Your marketing message tells the world what your business is about. And your LinkedIn profile is the perfect place to develop and highlight your most specific marketing message.
LinkedIn is one of the most important online tools for marketing your professional services. However, only a very small percentage of users post effective summaries of their business on their LinkedIn profile.
Your LinkedIn profile needs to telegraph the essential message and value of your business. This article shows you exactly how to do it.
Your business title
The first article someone reads on your profile is your business headline. And almost all of them are bad.
These are usually titles (patent attorney, management consultant, personal chef) or labels for what people do (tax preparation specialist, communication skills training). None of these are effective messages because they do not communicate how the professional can help their clients.
Instead, you want something like John Nemo’s:
“I show B2B sales professionals, business coaches and consultants how to generate leads and add clients using LinkedIn”
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John’s profile title indicates who he works with and the specific results he helps them achieve. Any reader will know immediately if he is interested in finding out more. His headline plays “WIFM”-What’s in it for me?
I use John Nemo as an example because I learned how to create a great LinkedIn profile from him. His business (and book), LinkedIn Riches, specializes in, well, exactly what that headline says.
He is one of the leading experts on how to use LinkedIn to attract new business. Ignore it at your own risk.
He emphasizes that you don’t want people to guess what your benefit is to them, but to convey it in clear, simple, results-oriented language.
It then goes on to describe what should be in the Summary section of your LinkedIn profile.
First, the Abstract has limitations. You may not use bold, colored or large type. But you can use all-caps for the headings of each paragraph which makes your summary sections stand out, increasing readability.
For example, the first section should be titled WHAT I DO (or WHAT WE DO) and simply expand on its title.
This is what John’s looks like:
WHAT I DO: Since 2012, I’ve helped B2B sales professionals, business coaches, consultants, and other professionals around the world leverage LinkedIn and webinars to generate leads, add clients, and grow revenue.
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Pretty clear and simple, right? Who do I help and how do I help them?
Then he writes about how he does it:
HOW I DO IT: I offer online do-it-yourself courses, 1-on-1 private and group coaching, and written materials that help coaches and business consultants discover how to generate more business for themselves using LinkedIn and webinars.
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Keep in mind that this section mentions the services you offer and then goes back to the results you help your clients achieve. The value is as clear as day.
Next is about where you’ve seen John. It’s all about credibility or “social proof”:
WHERE YOU’VE SEEN ME: I regularly blog and have been featured in national publications, podcasts and organizations including:
•Business Insider
• Entrepreneur on fire
• Magazine Inc.
• Social Media Browser
• Business magazines
• The Huffington Post
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These are all the places where John has posted articles. If you don’t have places that have been published yet, don’t worry, you can skip this section or add it later.
This is the fourth of five articles on the 5 Pillars of Marketing, my marketing blueprint that helps get your marketing on track. Article of the 5 pillars here.
Write about the people and companies you work with below:
WHO I WORK WITH: I have personally rewritten and optimized the LinkedIn profiles of A-list entrepreneurs, best-selling authors, business coaches, and consultants, including:
• Chris Brogan
• Bob Burg
•John Lee Dumas
• Mari Smith
• Tom Ziglar
•Dan Miller
• Jairek Robbins
•Ray Edwards
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Now, if you’re a freelancer with some online knowledge, you’ve probably heard of some of these people. For your summary, mention the types of people or organizations you have worked with and also list some of your clients.
Insert a couple of quotes from your satisfied customers below:
WHAT OTHERS SAY:
• “When it comes to LinkedIn, there are about three people I listen to, but only one has brought me new business like John Nemo. You know me. I don’t recommend people lightly. John Nemo is worth your time. Get on this!” -Chris Brogan | New York Times Bestselling Author, Consultant, and Speaker
• “John Nemo took my LinkedIn profile page and lit it up in a way I hadn’t seen before. After witnessing John’s experience up close and personal, it’s easy to see why he’s been succeeding on LinkedIn in recent years. Simply put, when it comes to LinkedIn, John Nemo is the real deal. I can’t wait to share more of his LinkedIn knowledge bombs with the rest of Fire Nation soon!” -John Lee Dumas | Host of the award-winning podcast “Entrepreneur on Fire”
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With a little work, almost any freelance professional should be able to generate some good testimonial quotes like these. And you only need two!
Finally, a bit about his background:
MY BACKGROUND: Author of 7 books, former Associated Press reporter, award-winning public relations director and social media consultant, broadcast producer.
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John has helped many freelance professionals create a powerful LinkedIn business brief. He really understands what a clear marketing message is all about.
Note that there is practically nothing on the process of what he does; his writing about results. It’s concise and focused and it’s a quick read that’s so important online.
Now you know what your LinkedIn profile summary should look like. It’s time to sit down and emulate John Nemo’s approach to your own LinkedIn profile.
Regards, Robert
