LinkedIn has helped me grow my business, build my professional network and establish my expertise. I use it daily and am constantly (happily) surprised by the people I meet and the information I gather there. LinkedIn has helped me in innumerable ways but here are three recent examples.
LinkedIn has helped me in innumerable ways but here are three recent examples Click To TweetRecently, out of the blue, a business coach from India contacted me via LinkedIn. He was looking for someone to help train his his staff and clients on how to use LinkedIn. When I asked him how he found me, he explained that he had searched via LinkedIn and I had come up. He then saw my qualifications, my recommendations and visited my website.
After some discussion, we set up a series of webinars (see below for more info) for his people. Not only will this be an opportunity to gain new clients but it gives me a way to offer my current clients a webinar series at a different time than I usually do (to accommodate the Indian attendees, these will be offered in the evening hours, ET). The coach will take care of advertising the program, increasing my visibility and reaching a new audience.
Shortly after this, I received an email from a journalist. Again, this was unsolicited, from someone I was not yet connected to. She explained how she was getting in touch with me based on a post of mine she had come across on LinkedIn. She needed some info and a quote for an article she was writing on email marketing. I was able to reply quickly and my comments appeared in the subsequent article on Time.com providing me and my business with excellent exposure and a valuable media connection!
The third example is how LinkedIn helped me on a personal matter. I had bought a piece of artwork and wanted to identify the artists. I had purchased it through an estate sale auction so there was limited information available about the piece. Once we got it home, I wanted to learn more about it. I could not decipher the artists’ names from the signatures but knew it was a Russian husband and wife team. I went online and tried Google but you would be surprised by the number of Russian husband and wife artists there are out there!
Next, I took a photo and posted it on Twitter and I searched on LinkedIn to see if I was connected to anyone with an art degree and/or an interest in Russian art. I did have a few links who were peripheral possibilities so I sent the photo, along with a short note, to those. During the search, I also found a LinkedIn group that was dedicated to Russian Art. It was a closed group so I sent a request to join. Some groups only allow members who are directly related to the industry but I figured it was worth a try. I was very happily surprised when, the next morning, I learned that my membership request had been accepted. I posted the photo and my query that morning and had FOUR responses by that afternoon! Two people were unable to help but passed the inquiry along to others who might know and two were able to identify the artists for me! They sent me short bios on the artists and links to learn more. They were both very helpful and it was great to get to know some new people who I probably would not have met otherwise!
And these are just three recent examples of how LinkedIn has helped me. Over the years, LinkedIn has consistently provided me with leads and links who have helped me expand my business, with opportunities to build my brand and it has definitely increased my bottom line. Are YOU getting these results with YOUR LinkedIn presence?
If YOU are ready to get LinkedIn working for YOU, check out this upcoming webinar series (CLICK for more INFO) – three webinars designed to help beginners get started and to get those with a basic presence, kicked up to the next level! If you don’t need help, please pass this along to someone who may – the sessions will fill quickly – Thank You!
Art by: Tanya Wissotzky and Alexander Galtchansky
