Are you connected? Depending on your promotional needs and capacity, you might be on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Remember to take a look at LinkedIn as well. While LinkedIn might seem like a social media venue for individuals, not organizations, it can play a key role in your promotional strategy.
LinkedIn Excels at B2B Connections
Like all social networking sites, LinkedIn is an opportunity to build community. Since LinkedIn is a profile of the work that you do, it’s the place to let other businesses know how you can help them grow and support their insurance needs. While many social media networks don’t necessarily translate into tangible leads, LinkedIn does. According to a 2014 study by Oktopost, up to eighty percent of a business’s social media leads come from LinkedIn. Of these leads, most come from participation in discussion groups. This information can help you develop your B2B leads using LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Generates Lasting Connections
Leads come from good quality interactions with other businesses. Instead of trying to accumulate as many contacts as possible, focus on building quality connections with those contacts that you have. Use LinkedIn’s search feature to find the important contacts in your area, and connect with them personally through discussion groups or private messages. Tag your existing connections in your posts to encourage communication. By making an extra effort to cultivate connections, you’ll create stronger business networks that could yield real-world customers.
Sponsored Updates Offer an Entry Point for Key Content
When you’ve created a piece of content that you’re proud of and you want to bring it to a wider audience, you can share it with a targeted audience through LinkedIn’s sponsored updates. With a sponsored update, you pay to ensure that your updates get to the audience you request, and you can track analytics to see how successful your updates are at attracting reader engagement.
Visual Elements Allow You to Show Your Value to Leads
When you have a business, you can write about it but it makes even more of an impact when you can show photos or make a presentation about your work. Did you know that LinkedIn allows you to do just that? Not only can you choose a profile photo, you can also add photos and slideshows to document specific types of work that you do, so that your page becomes a resource, not just a resume.
Discussion Groups are a Venue to Share Your Expertise
You’re an expert in your field, and you need to show it. Your own blog probably features content that will help your customers and establish you as a reputable insurance agency. You can do the same on LinkedIn. By making useful and content-rich comments in LinkedIn groups, the community of businesses that need your insurance information will begin to rely on you as a trusted source. When they need insurance, they know where to turn. Focus on commenting in small, niche discussion groups or groups specific to your region so that your posts will stand out.
When you create valuable connections and content for others, they appreciate the work that you do. Instead of using LinkedIn as a resume, turn it into an answer to the question, “What can your business do for me?” Your LinkedIn profile and your interactions on discussion groups should focus on being of service to others, so that LinkedIn becomes a vital part of building your B2B leads.
When you’re developing your network, contact the American Agents Alliance. Become a member, and you’ll receive preferred market access and affinity and professional designation discounts on the products your insurance company needs. Contact the American Agents Alliance today to learn more about the many benefits of membership.
