Social Media for Brokers: LinkedIn

June 26, 2012

Today’s Presenters

Barbi Reuter, RPA

Principal Cushman & Wakefield | PICOR Commercial

Real Estate

Angela BrownExternal

Communications Manager

CoStar Group

Today’s Presenters

Barbi Reuter, RPAPrincipalCushman & Wakefield | PICOR Commercial Real Estatepicor.com

facebook.com/PICORcres

@PICORcres @BarbiReuter

linkedin.com/in/barbireuter

gplus.to/barbireuter

blog.picor.com/

Today’s Presenters

Angela BrownExternal Communications ManagerCoStar Group, Inc.costar.com

facebook.com/CoStarGroup

@TheCoStarGroup @angelambrown

linkedin.com/in/angelambrown

Youtube.com/costargroup

gplus.to/CoStarGroup

Housekeeping

Recording and slides

A link to a recording of today’s presentation will be available tomorrow – keep an eye on your inboxes for the link and a PDF of today’s presentation

Questions

Questions will be addressed at the end, but you may submit them at any time both through gotomeeting and Twitter

Twitter

Please use the hash tag #CoStarSocial when live-tweeting during this program or submitting questions via Twitter. Send questions to @TheCoStarGroup.

Disclaimer

All information provided is based on the best research available to CoStar.  CoStar provides no guarantees concerning the effectiveness of the methods or advice presented herein.

What We’ll Cover

LinkedIn… What you can do with

LinkedIn Which account type is

right for you? Is your profile up to par? Third-party apps Navigating groups Building your network

…for brokers Testimonial: Is it worth your

time? Nailing your strategy Do’s and don’ts Getting engaged Next-level networking:

Recommendations Testimonial: Group

participation

LinkedIn…

Quick Facts About LinkedIn

161+ million users in over 200 countries and territories 87 million monthly visitors 61% of companies have acquired a customer through

LinkedIn LinkedIn, more than any other social media site, is

driving customers for B2B organizations 80% of LinkedIn members influence business decisions

Sources: LinkedIn website, June 2012; Hubspot’s The State of Inbound Marketing, March 2012

What Can You do with LinkedIn?

Build your personal brand Promote your company Expand your network Become a thought leader Generate and nurture leads

Which Account Type is Right for You?

Which Account Type is Right for You?

LinkedIn currently offers four premium account types for:– Business Users– Recruiters– Job Seekers– Sales Pros

Which Account Type is Right for You?

Basic Free Ideal for lightweight LinkedIn use Simpler, more limited search capabilities

Business $24.95 - $99.95/mo More powerful search with higher results and

premium filters Ideal for open, aggressive networking and research See full list of who’s viewed your profile

Source: LinkedIn website, June 2012

Which Account Type is Right for You?

Sales $19.95 - $99.95/mo Similar to Business, but entry level option

does not offer InMail Offers “Lead Builder,” which allows you to

create and save lists of prospects

Source: LinkedIn website, June 2012

Which Account Type is Right for You?

Think about… Your individual and business needs – what is

your role within the company? How open do you want your network to be? How often do you need to connect with

people outside your network? What are you trying to achieve? Who do you

want to connect with? How might your needs change in the future?

Is Your Profile Up to Par?

Is Your Profile up to Par?

Did you spend enough time setting up your profile?

A good rule of thumb is to spend at least two hours on initial set up.

Is Your Profile up to Par?

Have an informative headline (be specific)

Take advantage of opportunities to highlight other sites

Make sure education and work info are complete and current

Use an appropriate photo

Use a custom URL

Keep your status up to date

Is Your Profile up to Par?

The summary statement, specialties and skills & expertise fields give more context to who you are – what is your skill set? What territories do you cover?

Fill the “Specialties” and “Skills & Expertise” sections with keywords and phrases that you want associated with you and your areas of expertise

Third-party Applications

Third-party Applications

LinkedIn has partnered with companies such as WordPress, TripIt and Microsoft to develop free applications to help users enhance their profiles

A new way to define and showcase what you and your business have to offer

Best for business: WordPress, SlideShare, BlogLink and Box.net

Third-party Applications

Bonus: LinkedIn Productivity Tools

Outlook Connector Build your network from frequent contacts Manage your LinkedIn contacts in Outlook

Lotus Notes Widget Get your email and LinkedIn updates all in one place Quickly learn more about people who send you email Search for people you want to contact and work with Share your status, see what your connections are

working on

Sharing Bookmarklet Share webpages to LinkedIn from your browser

Navigating Groups

Navigating Groups

Groups are a great way to build visibility and make new connections, but… The simple act of joining a group won’t get you

very far You can join up to 50, but only join as many as

you can actively participate in One or two are better than ten The CoStar CRE Forum is a great place to

start!

Navigating Groups

Feeling things out Understand that it’s a process – joining a group won’t

result in closing a deal right away Read the group rules in the top right corner – is

promotional activity allowed?

Navigating Groups

Feeling things out Take a look at the group stats (right side) – is

the group active? Who are its members? Observe first – participate where appropriate

and take time to build trust with other members

Navigating Groups

Becoming an active participant Target the most active discussions in the group for

the most visibility Wait until you’ve spent some time participating in top

discussions before starting your own Study the most popular posts – what do people

respond to?

Add value – respond to existing comments, provide an insight or opinion or ask a thought-provoking question

Building Your Network

Building Your Network

Start with professional contacts you know and trust

Building Your Network

Make the effort – include a personal note when you send invitations to connect

Follow up with new connections - send a personal note back when you accept an invitation

Have a goal in mind – what types of professionals do you want to connect with? Why?

Did you just return from an event? Take action with those business cards (and be timely)

Building Your Network

Are you asking for an introduction or connecting with someone you don’t know personally? Explain the mutual benefit.

Take advantage of introductions but tread lightly - the most effective intro tactic is to pick up the phone

Connect with purpose – focus on quality, not quantity

Building Your Network

Remember the social media golden rule:

Take online relationships offline for maximum benefit.

Summary

Summary

Make sure your profile is complete and professional

Keep your profile and your updates current Get involved in groups but don’t go crazy Make note of group rules and stats before you join Listen first before engaging in groups Actively pursue new connections but make it

personal and avoid spam Take online relationships offline for maximum

benefit

…for brokers

A Word About “Experts”

Value Proposition

Is this worth my time? Industrial user requirement – found via Search State Commerce Authority – connection resulted

in event attendance/key listing tours Presentation opportunity – lunch/learn on CRE 10,000 sf law firm – tenant rep via Groups

Know Your Strategy

What do I want to accomplish? Visibility and credibility Lead generation Thought leadership Branding Network growth Research Track competition

The Do’s

Engage3

Be consistent & authentic Follow traditional rules of

– Networking– Communication– Business etiquette

Give credit to sources

The Don’ts

Post listings Be a taker – give back Spam (groups, individuals) Over automate

Engage!

Consistency over frequency Status updates – personal, company, groups Comment and like – keep discussions active LinkedIn Answers LinkedIn Polls Springboard to personal contact

Connections

“People You May Know”– Always personalize ask

Second degree connections Accepting invitations – which? Connecting with competitors – should I? When do I disconnect?

Connections

Contacts > Add connections > People You May Know

Recommendations

Quality over quantity Strike while the iron is hot Client testimonials over co-workers Personalize requests Make it easy Reciprocate Handling requests

Search and Research

277% more effective for lead gen than Facebook & Twitter for B2B Powerful search tool

– Prospecting– Basic vs Premium accounts

Company research Who can introduce you?

Search and Research

Get Your Group On

Top source of referrals to PICOR Connect

Get Your Group On

Types of groups to target Location centric Prospect’s business Associations/networks Companies

Get Your Group On

How to interact Two way Discussions & polls Be relevant and user-focused Respect group rules Control digest frequency

Get Your Group On

Summary

Recap

Focus and target– Will this activity drive business?– Will it expand my network?– Can we help each other?

He that gives… Resources

– HubSpot – How To Guides– WindMill Networking – LinkedIn Category– Social Media Examiner – LinkedIn tag– YouTube – “InTips” playlist on LinkedIn Channel

Questions?