21 Aug Above and Beyond: The Power of LinkedIn for Marketing

What is the popular perception of LinkedIn? Some would say it’s an effective way to screen job candidates or potential business partners or to connect with colleagues past and present. But there’s much more to this ever-expanding networking tool than that; with more and more professionals joining LinkedIn each day, this social media platform provides one of the best opportunities for successful marketing.

We put together a ‘top 5’ list which explains why marketing on LinkedIn could actually prove to be your biggest source of new customers:

Growing Audience

 There are now over 675 million users signed up to use LinkedIn, making it the largest professional platform,  Incredible! The sheer magnitude of the audience out there means opportunities are limitless. It also flags up a danger- you’ll look out-of-touch if you’re not involved!

 Easily Accessible

 LinkedIn now has applications on both mobile phones and tablets, making it accessible ‘on the go’. In fact, over 57% of visits to LinkedIn are now via mobile devices, so stop thinking of it as something you only use at set times at your desk. Like Twitter, it’s buzzing with discussion and information-sharing around the clock. Download the app for your phone and it could become one of your most useful.

Consistent Audience

 Not only is the audience growing, but users tend to be regulars, with up to 40% checking LinkedIn on a daily basis. That’s a lot of business users who recognise LinkedIn as much, much more than a means of screening the odd job candidate!

 Virtual Networking

 With over 2 million groups, there are many ways to converse with other users or promote your products. You do not necessarily have to pay to advertise your business; rather promote it for free within a group. You can also ask questions in various groups in order to work out how to better market your business. It’s the ideal way to access free advice if you’re a start-up or entering a new market. If you really want to delve in further, there’s even the opportunity to set up your own group, giving you the power to decide what sort of conversations are posted and who to add to the group. Remember also that LinkedIn offers more detailed and in-depth discussion than Twitter which is limited to 280 characters per tweet.

Professional Audience

 This is where LinkedIn truly beats the likes of Facebook and Twitter! Almost all users on LinkedIn are professionals and represent a business, so LinkedIn takes you directly to the perfect audience without having to bypass all the timewasters. (It’s also unlikely to distract you from serious business topics!) Particularly if you are targeting businesses rather than individuals, you’ll find LinkedIn indispensable as they will (or should) all be there. If your target market is more centred on individuals, it’s still worth building a profile; after all, it’s a free database where you can be found if anyone chooses to investigate you- and we all know individuals are increasingly keen to do that these days.

We hope you have been inspired to learn more. We love to connect with SMEs, so find us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/

You can also tweet us @mantleltd , or use good, old-fashioned email to connect with us: info@mantleltd.com