Did you know there are more than 830 million LinkedIn users around the world? Among them are future sales prospects, future employees, and many others who look to the platform for professional development and career advice.
LinkedIn is a hub for professional connection and learning, and executives can create a presence that strongly contributes to their company’s success.
Convene member, Dacia Coffey, is experienced in building a LinkedIn presence. “The platform provides a great opportunity to have a bold and encouraging voice in today's overwhelming business world,” she explains. “People appreciate authenticity. Leaders who are willing to show their face in social media and make a personal contribution to the social conversation are a welcome relief to the standard corporate jargon.”
Five reasons executives should post regularly to LinkedIn:
Build a strong(er) brand for yourself and your company
Dialogue with those outside your immediate network to stay in touch
Attract talented employees with like-minded values
Increase sales by increasing audience awareness of your business and brand.
Inspire the next generation of industry leaders
How to build a dynamic LinkedIn following:
Keep your profile updated
An overarching goal of building your following/posting to LinkedIn is to attract people to your profile. If your profile isn't consistent with your content/outdated or incomplete, users won't want to engage as trust has not been fostered. Time should be spent updating personal information in all applicable categories.
TIP: The first-person point of view 'About' section is personable and can give you a chance to show your personality!
Post regularly
Start with short content. For example, ask a question and answer it.
Build your visibility and support other leaders by engaging with the content you enjoy. Comment on their posts with your own perspective or thoughtfully respond to other commenters. Start with ten minutes a day.
Vary the timing of your posts. Spread them across the day, and don’t forget weekends.
Post from your experience and expertise
Share specific examples of problem-solving you’ve done in your career. Don’t be afraid to share where you failed and how you corrected it. Authenticity is noticed and appreciated.
Offer insights into your industry. Look to your board reports as a potential source of content.
Discuss the future of your industry.
Connect your platform to current trends. For example, how are you beating inflation? What successful strategies have you engaged to hire and retain employees?
Post about your personal passions but connect them to your professional platform
Share wisdom from your personal hobbies (running, fly fishing, gardening, reading, etc.) that have an obvious connection to the professional world.
Engage with your audience
Connect to your audience in every post. Consider asking your marketing department for their customer personas so you can match your content to their wants and needs.
Respond to comments on your posts. Use comments to tag individuals in your network who would enjoy being part of the conversation.
Make yourself comfortable with iteration and don’t give up! It’ll take time to figure out what resonates with your audience, so don’t expect a home run on your first at-bat.
TIP: Join (easy as a click of a button) & post content to private LinkedIn online interest groups. These groups have already been tailored with people to their specific industry/hobby.
Remember the impact you can have through LinkedIn. “As Christian CEOs, we can act in love on social media and offer up our digital communication as yet another platform to glorify Him and call others to Him. We can tell the truth,” encourages Coffey. “Speaking from personal experience, you will be amazed at the real connections and the real impact you can have by putting yourself out there.”
If you’re looking for additional ways to dialogue and grow with leaders outside of your company and industry, consider joining a Convene Team led by one of our seasoned professional coaches. These groups offer individual coaching as well as shared learning in a Christ-centered environment with executives who share a commitment to faith.