B2B lead generation is daunting.
But it isn’t really difficult?
You can easily turn your LinkedIn profile into a passive lead generation machine for prospects that land on your page.
By tweaking your profile, running retargeting, and other nifty little tricks, you can go all out with your B2B LinkedIn optimization efforts.
I’ve done LinkedIn optimization with dozens of high-profile B2B clients BAMF Media, and these are some of the high-conversion techniques that we use to get them the visibility and engagement that they need to convert.
Optimizing Your Profile
The first step in B2B LinkedIn optimization is to turn your profile into a passive lead generation funnel.
Your profile forms the core of your campaign because your role will be a brand ambassador to the business.
Let’s spend some time talking about LinkedIn personal profile optimization.
Profile URL
Getting a custom profile URL is the first thing that you should tick-off your laundry list.
It’s a small detail that you can personalize swiftly and holds a couple of benefits.
A custom URL allows you to come off as a person that pays attention to the little things, it helps streamline your online branding, and it’s a personal address that you own.
On the plus side, you can use your custom URL on your company stationery like your business card or your email footer. It provides prospects a quick and easy way of finding out more about the person that they are talking to. This leads them to your profile and, eventually, your funnel.
Headline
Apart from your photo and your name, your headline is one of the first few things your prospect will see, whether on search or on your LinkedIn profile itself.
The headline is what sets you apart from everyone vying for attention on LinkedIn. You need to stand out, or you’ll be left out of the running.
That’s not all.
You can also make use of your headline to include a keyword or two to improve your LinkedIn search optimization.
Now there are a couple of ways that you can create an effective LinkedIn header that converts prospects.
The all-in-one – I personally vouch for this method because it allows you to compress the most pertinent details about you in one-line, effectively telling your prospect about you concisely.
The way to do it is to compress four or five things about you into two to three words, then separate them with dividers.
For example, “LinkedIn Marketer | Fortune 500 Consultant | Mother of Four Princesses”
The question – want to get engagement? Ask a question outright.
For example, “Do you need leads? Check out what I offer”
The one-liner – if you’ve got something incredible to say, this is your chance to do it. You can talk about an accomplishment or tell people a joke. It works.
The super professional line – look, we don’t normally recommend something like your job title and your company, but if you think it really stands out, then go for it.
Profile Picture
There is this myth that you have to smile for a LinkedIn profile photo.
That’s far from the truth.
Here’s what you’re aiming for.
You want to look great – of course – but you want it to encapsulate what a prospect will expect if they were to go on a meeting with you.
So, if you don’t wear formal clothes for a meeting, then don’t wear a collar on your profile photo.
Here are a couple of tips:
⦁ Look presentable
⦁ Edit the photo until it looks clean
⦁ Use the rule-of-thirds
Header Image
We’re going to discuss a lot about your header image because it’s one of the few things that you can’t fall behind in.
The header image represents a significant amount of screen real estate on your LinkedIn profile.
Types of header image:
The group photo – what better way to showcase your workplace culture and familial bond than a group photo? We like group photos because they’re basically no-brainers to include on LinkedIn, and they’re great at making your profile feel accessible.
The influencer photo – If you’ve got a photo shaking hands with an industry or thought leader, these make for great header images. They show people your caliber and connections.
The action shot – these are photos of you teaching or speaking at an event or actively doing your job. They show who you are professionally.
The work environment photo – this could be anything from your office to space to the exterior of your building. It gives a glimpse of what type of company you’re running and what your company culture could be like.
E.g., if you’ve got bean bags for chairs, take a photo of that because it shows that you’re fun and forward. Or if you’ve got a mean looking mural outside your office, it tells people that your company is creative, etc.
My recommendation for the header image:
The optimized CTA – this uses either one or more of the photos listed above along with a CTA, link to your website, and maybe an action shot.
We like it because you can show people many things at once, and you make use of the valuable visual real estate you have.
Trust me.
That CTA is important for you to convert.
Featured
This section is where you can showcase LinkedIn articles or posts that you’ve written in the past. It’s a great place to show your contributions and highlight your worth.
You can even put in links to your website and upload media like infographics if you want to.
Summary
This is where it gets interesting.
Let’s break it down for you.
The First Part
Make an impression.
Remember the headline you just built up there? Now you have space to expound on it. Keep it in a sentence so that you can grab your prospect’s attention.
After you do that, add in your email address, phone number, or company website.
Why?
Say someone’s looking for a consultant but doesn’t have the time to read through your entire profile. Having your landing page link up there will immediately throw them in one of your funnels to grab their information and set a meeting.
The Middle
It doesn’t have to be an essay.
The middle part is where you can explain what you do and why you do it so well.
However, if you’re aiming to turn your profile into a funnel, then make sure that the experiences and the skills that you detail are pertinent to the industry that you are in.
Here’s what.
The goal is to use your profile as a brand ambassador to get people to go on your page and convert.
Don’t bore them with details that don’t matter.
This is essentially your resume, so instead of telling them about every detail of your experience, try to keep it concise by talking about results.
The Last Part
End it on a good note, and remember, only some of your prospects end up on this part of your profile.
Make sure it’s a CTA for them to reach out to you or a one-liner that’s memorable. Additionally, you can put in your contact information again, but you want to avoid that if you followed our tips and put it at the beginning of your summary.
Pro Tip:
If you’re linking to a landing page on your website, make sure you have the Linked insights tag on your website. This allows you to “retarget” the people who ended up on your page and throw them LinkedIn Ads that will nurture them through your funnel.
Posts, Posting, and Engagement
The question I often get asked is, “What do I post?”
The answer is often simple.
Post what gives value.
In B2B LinkedIn optimization, you’ve got to post on a regular basis. This gives you engagement and shows prospects that you’re active on the platform.
Here are a couple of ideas on posting that you can use:
⦁ Post whitepapers and case studies from your company; this gives your company credibility. Make sure that you include your contact details in the post itself so prospects can hit you up when they see you.
⦁ Use lead magnets when you can; you can put a post informing people that you’ve got something great in store for them if they fill out a quick form on your landing page or comment their names on the post.
⦁ Host polls on important questions about your industry; this allows you to prequalify prospects before you reach out to them.
⦁ Talk about your daily struggles and accomplishments; people who chance upon your post want someone that’s relatable; this allows you to resonate with your prospects.
⦁ Leverage video whenever you can, people can get tired of text-based posts, and it allows you to balance out the content you put out.
Company Profile Page
The LinkedIn company page is unique in its own right.
And, there’s no excuse for you not to build one.
It allows all your team members to associate under one banner/brand, and it forms the hub of everyone’s collective activity on LinkedIn.
Here’s what you need to know about creating a company page.
⦁ The company page should be treated as an individual profile; you have to optimize it – follow our guide earlier – and you have to keep it active.
⦁ You can post articles and videos on your page; make sure you do this on a regular basis to increase brand awareness and engagement.
⦁ If you’re really into increasing engagement, make sure you interact with people who have engaged with the posts that you’ve put out. The platform will notify you when you get tagged, so tag them back.
Our Takeaways
LinkedIn is one of the most effective platforms for B2B marketers to utilize, and it’s relatively easy to do B2B LinkedIn optimization.
The first step is to make sure that your profile is fully optimized because your LinkedIn profile is the basis of your representation of the brand.
Once you’re done with that, you can then focus on engaging people and keeping them in the loop. This is essential to nurture leads through your pipeline.
And, the next part is to rinse and repeat until you’ve got a routine going.
What’s important is to keep this rhythm going, and before you know it, there’ll be people lining up for your services!
While LinkedIn optimization is crucial for increasing B2B leads, you will also need to expand your B2B marketing strategies to win even more.