Today I’m talking about how much better LinkedIn for business is, compared to Facebook. We continue our theme for the month around networking and I’ve already talked a lot about in-person networking, the old school way of doing it, face to face, avoiding small talk.
So I know we took a break from social media for a little bit but I did want to talk specifically about LinkedIn because I think it is one of the most underutilized platforms out there. I’m going to give you my five big reasons why you should be leveraging this year to really get familiar with using LinkedIn for business. Now, of course everyone has heard the chatter about Facebook and some of their many troubles so far this year. Already we’re seeing that Facebook is tanking in terms of the list of social media networks that people trust.
With Facebook in peril I challenge you to think about where are you going to engage your online audience if Facebook disappears. It’s never good to put all of your eggs in one basket. But even more importantly, there are other ways that you could be better utilizing your time on social media and the interwebs.
Now, I have five reasons why you should absolutely be leveraging LinkedIn to grow your business.
source stats: https://kinsta.com/blog/linkedin-statistics/
1. A Professional Networking Platform
The first one is that LinkedIn is the professional networking social media platform. This is where people go for B2B – business to business connections. It’s also a great platform because all of the social chatter that makes social media repulsive isn’t present on LinkedIn. You’re not going to find a whole bunch of posts about blue versus red in American politics. You’re not going to find a bunch of people trolling each other and being nasty in comments on LinkedIn.
Instead, for some reason, LinkedIn attracts people who are showing up as their most buttoned up professional self. Which means a lot of the negative back and forth that happens on other networks doesn’t happen on LinkedIn. Which means people are there to show up as their best, find services and products that help them achieve their goals and then they’re out.
LinkedIn is a really nice way to stay super focused on your goals as a business owner because LinkedIn creates an environment that’s 100% conducive to that.
2. Effective Lead Generation
Number two reason you should be on LinkedIn for business is that it’s much more effective at lead generation than any other platform. In fact, studies as recent as March of this year have found that LinkedIn is 277% more effective at lead generation than Facebook or Twitter. Which means, if you’re on Facebook trying to figure out chat bots and get your ads going and all of that, your time would be much better spent by just posting with regularity on LinkedIn.
People message you. People connect with you. And people see your brand there and they are much more likely to convert into a prospect, than you blasting and spending all of your time on your personal Facebook page. So really think about where your leads are coming from? And is Facebook even giving you the kind of lead generation that you think? If not, I encourage you to check out some of the tools LinkedIn has to offer for using their platform for lead generation.
3. More Income than the average American Household
The third reason you should be leveraging LinkedIn for business this year is, LinkedIn users make way more money than the average American household. So about 44% of LinkedIn users are averaging $75,000 or more in annual income. When we all know median household income in the U.S. is right around $50,000.
If you have a high ticket item that you sell, or a service that you promote, then you’re probably going to want to be spending more time on LinkedIn because that’s where the dollars are.
Anytime you have a product or service that you’re selling, what you’re trying to avoid is what we call “Thirst traps.” Which is a whole bunch of people who want your product and service but have no dollars to actually purchase it. This is especially true if you’re selling a higher tier product, something that starts at over $1,000 or more. If you’re racking your brain trying to figure out Facebook ads to sell it, no. Go to LinkedIn where people have more of that disposable income, discretionary funding where they can afford your product in the first place.
4. Easier to Position Yourself as an Expert
Number four reason why you should be on LinkedIn is a big one. If you’re trying to become an influencer, LinkedIn is going to make it so much easier for you to position yourself as an expert in your area. LinkedIn has over 9 billion impressions a month but only about 3 million users are posting on a weekly basis. Which means, if you are a content marketer, and you find yourself racking your brain to create content on a regular basis, maybe instead of posting every week on Facebook, you could start adding in posting weekly on LinkedIn. Because the views that you’re going to get there, the impressions it’s going to make, are so much more attainable than they are on any other platform.
Additionally, because only a fraction of LinkedIn’s population is posting consistently, by you doing so you set yourself immediately apart. You open the door for influencer status and becoming a center for influence in your niche.
5. Using Video gets you Amazing Returns
And finally, the number five reason you should be using LinkedIn is video. Already we know that video is king in content marketing. The more you can tell your story and exude your talents and expertise in video, the more powerful the message, because it sticks in your audience’s mind. There’s an entire part of the human brain that’s devoted to processing visual images. That’s video. So use video on LinkedIn where they’re getting those 9 billion impressions every month and you’ll find amazing returns.
Also if you’re new on LinkedIn, you can now create native video ads which is something they didn’t have before. So again, if you’re racking your brain trying to figure out Facebook ads you might consider taking that knowledge and that time over to LinkedIn. There you can get more bang for your buck because of lead generation, because of video, and because Facebook is not doing well.
What do You Think?
So just think for yourself if you’re using the interwebs to promote your business and your service which platform really is going to give you a bang for your buck. Are you seeking to position yourself in a professional arena? Do you want to avoid some of the chatter that comes with the back and forth of American politics? Are you looking to really grow your brand and become a center of influence in a way that is relatively low in competition?
If those things sound like where you’re at, I encourage you to check out LinkedIn. If you’re still struggling trying to figure out how to get started please check out the resources on mariedeveaux.com for how to optimize your LinkedIn profile page and get started on LinkedIn for as little as five minutes a day. Alright, I hope that helps you guys. Please, please tell me if you jump on LinkedIn. Or better yet, just send me a link because you know I’m there and I’ll talk to you soon.
