Meaningful Consumer Content Invaluable for LinkedIn Thought Leadership, Per B2B Podcast

TAMPA, Fla., Dec. 4, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Today, 41 percent of corporate buyers or purchase influencers come from the under-40 crowd and LinkedIn has become a clear place to reach these decision makers when B2B companies strive to promote or sell a product.(1,2) Furthermore, B2B marketers have taken notice as 91% of executives list LinkedIn as the top place to find quality content and 92% include the platform as part of their marketing mix.(3) "People are coming to LinkedIn specifically because they know that there's valuable, meaningful and credible content," said Rachel Simon, CEO and Founder at Connect the Dots Digital in a recent B2B If You Market Podcast.

Simon gave her insight on techniques for business-to-business (B2B) brands to manifest themselves as opinion leaders via LinkedIn on Episode 32 of the If You Market podcast "How to Develop LinkedIn Thought Leadership, with Rachel Simon," hosted by MountainTop Data CEO Sky Cassidy and JOTO PR CEO Karla Jo Helms.(4)

From 2014 to 2016, the number of published LinkedIn articles rose from 1,000 a month to 130,000 a month, but only 0.2% of 500 million users worldwide have published an article on LinkedIn's publishing platform.(5) "It's surprising out of all the millions of users and decision makers, the little amount of content that is actually on LinkedIn," Helms said. It's a wide open canvas for B2B companies."

Simon recommends that users expand on long-form content and share it with second and third-degree connections as it can yield convincing results for thought leadership. She also warned that if a brand publishes content on their website first, they should wait three to four weeks before repurposing it on LinkedIn as it can disrupt SEO results.

"The real value of developing thought leadership on LinkedIn is it showcases you as an expert in what you do," Simon said. "You are known for what you know and it's by consistently posting content that [speaks to] your area of expertise."

Simon's 7 Steps to Becoming a LinkedIn Thought Leader

1.    Share three to five posts a week, with one or two meaningful long form posts per month.

2.    Take inventory of content generated (articles, slides, graphics, etc.) and organize

3.    Search for external content that aligns with brand messaging (e.g. LinkedIn news feeds, industry newsletters and emails and Google Alerts)

4.    Pull a quote or ask a question when sharing content with target audiences

5.    Share influencer content and write a long-from rebuttal on a current industry topic

6.    Follow and interact with influencers to build a relationship on a ground level

7.    Occasionally display personality when sharing content

In the latter part of the segment, Cassidy and Simon underscored the importance of keeping your LinkedIn profile up-to-date to assure an active presence. "There's an assumption often that if you don't have a photo that you're not a very active user, so whether that's true or not, that is the perception," Simon said. In training his team at MountainTop Data, Cassidy said that if a prospect's LinkedIn profile doesn't have a photo, a list of their job history and plentiful connections then they will not reach out to them. He advised this could be happening with others—which is a lost opportunity for business and valued connections.

Simon's 6 LinkedIn Profile Management Tips:

1.    Include a profile photo to avoid the perception of being an inactive user

2.    Change headline from current job title to identifying your industry and what you do

3.    Include a message when connecting with individuals you don't know

4.    Focus on second degree connections as people are more likely to connect with those who they share something that have in common.

5.    Download all connections to strategically build potential industry targets and who can connect you with them

6.    Change privacy settings to avoid competitors knowing who your connections are

The If You Market podcast is a 45-minute conversation about B2B marketing—new trends, best practices and established tried-and-true. Each episode features a conversation with one expert guest discussing topics like: content marketing, account-based marketing, social media, marketing automation, PR, etc.

The podcast airs on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play and Tunein Radio.

About Rachel Simon
Rachel Simon is the Founder & CEO of Connect the Dots Digital. She works with company founders, subject matter experts and executives to expand their network and develop themselves as thought-leaders while increasing trust with their buyers, resulting in an overall impact in revenue. For more information, visit http://www.connectthedotsdigital.com

About the If you Market They Will Come Podcast
Meet If You Market podcast host, Sky Cassidy—an accomplished B2B marketing guru. And his co-host, disruptive PR evangelist Karla Jo Helms. Together they talk with industry experts to analyze marketing and public relations tactics from a perspective of data leveraging in marketing, entrepreneurial insight, and a measure of crisis management.

Sky Cassidy is also the CEO of MountainTop Data. MountainTop Data, based in Los Angeles, CA, provides data and data services for B2B marketing. Karla Jo Helms is the CEO and Anti-PR Strategist of PR agency, JOTO PR DisruptorsTM, based in Tampa, FL. Visit them via http://ifyoumarkettheywillcome.com/category/if-you-market-podcast/

1.    Jepsen, Sona. "What Do Modern B2B Customers Want? It's More Complex Than You Think," Entrepreneur, March 15, 2018.
2.    Staff, Writer. "How Effective is Linkedin for B2B Marketing? These 20 Stats Say it All," Ironpaper, March 13, 2018.
3.    Gallant, Josh. "45 Eye-Opening LinkedIn Statistics for B2B Marketers In 2018," Foundation, September 1, 2018.
4.    Cassidy, Sky. "How to Develop LinkedIn Thought Leadership, with Rachel Simon," If You Market podcast; November 20, 2018.
5.    Staff, Writer. "Can you use Facebook for B2B Marketing?" Ironaper, March 27, 2018.

SOURCE If You Market Podcast

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