Click here to read more Expert Edge perspectives with some of the top leaders in Marketing today. LinkedIn is an incredibly powerful platform for growing both recognition and revenue as a B2B business, especially considering that audiences exposed to brand messages on LinkedIn are 6X more likely to convert. But, without a clear strategy in mind, the task of generating leads on LinkedIn can feel challenging. So, I sat down with Jim Habig, VP of Marketing at LinkedIn, to learn his key insights and tips for using LinkedIn for lead generation in 2024 and beyond.
Table of Contents:
LinkedIn Lead Generation Strategy
As a refresher, lead generation refers to all the activities and strategies you use to attract potential customers. Generating leads is important because, with nurturing, potential customers can become paying customers that use your products and drive revenue. LinkedIn’s typical audience comprises professional decision-makers with purchasing power, helping you speak directly to potential customers who can become paying customers. Below, I’ll discuss how you can use LinkedIn for lead generation.
1. Make sure your executives have a strong LinkedIn presence.
When you first getting started on LinkedIn, it can be tricky to know how to dedicate your initial efforts. Should you create a compelling LinkedIn Page and immediately post content to your business’s feed? Or should you start by posting job openings to attract new talent? Habig agrees that optimizing your company Page is critical to making a strong first impression. He encourages marketers to ensure their Page is complete and up-to-date with relevant information like a business description, logo, website URL, and industry. However, an often overlooked opportunity to generate leads falls on individual employees’ pages. As Habig puts it, “You’ll want to encourage your leadership teams and employees to have well-crafted personal profiles with professional headshots, descriptive headlines, and detailed job experiences.” He adds, “A consistent brand presence builds credibility, attracts the right audience and fosters trust among potential leads.” Consider the leaders at your company and their current LinkedIn presence. Could they contribute more thoughtfully to LinkedIn groups within your industry or post more often to their feeds? More likely than not, your executives could be doing more to grow their LinkedIn following. For instance, let’s take a look at HubSpot CEO Yamini Rangan’s recent LinkedIn post: Rangan uses LinkedIn wisely, leveraging the platform to share helpful, relevant content for business leaders. I especially like that she builds a personal brand and helps her followers find valuable content related to business growth. Ideally, your executives should be doing the same.
2. Create a powerful LinkedIn Page for your business.
LinkedIn Pages is a free product that can help your company build visibility on the platform. I recommend using it to house your brand’s thought leadership content, such as videos, commentary from executives, and curated information from other sources. You’ll also want to ensure your page is active with thought-provoking content and contributions to conversations already happening on LinkedIn. Take a look at LinkedIn Company Pages: The Ultimate Guide [+ 12 Best Practices] to learn more.
3. Post relevant content and engage with your audience.
To ensure your LinkedIn page and profile are strong, consider posting various content types, including video. Featuring this industry-relevant content helps you position yourself as a knowledgeable source and establish relevance and credibility with potential customers. I talk more about the best types of content to post on LinkedIn here. As Habig puts it, “Creating and sharing high-quality content tailored to your target audience’s interests is key to driving engagement and generating leads. Share a mix of content types — like blog posts, infographics, case studies, and videos to keep your audience engaged.” He continues, “And don’t forget to join the conversation! Proactively respond to comments and answer questions to foster relationships with your audience and showcase your expertise.” When you’re recognized as an insightful, valuable source, you’ll begin to develop connections with like-minded professionals that fit your ideal customer profile. If you post often, you’ll become a regular on their feed, and familiarity makes it easier to initiate further conversations. The communities you build and engage with are essential, as social media marketers told us that the biggest benefit to building a social media community is that it increases brand awareness. Growing brand awareness = new eyes on your business, new eyes = potential new leads. For example, if all of the connections I have on LinkedIn are professionals within my industry, they can expose me to new audiences with the content I post. If someone clicks “Like” on a post I’ve made, it may show up on the feed of a new lead. The lead can see that our shared connection liked my post, which vouches for my credibility and authority, possibly prompting them to send a request to connect (a new lead!). Follow your page analytics to figure out what resonates with your audience to ensure you create content people want to see.
4. Join LinkedIn groups your clients and customers are in.
LinkedIn, at its core, is a social platform like any other. Just as you can on Facebook, users can create groups centered around industry-relevant interests, and I recommend join these groups and having conversations with other professionals. You can post content and updates to encourage discussions about relevant topics or simply talk about the services you offer. If you’ve joined groups wisely, your potential customers can see what you say and begin to recognize you as a source of valuable information. You can also use groups to learn more about your audience. If members are active, learn from what they say and discover common industry pain points and how leads want these issues addressed. Use this information to your advantage, and create hyper-targeted value propositions when you reach out that speak directly to your customer’s needs.
5. Use LinkedIn Ads and Sponsored Content to ensure your content reaches your intended audience.
Since LinkedIn is the top paid and organic channel for B2B businesses, spending your money on the platform would be worthwhile. But, if you have a smaller marketing budget, I understand being wary of putting money behind paid campaigns on LinkedIn. Habig suggests: “Consider using LinkedIn’s advertising and sponsored content solutions to reach the right audience based on factors like job title, industry and company size.” He adds, “You’ll want to utilize sponsored content to promote your top-performing posts or lead generation forms to capture valuable lead information. Try testing various ad formats like sponsored InMail, carousel ads, and lead gen forms to identify which works best for your target audience.” In particular, Habig believes the LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms is one of the platform’s most powerful offerings for lead generation. He told me, “LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms streamline lead generation by auto-populating users’ LinkedIn profile information when they click on your ad. This simplifies the process for users, allowing them to submit their information with ease and boosting lead generation efficiency. Furthermore, the collected data can be effortlessly synchronized with your CRM system.” I also recommend using other free native content features that can help you increase your engagement with your audience, like articles and polls. While LinkedIn has a native ads management service, you can also use HubSpot’s ads management tool to create, organize, and execute advertising campaigns on LinkedIn. You’ll also get access to high-quality reports that explain ad performance, helping you optimize a strategy to meet your customers’ needs.
6. Ensure you have strong sales and marketing alignment.
You’re likely all too familiar with the recent shift in consumer buying behavior. Nowadays, customers are researching online ahead of time and typically use marketing content to inform their purchasing decisions before even reaching out to a sales rep. What’s more is that the top reason consumers use LinkedIn is to learn new things. So, with these savvier consumers, it is now critical that marketers meet the needs of consumers who are further along the buyer’s journey and then seamlessly hand them off to sales so sales have the context on which stage of the buyer’s journey the consumer is at. This is where I have to call out the importance of sales and marketing alignment. Every time we run our Marketing Trends Survey, we hear about the importance of sales and marketing alignment. These teams working together contribute to higher lead quality, more closed deals, and increased revenue. Make sure your teams are aligned, and that they are using LinkedIn and other platforms to support each other’s efforts.
Source link
