How to Achieve Concrete Results with LinkedIn

A LinkedIn strategy roadmap

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If you are one of those who have a profile on LinkedIn without quite knowing why you have it , what you want to achieve with it , and how to actually do it, you should read this.

Today, most people are hired through networks. On LinkedIn, you have the opportunity to build up the network you need to progress in your career. This requires you to work strategically with LinkedIn. Few people have a clear answer as to why they have a LinkedIn profile.

Your personal brand

On LinkedIn, you should work on creating your personal brand and building a strategic network. Your personal brand is what others say about you when you are not present, and it is not necessarily what you think it is. It can be absolutely decisive when you apply for a job, whether you get the promotion you want or whether you become part of the exciting projects in your department.

Few people manage to formulate and communicate a clear picture of what their personal brand is. But on LinkedIn you have the opportunity to create the impression you want others to have of you. You're maybe very good at your job, but if no one knows this, there's nothing you can use it for. That is why you should make your personal brand visible so that others can see what you are worth.

LinkedIn is a marathon

Comparing LinkedIn to a marathon instead of a sprint is about being aware that relationship building takes time. You should therefore work strategically with LinkedIn when you are looking for jobs, but also when you have already one. It can be time-consuming to build real and genuine relationships. By using LinkedIn actively while you are at work, you strengthen your personal brand and build strong relationships that can benefit you later.

LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap

One way to build strong relationships on LinkedIn is by using the LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap. The roadmap should be used as a brainstorming board to help you come up with aspects of your personal brand. So that you can work purposefully with LinkedIn.

The LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap contains 11 boxes that you should think through carefully when working strategically with LinkedIn. Below we go through each and every box.

1. Purpose with LinkedIn

What is your goal for being on LinkedIn? You can have multiple goals. It could be getting a job, getting inspiration, building networks, branding or selling a product.

2. Career goals

What career goals do you have for the future? If you don't have a job, you may want another job. Here it is important that you are specific in relation to the type of position and which tasks you want, and in which type of business.

The more specific you are, the greater your chance of achieving your goals. If you are in work, your wishes for the future may be about building a more solid career in the business you are in.

3. Your personal brand

Everyone has a personal brand. But you should consider whether your brand fits the career you want to have. On LinkedIn, you can work on creating the right impression and expression. Think about whether there is something you can excel at and become a thought leader. It can be strategic to write articles and share posts within the subjects you want to be perceived as an expert on.

4. Value proposition

Show me the money: What value do you create for your employer or customer? Show concrete results. An employer hires you on the basis of the concrete results you can contribute to the business. Think through what jobs and roles you have had and what results they have produced. Be as specific and clear as possible.

The goal of LinkedIn is to create instant trust and credibility with people you've never met. Your profile should make people want to talk to you.

For example, if you work as a salesperson, then being a salesperson is not your value. Your value, on the other hand, may be to acquire profitable customers for the business. Your value becomes even more concrete if you can explain that you have increased your sales earnings by 10 percent. Even better if you can explain whether the 10 percent corresponds to earnings of $ 5,000, 10,000 or 10 million.

5. Career capital

Everyone has a unique career capital. Your career capital consists of valuable and rare qualities such as education, experience, expertise, networks and the like. By creating awareness of your career capital, you can take it with you into a new job or even a new career.

Here is an example:
I have worked as a department manager in a corporation, but tomorrow I want to open a restaurant. Right now I have no knowledge of how to run a restaurant, because I am not aware of my career capital. But I have experience as a department manager and how to lead and motivate people. I know also how to budget and forecast expenses and revenue. This is part of my career capital. By being aware of this, I can take it with me into the restaurant business and build upon it.

This example shows how you can use your own career capital in industries other than the one you are in.

6. Superpowers

Your signature strengths are your superpowers. What you are good at. Think about what success stories you have. What skills did you use to achieve your successes?

7. Audience and result

Think about your purpose with LinkedIn and your career goals. Who is your audience? What do you want to achieve with them?

Try to be as specific as possible and create a list of businesses and people that fit your personal brand and career capital. Once you know which businesses and people you want to reach, the next step is to find out if you have the right network in terms of reaching out to these businesses.

If you have contacts in those businesses, it is important that you nurture these relationships. For example, you can send articles with relevant knowledge to them so that they become aware that you can add value. If you don't have any contacts in these businesses, you should start building up your network right away.

8. Keywords

What language does your target audience speak when they are looking for someone like you?

9. Channels

You can meet your target group via online and offline channels. LinkedIn is an online channel you can use to meet people relevant to your job search and career design.

Offline channels can include fairs, conferences and breakfast meetings. Here it is important that you have considered all the things mentioned here. The goal here is to give the businesses you contact a clear picture of who you are and what you can offer.

You can also add the people you meet via offline channels to your LinkedIn network. It is then important to remember that the first thing your target audience sees when you add them is your profile. Therefore, it is absolutely essential to have a well-developed profile that gives the impression you want.

10. Network

Map which network is relevant to reach your target group. For example, are there any employees in the business you want to work in that you can add to your network? Be sure to both maintain, expand and give value to your network regularly.

11. Implementation

When you have completed the LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap, you have a clearer picture of who you are, what you can do and where you can meet the target group.

The next step is to make a TODO list and implement what you have in mind.

Keep on working strategically with LinkedIn

It is important to point out that even if you have worked your way through the LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap once, you are not finished with your LinkedIn profile. Your profile is a living document that changes all the time.

LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap helps you make the right choices and steer your career in the right direction. There is not just one answer or one right way to use LinkedIn, but what you do must be deliberate and well thought out. You must know what your goal is so that you can work towards it.

The way forward

Are you curious about whether LinkedIn can be something for both you and your company?

• LinkedIn for branding: business and personal

• LinkedIn for B2B - Social selling: sell (find buyers) products & services

• LinkedIn for recruitment and job searching: Employer Branding & Attract Talent

• LinkedIn for career development

• LinkedIn for networking and relationship building

Would you like to receive my LinkedIn Strategy Roadmap document?

Send me an email to jose@facilistation.com

Would you like to get help with your LinkedIn strategy?

Are you curious about how you can design your own career and succeed in it?