8 Reasons Why B2B Entrepreneurs Should Use LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a great tool for businesses looking to create new connections, build brands and generate leads.The platform has 364 million users across the globe, an aspect that makes it a critical tool for social networking. With this kind of following, LinkedIn can be a game changer for business to business (B2B) entrepreneurs. However, it is mostly viewed as a platform for job hunting and networking as opposed to a tool for conducting continuous marketing campaigns. Here are eight reasons why as a social media platform, LinkedIn is the most powerful tool for businesses:
- LinkedIn is Popular among the Business Community
LinkedIn is the 3rd most common social media platform among business people based on a 2015 Marketing Report produced by Salesforce. An estimated 62% of business people used LinkedIn in 2015 and a further 22% indicated they plan to use the platform in 2016. Based on this trend, the number of businesses using LinkedIn is likely to go up in the coming years as opposed to slowing down.
- LinkedIn is the Best Platform for Recruiting Talent
As a social media site, LinkedIn has grown over the years to become a channel for finding potential staff. Based on research findings released by LinkedIn in 2015, the use of professional networking sites such as LinkedIn to recruit talent in organizational and companies has increased by 73%. This is far much more than internet job boards that have grown by 15% and staffing agencies that have gone down by 16%.
- LinkedIn is Effective in Generating Leads
A research conducted by Hubspot in 2012 shows that out of all social networking platforms, referral traffic related to LinkedIn led to the highest conversations among visitors. This ranked LinkedIn higher than Twitter and Facebook with an average rate of conversation of 2.74% compared to 0.69% for Twitter and 2.74% for Facebook. Those these statistics have shifted over the past four years, it is highly likely that LinkedIn still commands at significant lead in the B2B space. Entrepreneurs may also integrate smart social networking platforms such as Opporty to leverage sharing of LinkedIn content, build quality backlinks and traffic to their sites and generate leads.
- LinkedIn provides Advertisement Space
There are different strategies that businesses can utilize LinkedIn in building an audience as well as increasing sales and traffic. However, as a social networking site, LinkedIn does offer a huge opportunity for rolling out visibility campaigns where businesses have marketing budgets through sponsored posts and paid adverts. When designed and used appropriately, such adverts or posts can improve the visibility of a business instantly at a reasonable cost.
As a matter of fact, LinkedIn offers better deals compared to Google, Twitter or Facebook. These strategies tend to work better for B2B entrepreneurs compared to B2C when it comes to making connections that result to meaningful sales. However, all businesses gain from using LinkedIn.
- LinkedIn is Ideal for Instituting Thought Leadership
As a channel for disseminating professional content, LinkedIn provides an ideal space for business to establish themselves as thought leaders in their industry. With LinkedIn groups, businesses can position themselves as credible influencers in their niche. They can also capitalize on endorsements and recommendations to solidify their reputation as credible entities in their fields.
- LinkedIn enables Businesses to Syndicate Content
LinkedIn has been underrated as a content circulation platform. Facebook and other social sites tend to get more attention. However, the organic reach for content on individual business pages is dropping gradually. A study conducted by MarketingProfs and Content Marketing Institute in 2014 showed that 94% of business marketers utilize LinkedIn as a platform for distributing content.
LinkedIn offers different ways of syndicating content including posting content as company or individual updates or in relevant LinkedIn groups. Also, businesses can pitch directly to target audiences. Entrepreneurs can also use promotion tabs and since LinkedIn groups focus on specific niche areas, they attract more visits and views when the content provides value to readers.
- LinkedIn provides a Platform for Launching Products
For businesses that want to get the word about a new product out, LinkedIn provides a great space for doing this. Over the years, this platform has had huge impact on the way news about products are distributed to consumers, bloggers and the media. In 2015, LinkedIn ranked first among platforms that B2B businesses use for product launches based on a poll conducted by Regalix. The poll showed that 81% of businesses use LinkedIn for product launches while 54% and 71% used Facebook and Twitter respectively.
- LinkedIn enhances Search Visibility
A profile that is well optimized on LinkedIn can enhance the chances of a B2B business being ranked highly by search engines such as Google. To maximize on this, businesses need to use relevant keywords on their page and profile descriptions, use descriptive words in company or job titles, complete all required fields and include website or blog links on posts, profiles or descriptions.
