With over 690 million users around the globe, LinkedIn helps you or your business build networks and connections.
The platform has morphed itself from being a small professional networking site to holding an enormous world force.
With millions of professionals from every type of industry in one place, LinkedIn has also proven to be an important marketing tool for businesses.
The platform has gained worldwide momentum in the last couple of years, especially for B2Bs.
For most of us, the basic formula to get started on LinkedIn is to:
- Join
- Optimise our profile
- And connect
While this is the basic ideology everyone thinks LinkedIn works on, in reality, it does not.
Just hitting the “Connect” button isn’t enough. You have to work on other factors when expanding your reach.
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Why is Increasing Reach On LinkedIn Important?
Working on increasing quality LinkedIn connections improves job prospects for individuals and helps generate leads for businesses. It also helps you rank higher on LinkedIn search results.
For example, if you’re an individual seeking a job, expanding your network will increase the number of first, second, and third-degree connections between you, recruiters, and hiring managers.
But, you might want to work on the right strategies if you want to expand your network. So, what are they?
Hold on as we take you through this list:
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Leverage Blogs
People write blogs for multiple reasons like networking, advertising, brand building, etc.
You want to share your content on as many platforms as possible for more people to recognise and hear you.
So why skip LinkedIn?
Did you know that you can publish full articles on LinkedIn via LinkedIn Pulse?
What Is LinkedIn Pulse?
LinkedIn Pulse is an online news aggregation feed within LinkedIn designed for members to share content with audiences.
With LinkedIn Pulse, you get a chance to:
- Connect with your audience: Your content is going to reach out to professionals from different industries.
LinkedIn notifies your connections whenever you post your content. This way you know it will not get drowned in between the other ones.
- Engage with customers: People on LinkedIn want to grow, learn, and build connections.
Always have a strong strategy planned before you write on LinkedIn Pulse.
As you are trying to get the attention of professionals and industry experts, your content needs to be as sharp as possible.
Using blogs on LinkedIn will help you gain exposure, increase followers, and be viewed as an “expert”.
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Engage Via Groups
Joining professional groups on LinkedIn will help connect you with leaders and well-known names from your industry.
With these groups, you will engage in thoughtful conversations with people relevant to the industry.
How to find such groups?
It is very easy to find relevant groups via LinkedIn:
- Enter the keyword or the group name on the search bar.
- Select “Group” from the dropdown section
- Choose the right group and send a request to join.
When you join a group, you can easily see who in your network are already members.
Take a step further by asking your network about it. This will not only help in continuing the relationship you already have but will also help you understand what groups will be right for you.
How to participate in LinkedIn groups?
First thing, start familiarising yourself with the kind of content shared in the group.
Is it industry-related updates that generate interest among members or some quick tips? This will help you understand how you can participate here.
Here are some quick tips:
- Answer questions that people have asked. While you do that, don’t forget to ask some of your own.
- Post your articles. Also, ask group members a question related to that article.
- Build relationships. Keep in mind that you’re just not here to promote yourself but also to build more connections.
- Use other networks. Connect with the members on other platforms like Twitter or Facebook.
Don’t shy out. Most people will be happy to connect with you since they are in the group for the same reason as you are.
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Share Strategically
While sharing content is important, what is even more important is to be strategic.
Be smart in your approach.
Share what you think your network will enjoy reading. Really think about your target audience and the type of content that will engage them.
Remember that not everyone is there to read all your blogs. Post something that will be worth their time.
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Use Hashtags
Hashtags are great, aren’t they?
They help you find topics and content of your interest. They also help your content reach more people.
You’ve probably used hashtags on Instagram or Twitter but did you know they play a crucial role on LinkedIn as well?
LinkedIn and hashtags? Are hashtags even “professional” enough?
Sure they are.
It makes even more sense when you’re looking to widen your reach.
How to discover hashtags on LinkedIn?
Here’s how to do it:
- Search for the hashtag you’d like to find by typing it in the search bar. For example, #DigitalMarketing.
- This will directly take you to the hashtag feed where you will see all related content and the number of people following it.
You can even follow the hashtag.
Also, when you start using hashtags on your posts/content, don’t overuse them.
There are no limits to the number of hashtags you can use on LinkedIn but we recommend you limit your posts with a maximum of five.
It will look more authentic and less spammy.
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Use Different Formats
We’d recommend you experiment with embedding rich media to your posts like – videos, carousels, and gifs.
This will not only make your post look visually pleasing but will also generate more engagement.
In fact, according to HubSpot, more than 50% of users want to see videos from businesses.
So, what type of videos can you post on LinkedIn?
Here are some ideas:
- Industry Insight Videos: These are the types of educational videos demonstrating expertise. You can share relevant information related to your field through these videos.
- Trending News: Keep your eyes peeled for news that’s trending in your industry and create videos around it.
- Promo For A Webinar Event: Promotional videos related to professional enrichment courses and webinars do well on LinkedIn.
- Introduction Videos: Show what makes your product/company unique in the form of a video.
- Live-videos: Through live-streaming, you can connect with your audience in real-time. Going live on LinkedIn is no different than going live on Facebook. It’s just with a more professional twist.
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Cross-Promote Content On Other Platforms
Cross-promotion works best in getting more attention.
For every article or video post that you share on LinkedIn, you get an option to share the post on other social media platforms.
It will benefit you in getting more attention to your posts, articles, or videos.
But even better, LinkedIn will favour your content for working on its algorithm goal which is to get more traffic to the platform.
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Deliver Value Through Your Posts
Lastly, a successful content strategy requires an exchange of valuable content for audience engagement.
In easy words, put out content that provides some kind of value to your audience so that they can engage with it.
This may include:
- Providing tips,
- Answering industry-related questions,
- Giving insights, etc.
You can also take inspiration from your competitors but do not copy. See what they’re doing in driving engagement to their post.
Conclusion
And there you have it! Some powerful strategies to increase your reach on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn is a great platform if you’re looking for opportunities to grow professionally.
All you need is to be armed with the knowledge of how to leverage this platform to your advantage and you will see positive results in no time.
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