You're Using LinkedIn, Right?

Hey Small Business Owners: You’re Using LinkedIn, Right?

LinkedIn is the Rodney Dangerfield of social media: in spite of 200 million highly influential subscribers, it gets no respect. Even though it is consistently ranked among the social giants Facebook and Twitter, it doesn’t seem to get as much buzz in the mainstream media. But as a tool for marketing your small business, it provides a huge edge over its more popular peers. Because unlike Facebook and Twitter, which often swap cat photos, inane one-liners and political rants from loco uncles, LinkedIn is all business.

How smart companies are using LinkedIn

You run a business. Your time is scarce. So just why should you worry about LinkedIn? Here are some ways your peers (there are 1.3 million small-business owners on the network) are using it to their advantage:

1. Sharing wins: As a small business owner, you work hard. Why not share your success stories? Promoting your successes is just good marketing. And with 2 million C-level executives making use of the site, you might suddenly find yourself with a few deep-pocketed suitors.
2. Getting referrals: LinkedIn makes it simplallows you to get peer and client endorsements for the work you do. Best part? When someone endorses you or writes a testimonial, everyone in your network sees it in his or her activity feed. This kind of social proof is the BEST way of getting new business.
3. Finding new talent: Growing? LinkedIn is a great place—scratch that, it’s the BEST place—to locate new A players to add to your roster. It’s the largest directory of working professionals on the internet.
4. Promoting events: LinkedIn’s event feature is a game changer! It has never been easier to spread your message and boost attendance for upcoming events. You can even use their service directory to find a caterer for your gathering. Simple.
5. Boosting website traffic: Here’s a little-known secret about LinkedIn: it’s very influential with Google, if you have a presence on LinkedIn, you’re likely to see a bump in search engine visibility, too. More eyeballs, more customers.
6. Getting answers: LinkedIn is a goldmine for advice on running a successful business. You are able to uncover great advice from a number of the savviest business minds in the world in LinkedIn Answers and Groups. There are over 2000 groups focused on small-business-related topics.
7. Finding investors, vendors and partners: It’s a networker’s paradise. Whether you want some capital, a new accounting firm, or even a business partner, you’re not going to find a better source than LinkedIn.

We’re just scratching the surface here, folks. The rewards don’t stop there. Go to LinkedIn, set up a page for your business and see for yourself. I know your time is limited, but trust me, it’s worth it.