5 Tips to Grow Your Business Using LinkedIn

LinkedIn is the professional’s social media platform. LinkedIn users don’t post pictures of their kids or their vacations on LinkedIn….those are for Facebook. LinkedIn is where your professional profile lives. You can also create (for free!) a company profile page. These professional pages will help you grow your business.

Here are some tips for using LinkedIn to grow your business:

Create that company profile page

Company pages offer public information about your business and LinkedIn members can search and follow companies that they are interested in.

Be sure to share and update your profile with information about what your business is doing.

Acquire new customers

Ask your satisfied customers to write and post testimonials about their experience with your company. Posting these testimonials on your personal and company profiles can give you an edge over your competition because they probably haven’t thought of putting testimonials on LinkedIn.

Hire the right people

As your business grows, you will need to hire staff. Finding the best and right people to work for your company can be overwhelming if you don’t do it the right way. Use LinkedIn to post your job openings. You can easily and conveniently assess potential candidates by viewing their profiles.

Keep up with current trends

Staying informed with the latest trends will allow you as a business owner to quickly respond to the needs of your customers. LinkedIn has a section containing the latest news in the business world. Take time to read it daily.

Check out your competition

Used LinkedIn to see what your competitors are doing. Adjust your business strategy accordingly.

Happy Labor Day!

Strive not to be a success, but rather to be of value. – Albert Einstein

8 Elements to Include in Your 2017 New Business/Marketing Plan

You’ve decided to start working on your new business/marketing plan for 2017. Now where do you start?

Here’s a basic outline that you can follow to create a great new business/marketing plan for your business.

Executive Summary

The Executive Summary should be written last but always comes first. This portion is a concise summary of your plan.

The Team

In this section, you should define the new business and marketing environment at your business. Who is on your team and what do they do? How did you grow this year and how are you planning on growing next year? Do you need to hire new employees to achieve these goals?

Performance

By analyzing this past year, you can better forecast the year ahead. Where will your new opportunities come from?

The Marketplace

Who are your competitors? What kind of trends are you seeing in your industry?

Revenue Goals

This is where you crunch the numbers. Look at your business from last year. Where did it come from? Did your new customers come to you or were you more proactive in your prospecting? How many new customers will you need in 2017 to meet your goals?

Meeting Those Goals

This element is where you need to know who your ideal customer is and use this information to put together a targeted list of prospects.

New Business Tools

What new tools do you need to meet your goals? Is it a new CRM? Or maybe this year you redesign your website. Plan for these new tools to make 2017 an easier and more productive year.

Marketing

Is your business’ marketing message strong enough to differentiate you from your competition? Is your messaging strong? What events should you attend? Speak at? Or should you create your own event?

A new business/marketing plan can seem like a lot of work, but the time you invest in planning for your business’ future will pay off with a good year ahead. When you know where you’re going, it’s easier to get there!

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. – Maya Angelou

It’s Time to Start Thinking About Your 2017 Business Plan

I know you already have an overwhelming to-do list, but as a small business owner, you need to start thinking about your new business and marketing plan for 2017.

Here are a couple of great reasons why you need a plan:

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     -It’s a great way to measure your success. Your annual plan sets expectations for you and your employees because you all contribute to your company’s success.

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     - You learn a lot. Writing the plan for next year give you the opportunity to reflect on the past year and accurately set projections for the coming year.

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     - It clarifies what you do at your business. Some employees may not know all that is being done in your company. If they are involved in the new business and marketing plan, they will learn what your goals are and see the path you are laying out to achieve those goals. 

Money is a wonderful thing, but it is possible to pay too high a price for it. – Alexander Bloch