, complete with photos of the user and further information about their professional expertise. As LinkedIn is predominantly profession-based, it’s not uncommon for some users to attempt to connect with potential customers; particularly those that might be interested in a specific service or product.
How to market with connections
The majority of users will consider LinkedIn a platform to get to know more about those that they’ve worked with, but just as many will think about the potential to market. The ability to create a professional profile, complete with a variety of information and an assortment of product data can certainly help with the possibility of reaching a wider audience – and this is where connections come into the fray.
Whenever a person signs up to LinkedIn, they will be given the opportunity to issue connection requests to those that they know, those that they’d like to learn more about and those that they may wish to work with. Some users prefer to keep their circles small, while others are happy to accept requests from people around the world. Regardless of who the person might be – once they accept the connection request, they can be marketed to.
LinkedIn employs a useful feature that automatically updates its users, whenever one of their connections posts something that might be of interest to them. As most connections will ‘follow’ one another once they have been confirmed, the potential to appeal to a variety of people can be something that many businesses wish to take advantage of.
There are many ways to market to an audience via LinkedIn and they can include updating statuses, changing careers, creating blog posts, or by writing personal messages. Regardless of the technique, the larger the list of connections, the more likely an individual will be to hone in on people that may be interested in what they have to offer.
Relationships can be developed, as can B2B partnerships, and as LinkedIn is free to use the ability to undertake connection marketing at a minimal expense can be very appealing for new businesses attempting to make a name for themselves, without having to pay thousands of dollars.