10 Ways You Can Use LinkedIn™ to Build Your Brand

September 19, 2024
LinkedIn

“I’ll use LinkedIn™ when I need a job.”

Sound familiar?

If you’re anything like me, that’s likely what you said after you completed your LinkedIn™ profile when you created it years ago.

LinkedIn™ was founded in 2003 under the premise of being a job-seeker and human resources matchmaker. You either posted jobs, or you applied for jobs. It wasn’t even really social media…. 2003 was the year that MySpace and LinkedIn™ started (with Twitter and Facebook coming on board in 2006).

I started my LinkedIn™ profile and journey in 2006. Ironically that made me an early adopter! But I did what most people did with their LinkedIn™ profiles back then – I created my profile, and walked away, until I needed to find my next workplace. I thought it was just another job board. Fast forward to today, and LinkedIn™ has become a powerhouse for building my personal brand and connecting with like-minded professionals.

If you’ve done the same, created and walked away, I have good news for you. The platform has changed! Yes, LinkedIn™ is still about finding a job and posting jobs, but those activities take a backseat to what most professionals are doing on the platform – developing and expressing their thought leadership and personal brands.

Some of the features that have helped professionals elevate their brands include the opportunity to create content, upload video, write longer articles and highlight key parts of their profile.

LinkedIn™ has transformed and changed over the years with new features and capabilities, all to help us grow our brands and our following. They are continually adding features including new ways to engage and discover communities and connection. My time on LinkedIn™ is ever-evolving and new!

One of the biggest changes in my own LinkedIn™ journey was creating content.

As someone who attends numerous networking events, I often hear “hey, I saw your post on LinkedIn™!” when meeting someone for the first time.

One conversation in particular was quite revealing. An industry colleague I had never met in person came up to me and said “Hey I saw your post on LinkedIn™ the other day, it was really good!” He went on to say “I don’t get it, I scroll through LinkedIn™ every single day, but I don’t get anything out of it.” I had to remind him, that he remembered my post, and that helped us elevate our conversation when we met in real life.

That is what you get out of it – relationships that could potentially turn into clients and customers – one piece of thought leadership at a time.

I’ll never forget that conversation, a reminder that we control our LinkedIn™ activities. We can scroll endlessly, like my friend, and claim to get nothing out of it, or we can be more intentional, and create some brand and business traction that will have people saying to you “Hey, I saw you on LinkedIn™ the other day….. Great stuff!!”

Personal branding on LinkedIn™ offers a wealth of benefits that can significantly impact your professional journey.

By actively building and maintaining your personal brand, you increase your visibility, making it easier for others to find you and recognize your expertise, just like my friend recognized my efforts at the conference. This heightened visibility helps establish you as an authority in your field, showcasing your knowledge and insights to a broad audience. As you consistently share valuable content and engage with your network, you naturally attract meaningful professional connections. These connections can lead to exciting opportunities, such as speaking engagements, collaborations with other professionals, and new business ventures.

Essentially, by cultivating your personal brand on LinkedIn™, you’re not just boosting your online presence—you’re opening doors to a world of potential that goes far beyond traditional job hunting.

Are you ready to embrace a new kind of LinkedIn™? One that helps you build and promote your personal brand?

How To Build Your Personal Brand on LinkedIn™ – 10 Different Ways!

Complete your profile – Taking some time to complete and update your profile is the biggest tool in your LinkedIn™ toolbox. The intent of any LinkedIn™ activity is to attract them back to your profile and compel them to learn more about you. By having a complete profile, you’ve given them something to learn and hopefully something to ask questions about. Don’t forget to make it clear how they can get a hold of you off of the platform!
Create native content – Native content is something that is created just for LinkedIn™ and does not appear on any other platform. LinkedIn™’s algorithm will favour posts that do not contain external links, and you’ll receive more engagement and views on this content. It needn’t be lengthy, but posting insightful tips, advice or industry topics will attract connections and followers to your profile.
Post regularly – By showing up consistently, your content will also regularly show up in your connection’s home feed. LinkedIn™’s algorithm suggests posting 3-5 times a week (and no more than once a day) for optimal engagement.
Use messaging to provide value – As with other social media platforms, LinkedIn™ has a direct messaging function that you can use to connect with fellow connections. Use this function to further the relationship before you hit the sales part of your interaction. The goal of LinkedIn™ s messaging is to ultimately move the conversation off of LinkedIn™ where you can further the business discussion.
Write an article – LinkedIn™’s long-form article feature can garner a great deal of attention with great engaging content. If you’ve considered blogging as a platform but are just starting out, LinkedIn™ articles are a great way to cut your teeth on your blogging skills and acumen.
Contribute in Groups – LinkedIn™ Groups are where professionals from the same industry or with similar interests can share insights and experiences, ask for guidance and build valuable connections. When contributing to groups, ensure you are not breaking any group rules by self-promoting within the group.
Include hashtags – Just as with other social media platforms, hashtags are a great way to track conversations on a similar topic. Researching your ideal client using hashtags, or including hashtags in your content so you can be found, is a simple way to create more engagement.
Set your profile and viewing settings to “public” and “full” – The option exists on LinkedIn™ for you to view others’ profiles privately and anonymously, as well as have certain aspects of your own profile hidden from public view. The reason we are on LinkedIn™ is to network and grow our business connections, so ensure people can find you, and view you, in full view.
Grow your network through connections – This is the most robust way to utilize LinkedIn™. Extend invitations to prospects, clients, thought leaders and other respected industry members through a personalized invitation to connect. Growing connections and followers does quite a bit for you and your brand:
1. opens doors for referrals and increased sales
2. opens doors to other opportunities such as thought leadership, volunteerism, speaking engagements, etc
3. opens doors for collaborations with other professionals
4. widens your network for when a job change is required
Continually update! – When your profile is complete, it is not a “one and done” process. Continually updating and refreshing your profile gives your audience something new to view. The following sections are great places to update on a regular basis:
1. Your headline – Examples include when you are attending or speaking at an upcoming conference or event.
2. Your background photo – New creative in your banner is eye-catching, and it provides a billboard for announcements.
3. Your Featured Section – Regularly reviewing this section allows you to add new media, new services, and new eye-catching graphics as your reader scrolls through your profile.

These 10 suggestions will keep you busy for a while, there are so many other ways to elevate your brand on the platform. Choose one suggestion at a time, and work your way up to creating content for the platform. You’ll have a robust and recognizable brand in no time.

To your success,
Leanne

LinkedIn™

PS. Are you ready to tackle content creation? Consider my upcoming Content Creation Workshop – 3 Hours to a Sustainable Content Strategy. You can learn more and enroll here!