LinkedIn domination for freelancers: 6 strategies to skyrocket your visibility and land more projects
6 things all freelancers and independent consultants must do on LinkedIn to win more work, more often
Over the years, LinkedIn has emerged as a powerful tool for people to leverage their professional network. As a freelancer, it tends to become difficult to predict if opportunities will come your way, but consistent use of your LinkedIn profile might prove to be a game-changer. Through LinkedIn, freelancers are provided with enhanced visibility, a platform to showcase their expertise and a medium to engage with relevant clients. However, many people tend to ignore or are unaware of the importance of this powerful networking medium.
6 ways in which you can leverage and optimise LinkedIn as a platform to market yourself:
1. Focus on the details
Most clients don’t just scan through CVs, but they also glance through your LinkedIn profile. Make sure your LinkedIn profile is regularly updated with the most recent changes in your professional portfolio. Maintain professional language in your headline, job title, summary and experience section. Craft your experience section in a very descriptive way such that it highlights your strengths, capabilities and ways in which you have helped your previous clients overcome specific challenges. It is also essential to get voted on your skills. To do this, you can seek help from your clients, friends or colleagues. If you don’t already have a supercharged LinkedIn profile, take a look at our free guide titled “How to build a powerful LinkedIn profile as a freelancer.”
2. Coversation hacking
Conversation hacking means to interject yourself in either an ongoing conversation or to stimulate a new discussion. But how do you do this? Well, all you need to do is search for a hashtag relevant to your field. Once you do that, you will be presented with a list of activities, posts and comments related to that specific topic. Your next step is to engage with any of these ongoing conversations; either you add to what somebody is already saying, or you can even ask or answer questions. This could potentially help build awareness and widen your network.
3. Content creation
In order to put out content on LinkedIn, it is very important to identify your target audience and the type of content they like to consume.
So what should you do when you have been able to identify your audience but are unaware of what your community would want to know more about? Well, if that’s the case, we’ve got you covered. Answerthepublic is a website that collates, tracks and sends you an alert about the important questions being asked on Google. All you need to do is type a word relevant to your field in the search bar and discover an untapped goldmine of content ideas.
4. Split test and optimise
Many people think that after putting out content or publishing articles, their job is done, but they fail to realise that the actual task begins right after that. Once you have posted your content, it is necessary to track the performance of every initiative you take; be it photos, videos, articles, messages or even the comments and reactions that you leave on other posts. As a freelancer, you cannot waste precious time developing content that isn’t doing much to build your business. Thus, it is critical to segment each content category that you publish and analyse its impact and the returns it generates. This will help you optimise your future content and generate the desired results quicker.
5. Leverage your network
It is essential to leverage your network as it opens doors to multiple opportunities and gives you diverse exposure. Your network should include:
- Thought leaders: Thought leaders can be both your direct and indirect competitors. This will not just enhance your knowledge about the field you’re working in but will also give you insights and ideas on every move that your competitor makes.
- Clients: Your clients need to be aware of your level of expertise and knowledge. The content you post and the activities you engage in on LinkedIn will be visible to your existing client network and attract potential clients who are on the lookout for an ideal consultant. Additionally, you will also get to keep an eye on any requirements or upcoming projects that past clients might post about. LinkedIn is always a good place to stay in touch with past clients and connect with them for referrals. If you aren’t the type of person who can easily ask for a client referral, you might benefit from our article – 10 simple ways to get client referrals.
6. Demonstrate curiosity
Often you might find yourself in a situation where you have questions about your industry or a trend, or maybe you would like to get your audience’s opinion on something. Since the audience size is significantly large, you can’t go about sending a message to every person in your network. The best tool to use in such a situation is the LinkedIn Poll; you can create a poll and collect responses from your target audience. Demonstrating curiosity will bridge the gap between you and your audience, and this will help you build visibility and increase engagement. Remember not to overdo it with polls; make sure what you’re asking about is relevant and interesting to your audience and your area of expertise.
If you have been in the game long enough and are among those who have not yet implemented a LinkedIn strategy, you are definitely missing out on a lot of opportunities. LinkedIn gives you increased visibility and has the highest lead conversion rates among other sites. Therefore, it is vital to optimise your LinkedIn profile and marketing strategy to have an edge over your competitors.