Adam Gordon In PSMG Magazine Nov 2010

Winning work HOW TOGUIDE FORTHE MARKETING PROFESSIONAL using LinkedIn Adam Gordon, whose guide to using LinkedIn has been sent to 4,000 LinkedIn users, explains how you can win work online. 3) The best use for LinkedIn is in P eople keep asking me “What are the rules for this on LinkedIn?” and enhancing your personal network. ADAM GORDON Winning Work “What are the rules for that on 4) You can effortlessly demonstrate youradamgordon@winningwork.com LinkedIn?” and the answer is that there are expertise and build new relationships no ‘rules’. There’s no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. with people using LinkedIn and take Everyone’s style and approach is different these off-line with confidence. so what you’re about to read is simply my 5) You can use LinkedIn to win new clients. opinion based on work my company has undertaken with UK based and international Who should be interested in this? professional services firms. Everyone really, but more specifically: Business development: because First, a couple of pre-suppositions: LinkedIn enables fee-earners to meet 1) You all know and use LinkedIn already. new people, take these relationships If not, it’s the most powerful BDM offline and win new clients. channel of now so get to know it well Communications: because LinkedIn is before reading on. a wonderful channel for spreading your 2) The higher a percentage of the decision- insights and thought leadership. makers and influencers you know in Marketing: because LinkedIn helps your market, the more likely you are define your markets, broadcast podcasts, to be instructed to their account. webcasts and events, test opinion and more... There are many ways of using LinkedIn. Everyone’s strategy, if they have one, will vary according to their objectives and personal style. In thinking about your objectives and personal style, here are a few important concepts I recommend: Just do it. People often waste a lot of time pursuing perfection while their competitors are stealing a march on the opportunity. Acknowledgement with more people in your markets leads to more business development opportunities. One degree of separation (not six). You can contact me and I can contact you and we don’t need anyone’s permission or intervention to do so. You must be both courteous, intelligent and really have something relevant and useful to > say to use this approach. November/December 2010 psmg 15

GUIDEHOW TO PROFESSIONAL > Free is a currency. In June 2010 I posted a discussion to broadcast my free LinkedIn miniguide on five LinkedIn Groups and requested people get in touch if they want a copy. By mid October I had despatched over 4,000 copies. Be curious. The people I know who have the most personal successes onFORTHE MARKETING LinkedIn ask questions, research people and companies and invite discussion. Lead the conversation. Find the most appropriate LinkedIn Groups for you and start discussions relevant to your sphere of expertise. Man mark your targets. LinkedIn’s not just for the most senior executives and it’s not just for early career professionals. Have your partners shadow the CEOs, FDs and other board members. Have your managers and associates pair up with your targets’ mid-level budget holders. There’s nothing worse than receiving a Meeting new People message from someone and feeling Assuming we’re all agreed that this is of great value to LinkedIn members, here is you’ve been ‘mailshotted’. my very effective methodology for doing so. Our research suggests that a LinkedIn Before you send your invitation to determine an approach. Make sure you connection with another person simply connect, make sure your message is tailor each approach to the individual. means they are giving you permission tailored for the recipient. Make sure There’s nothing worse than receiving a to speak to them and nothing more. it’s polite. Make sure it gives the other message from someone and feeling you’ve It doesn’t mean they want to meet person reason to feel there’s value in been ‘mailshotted’. You must use language you (yet) and it certainly doesn’t mean accepting your invitation to connect. that is open, not ‘salesy’ and makes the they want to buy from you (yet). Once your new connections have prospect of meeting you seem almost There are 80m+ people on LinkedIn at accepted your LinkedIn invitation, irresistible. An example may say: the time of typing (October 2010). you will receive an email to inform you. “Dear X, I read with interest the Do nothing for two days so you don’t look comments you made about the latest tax 25% of LinkedIn 25% will connect desperate. After two days (no longer or legislation in the property sector. I’ve been users will never with anyone from the momentum will have fizzled out), working with clients who appear to have a connect with you if Mars to the Tora make sure you send your new connection similar profile to yours and may face some they don’t know you. Bora mountains. a follow-up message to thank them for of the same opportunities and challenges accepting your invitation and suggest it you do. You might wish to hear about our 50% of people will accept your LinkedIn might be good to get together to share approach and how we’ve saved our clients invitation if they feel they may benefit some ideas on a subject of mutual interest. (squillions) in tax at some stage? If that’s from making your acquaintance. Don’t be too specific. Don’t suggest a suitable, I’m due to be in Norwich in the These are the people you want to reach. venue or particular dates and times. next couple of weeks and would be happy They are discerning about their contacts At this stage, your new contact is around to meet you if you’d like to let me know but the door is open for you if your 33% likely to respond positively without when you’re available?” approach is just right. feeling under pressure. This approach clearly outlines the To an extent, this process is a controlled benefit to meeting with you. It also gives You need to use the advanced people numbers game. The more people you the recipient the opportunity to tell you search facility (top right on your home attempt to connect with using this when suits them best and you’ve used soft page) to find all those people who are methodology, the more likely you will language such as ‘might’, ‘if that’s suitable’ relevant to you. meet new people and win new clients. and ‘if you’d like’ which creates an Once you have created your list, you will unthreatening tone and will optimise now need to select those people who you Taking your new likelihood of success. really do want to connect with. connections offline For a copy of Adam’s LinkedIn When you invite someone to connect with Because a LinkedIn connection or miniguide please contact him by email: you on LinkedIn, the site asks you to acceptance to membership of your Group adamgordon@winningwork.com identify how you know the other person. simply means a person is giving you This is to prevent spam. You must not permission to speak to them, you need Founded in July 2009, Gordon BDM’s check the box that says ‘colleague’ or to do more to really benefit and win new team works with professional ‘friend’ if this is not the case. You will customers. You need to look for reasons services firms across the UK and look disingenuous to the recipient as why other LinkedIn members would want internationally to help them enhance they will know what you have selected. to meet you. There are many clues in their profile and win new customers, You must check the ‘other’ box and then participants’ LinkedIn profiles to help you using LinkedIn. enter their email address. 16 I psmg I November/December 2010

Adam Gordon In PSMG Magazine Nov 2010

by AdamGordon on Nov 24, 2010

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