I'm very active on LinkedIn, and as a result I get approached frequently by B2B salespeople from a wide variety of organizations trying to either sell me their product or service, or else attempting to get me onboard to promote it to my network.
I've noticed something interesting about these folks, however. They seem to be so focused on "the art of the deal" that they neglect to fill in their online profiles. Some are missing profile pictures - many more lack descriptive statements of who the person is and what they do.
Why they're contacting me is no mystery: a slew of coaches & consultants recommend LinkedIn prospecting for lead generation, although they're all vague about the actual results it can generate. I inquired a few times, and if you spend all your time on LinkedIn prospecting, you're likely to generate 2 to 3 good leads per week.
In terms of ROI, that's a pretty weak result. 40 hours of work for 3 leads? Presumably the results get better over time as you perfect your approach, and presumably those are big ticket sales - otherwise a lot of folks are just going through the motions without an end-goal in mind.
Whatever the case may be in terms of overall effectiveness, if you're selling on LinkedIn (or any other social network), fill in your profile first!
Your online profile - including your bio picture or "avatar", a description of who you are, your company, your mission, background information, hopefully testimonials (LinkedIn calls them recommendations), and other data is more than just an exercise in typing: it's an online picture of YOU that lets people know that you're a real, successful businessperson.
Remember, in any online interaction you don't get up-close & personal to learn whether people are real or not. The online profile is not only your first impression, in many cases it's your only impression - so make sure to put your best foot forward from the beginning and provide a complete overview of yourself using your profile to ensure that you're perceived as a trusted professional worth buying from.
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