Blog - using LinkedIn as a brand development tool

LinkedIn: the Facebook of the business world?

LinkedIn is probably the most overlooked social media network. People tend to use it for recruitment or networking, but it can be a great avenue for developing your brand and your reputation as a thought leader.

There are four important parts to LinkedIn: your profile, your company page, groups and Q&As. Of these, groups are the most powerful brand development tool. If you type a word into the search box, using the groups filter, I can pretty much guarantee there will be at least one group for any subject you choose.

Some groups have memberships in excess of 100,000 people, all of whom visit to discuss a subject of interest to them. Join those that cover your area of expertise, then use your membership to promote your content (blogs, video, case studies, white papers, etc) and your knowledge of your subject.

Engage members in conversation, answering peoples questions and pointing them towards useful resources. Look for articles or blogs elsewhere on the web that may be of interest to members and could generate discussion - which you can then get involved in.

Your tone of voice should be friendly and relaxed, but professional. There is so much spam, noise and terrible use of English on LinkedIn, that just following this simple mantra will help you stand out:

• use good English
• link to high quality content
• ask questions

The most effective way to promote anything is to ask questions.

Always try to devise a question that fits with the content you want to promote, for example, picking out a salient point and asking whether people agree.

People are always more likely to respond to questions rather than statements. They feel that you are asking them for a response and their ego is flattered. People love the chance to share their opinion.

To get the most out of a LinkedIn group membership

Ask questions, answer questions, post relevant content. Be involved.

One thing you didn't know about groups:

You can connect and message other members of any groups you join, without having to provide any other proof of knowing them. This is a great networking tool. Want to connect with a company CEO? Look at their LinkedIn profile, see what groups they I've joined, join those groups. Rather than sending them a direct message, join a conversation thread that they're involved in first. If you're discussing a subject they're interested in, they are much more likely to talk to you.

Caroline White, communications specialist, www.whitewrite.co.uk

If you want to contribute to the Chamber blog, contact us on hannah@brightonchamber.co.uk