Do you feel like you’re wasting time whenever you log into LinkedIn? If so, you’re not lone. Nearly everyone I know is disappointed with the results they get from spending time on LinkedIn. Very few really know how to make LinkedIn work as a traffic source or marketing medium.
More Traffic or Better Traffic? How ‘Bout Both?
The bad news: LinkedIn may not be the most prolific traffic source for driving traffic.
The good news: Linkedin tends to be a source of very high-quality traffic. Leads are more qualified, more targeted, more focused on ‘doing business’ than ones coming from Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest.
Based on personal experience, I can tell you that LinkedIn can send gobs of traffic to your website. Not kitten video-seekers, but qualified prospects curious about doing business with you. In fact, for one month last summer, LinkedIn sent more visitors to my website than Google.
Here are four great ways to leverage LinkedIn Groups as a real source of traffic
1. Create a Unique Profile. The foundation for a solid LinkedIn traffic strategy is setting up a unique profile. What does that have to do with Groups? More than you might think.
Having an engaging profile establishes your credibility, tells visitors and group members what’s special about you and why they should pay attention to you. These factors are essential for your long-term goals.
Many of your group co-members will judge you, at least in part, based on your profile. Many will check out your profile before clicking on your links. They want to make sure you’re not a spammer or a psycho.
Most people make the mistake of creating profiles that look like old-fashioned résumés. In fact, the built-in Help Guides and descriptions will lead you to believe that’s what you should be doing. Don’t make that mistake. Create an interesting, compelling, visitor-centric profile. Stand out.
2. Join groups where your prospects congregate. It’s natural to want to connect with your colleagues, and that’s how most LinkedIn users select which groups to join. Keep in mind that most of your peers will never become your clients.
Let’s say that you’re an SEO expert. You can find plenty of groups for people just like you. But, if you spend your time there, you’ll mostly be “preaching to the choir” when you start discussions and share links. Additionally, you’ll just be one of many SEO experts in the group. You’ll be able to have fun talking shop, but you probably won’t be marketing your services to them.
On the other hand, if you join groups of small business owners, you might be the only person in the group who understands how to rank on Google. Now you get to be the resident expert. You get to educate the entire group!
LinkedIn allows you to join up to 50 groups. No matter how many you become a member of, spend at least half of your time where your ideal prospects are.
3. Discussions. When starting discussions, be Relevant, Riveting and Regular.
This is the main active part of your traffic strategy.
Relevant – When you write articles, blog posts, etc., share them in groups where they will be appreciated and valued. The SEO expert’s article probably isn’t appropriate in a group for offline marketers.
You can start new discussions to present your content, but you should also post relevant links in response to discussions that others are already talking about.
Riveting – Share compelling content. Again, stay focused on the reader. What are her struggles? What is he just dying to know? What benefits are group members striving to obtain that you can deliver?
The content also has to be packaged in a riveting way. The most traffic I’ve ever received from LinkedIn came from discussions entitled “Satanic Sales Pitches.” That turned out to be a very effective attention-grabber.
Like everywhere else on line, there’s so much clutter, you can’t afford to be boring.
Regular – I advise people to start 2 or 3 conversations per week at most.
If you post too infrequently, you’ll start losing ground. But don’t be that person who posts 5 links back-to-back every day of the week. You’ll only irritate people, and moderators might block you or kick you out of the group.
You’ll also want to participate in other people’s discussions. That shows you’re not self-centered. You want to listen as well as speak.
4. Start your own groups.
If you have the time to dedicate, or if you can enlist the help of trustworthy managers and moderators, starting groups is an unparalleled opportunity to market yourself and drive traffic where ever you want.
The benefits of starting your own groups are obvious. Instant credibility, a captive audience and free reign to direct all conversation that takes place in the community.
You also get to send an email to your membership up to once a week. It’s almost like a free weekly newsletter. You have the chance to educate, persuade, sell, and link to content that you want your members to know about.
You already know that they’re interested in the topics you’re addressing, so they are likely to be high-quality potential customers.
Imagine what you could do with 500, 1,000, 10,000 group members? Would that transform your LinkedIn experience?
I achieved nothing during my first year on LinkedIn. I didn’t get it. But through plenty of trial and error, I discovered what’s possible and what works. Take these ideas and implement them. Experiment. You can accomplish so much more than you’re used to.
I’d love to hear your success stories.
Donnie Bryant is a direct response copywriter and marketing consultant. He specializes in radically improving businesses with Stealth Salesmanship and Strategic Marketing. Find out more at http://donnie-bryant.com/.> via zddesign.net
