At this point you already know that great content gives you the power to engage people and create meaningful connections with potential prospects. You also know that LinkedIn has launched its own publishing tool to create long-form posts and attract users within your industry.
But how do you ensure that your LinkedIn content resonates with specific buyers? Which topics work better? Is there a specific writing style you should employ? The following tips will help you optimize your content for the world’s largest professional network.
Find Click-Worthy Topics
The first step to create effective content that supports sales is identifying topics that interest your potential clients. Review LinkedIn content that generates high interest in your industry.Paul Shapiro provides very actionable tips on how to do this. If you navigate to https://www.linkedin.com/today/posts there is a box that provides the most current “Top Influencer Post Searches”. These are keywords that at any given moment generate a lot of interest.
You can use these “top phrases” to come up with new topics and actual content that interests buyers within your LinkedIn network. For instance, leverage the term “big ideas 2014” to generate similar topics (e.g. “10 Big Ideas Shapping Up The Future Of Marketing in 2014”).
Alternatively, start by discovering what content is written using a certain keyword and sort it by popularity to find successful topics within your industry. Just customize and enter the following URL in your browser:
https://www.linkedin.com/vsearch/ic?type=content&keywords=[insert keyword here (without brackets or parenthesis)]
For example, if you sell marketing automation software for large corporations, searching for key phrases such as “marketing automation enterprise” or “email marketing” will produce a list with the most relevant posts that employ those terms.
In addition, you can just use LinkedIn’s main search menu and select “Posts”. Search for your keywords and see what the best performing content is.
Also, take a look at which content piece has the most likes and comments. Instead of wasting inMails conducting random outreach, click on these qualified users and message them. They will also see that you have viewed their LinkedIn profile and maybe click through to yours, where they may notice your recent LinkedIn Publisher posts (which in theory should resonate with them).
These micro-interactions have the power of connecting and keeping prospects engaged with you.
Choosing The Right Style
“While technology can help, social selling is about building stronger relationships with potential buyers, based on an authentic sense of empathy and a deep understanding of the problems they face.” – John Becher, SAP Chief Marketing Officer, Forbes.com
Regardless of what you’re trying to convey with your content, you must communicate to a potential buyer that you care about his or her situation and would like to offer a solution in the form of your company’s products or services. This emotional appeal has the ability to increase your engagement with prospective buyers. Although buyers will realize that you’re trying to sell them something, they may be impressed by your knowledge and influence, and feel that you can be trusted.
Leverage your own experiences and successes. Describe the emotions and thought patterns you might have if you were in your prospective client’s situation. For example, “We want to help you avoid the frustration and headaches that data breaches can bring,” or “When you have to turn down a sale for ethical reasons, your initial thought may be, ‘What have I done?!'”
Keep It Short, Clear and Useful
“With mobile having now overtaken desktop for going online, (60% of mobile web users use their phone as their primary or exclusive means of going online)…you want your content to be easily accessible to mobile users, [so] cut out anything unnecessary and format your content so mobile users can get the information they need, fast.” – Jayson DeMers, SEO and Online Marketing Specialist, Forbes.com
You don’t know if readers will view your content on a desktop or phone, so make sure your content is succinct and leaves your customers with information they can actually use. For example, if you sell furnaces, a short list with tips on how to survive in an office with no heat would be a great way to show your expertise, promote your brand, convey compassion for those poor freezing employees and help generate leads.
Cover the main point of your post within the first few lines. Drawn your reader in first, then lay out details. For example, start with a statistic about how exorbitantly expensive white papers have been for companies in the past and explain that this is why small and large businesses should use boutique copy writing services (like the one you represent) instead of larger copy writing establishments.
Creating easy-to-read, highly relevant content that showcases the value of your service or product can lead to warmer, increased leads and more sales from each post that you write, particularly if your content shows genuine concern and empathy for anyone who needs your services or products.
