Do you want to generate more leads, sales and awareness for your social enterprise through your own personal LinkedIn account? It’s possible!
If you are consistently posting, you will most likely bring in more connections than through your own company account. Social selling isn’t about getting the most likes or endlessly sharing content. It’s about building genuine relationships with a network and potential clients.
LinkedIn provides you, as an entrepreneur in India, with a powerful platform to connect with your target audience(s), but it requires the right approach.
Ten tips to effectively use social selling on LinkedIn:
1. Use AI tools as your intern
If you’re creating content on LinkedIn from your personal account, artificial intelligence tools are a helpful tool, but think of it as an intern, you have the expertise. It is up to you to review and improve the output.
Use AI as a starting point, and make sure the final text you post reflects your own voice and knowledge. Edit and enhance what AI produces to engage and inspire your audience. Also, ensure that your posts are concise and to the point.
2. Stay authentic in your posts
It can be tempting to write LinkedIn posts with generic words or phrases.
Many AI-aided posts contain words like “tapestry” and “delve”—they sound good, but are often too impersonal. People might wonder if you wrote it or a program did.
Make the text unique and authentic by putting your own personal spin on it. Try reading it aloud to see if it still resonates with your audience and most importantly sounds like you.
3. Use content to build trust
Sharing valuable content helps strengthen your credibility with your current and potential audiences. Regularly share insights, but make sure your content is relevant to your target audience.
For example, if you are in the agri-industry, share the latest trends that you are noticing and best practices that your connections can truly benefit from.
4. Engage with others’ content
Social selling is all about interaction. When you respond to other people’s posts, you show that you are actively engaged and genuinely interested.
A ‘like’ is easy, but leaving a thoughtful comment (not AI-generated) makes a real impression.
5. Use real photos
Wherever you go, take photos and videos that tell a story or information to impart or inspire your LinkedIn audiences . Your posts will get much more attention with a nice picture.
Of course, the photos should be relevant to the post.
6. A strong first impression: your profile picture
Your profile picture is the first thing people see. Make sure it presents a professional and polished image.
A good rule of thumb is three-quarters of the picture is you (head and shoulders) using direct eye contact with the camera.. A well-lit face without a distracting background conveys reliability and approachability.
7. Optimize your LinkedIn headline
If you are a founder of an organization, make sure to put your social enterprise’s name in your LinkedIn headline. That’s the part right under your name that appears on your profile and when you write a post or comment/like other posts. Potential audiences may see your information and become interested in your organization.
If you use the headline to showcase how you add value to your network, highlight your expertise and what you can do for your target audience. Be specific so that potential clients immediately understand what you offer.
8. Use LinkedIn post analytics wisely
Regularly check the stats of your LinkedIn posts. What content performs well and what doesn’t?
What causes you to receive more followers, page visits or queries? And does the time you post have anything to do with it?
Adjust your strategy based on what works. This helps you stay relevant to your audience.
9. Be selective with connections
Quantity isn’t everything. It’s better to form meaningful connections with people who truly fit your network.
Look for decision-makers and influencers in your industry and build relationships with them. Personalized invitations work better than standard messages.
10. Stay persistent, but not pushy
Social selling requires patience. Building relationships through LinkedIn takes time.
Stay persistent and keep providing value without being pushy. Potential clients will appreciate your efforts at sharing interesting content over time and are more likely to reach out when they need your services.
Good luck with your new LinkedIn approach!
Danielle Pels is a marketing and communications manager with Inergy and a Women on Wings expert. She’s consulted Indian social enterprises and government institutions pro bono for over six years.
