LinkedIn operates the world’s largest professional network on the Internet with (as of January 2017) more than 467 million members in over 200 countries and territories.
New Zealand now boasts more than 1,540,000 LinkedIn members, according to the latest LinkedIn data. Yet far too many of those members simply don’t know how to use LinkedIn effectively to promote themselves or their organisations.
In response to this need, we’ve developed a course that will show you how to use LinkedIn to best advantage, taking account of the developments being rolled out regularly by the LinkedIn team.
About the Course
This is a seven-part online training course providing a comprehensive introduction to LinkedIn, from the Basics to detailed instructions on how to use LinkedIn to promote your organisation, build your personal reputation and even make sales.
This online training course is conducted on a web-based e-learning software platform, enabling course participants to proceed at their own pace, accessing materials online. This particular online training course provides content in a variety of multimedia forms, including videos, slideshows, flash-based presentations and PDF files. No special software is required to participate.
Course lessons will be provided in seven parts, for participants to access in accordance with their own timetables. Interaction with the course tutor is enabled through the platform software tools (with telephone backup if required).
Feedback from those who have previously taken one of our courses:
- “this was the best professional development course I have done in many years” – Mark R, senior Agency Exec responsible for social media
- “thought the information within was outstanding” – Ed P, General Manager
- “What I loved was that I started with a fairly rudimentary understanding of social media but have learned a lot – including where to find more information as I need it.” – Fiona W, Marketing Manager
- “I found it relevant, informative, topical, insightful and a bloody good read. It’s never evangelical, too techy, patronising, assumes that you know too much or too little about digital and has a warm sense of humour in the communication throughout which helped faciliate the learning process for me.” — Adrienne B, new media senior executive
- “Am thoroughly enjoying the content!” – Kara B, magazine co-ordinator
- “I completed the first lesson today and found it really interesting and love the interaction already! I am so looking forward to the second lesson already …” — Annette B, public relations director
COURSE CREATION AND TUTORING
This “How to use LinkedIn Effectively” programme has been created and is tutored by Michael Carney. Michael has been in the marketing game since 1971, online since 1987 and keeps tabs on a wide range of trends and developments, locally and around the world. He is the author of “Trade Me Success Secrets” (now in its Second Edition) and a regular magazine columnist. Michael is also the creator of a number of online training courses, covering social media, eCommerce and other aspects of digital marketing.
WHO SHOULD TAKE THE “HOW TO USE LINKEDIN EFFECTIVELY” COURSE
Any business professional who wants to master LinkedIn, whether to further their own career or to develop their business presence on the world’s leading Social B2B network.
COURSE CONTENTS
Lesson One: How To Set Yourself Up Effectively On LinkedIn
You’re probably one of the hundreds of millions who already have a profile on LinkedIn — but is it just a transplanted CV? We show you how to turn your basic profile into a living, selling document that:
- showcases your unique talents and experience to best advantage
- reinforces your personal brand with a compelling headline that’s the first thing any visitor will see
- highlights your achievements, not just your history
- provides a platform for your future success
Lesson One also covers:
- The most effective ways to ask for recommendations and endorsements
- How to use the principle of Reciprocity to sharpen your profile
- Trojan Horse Marketing and how it can really work for you
- How to claim your name on LinkedIn (and why it matters)
- How to optimize your profile for SEO
- How to use LinkedIn’s Mobile Apps and how you can ensure that your profile stands out on every platform
- The power of an effective profile summary
- How to re-shape your profile to make it sizzle (and show off your best bits)
Lesson Two: How To Use LinkedIn For Business
Once you have your own personal profile up and sizzling, it’s time to turn your attention to your organisation (especially if you operate in the B2B space). LinkedIn has now surpassed Twitter as the most popular social medium for distributing B2B content, with 83% of B2B marketers using LinkedIn to promote their organisations. So where do you begin? We start with Company Pages (which were recently redesigned to make it easier for LinkedIn users to find, follow and engage with companies of interest).
Topics covered in Lesson Two include:
- How to use LinkedIn Banner Images to showcase your company brand and really bring your page to life
- How to attract keen followers to your company pages (and what that does for your organisation’s visibility on LinkedIn)
- What you can now say about your company’s products and services
- How to harness social proof to best effect
- Why you must make your updates valuable, relevant and interesting (and what that really means)
Lesson Three: How To Use LinkedIn To Find A Job
You’ve probably heard that LinkedIn is very useful when you’re looking for a new job — but where do you start?
In Lesson Three, we talk about:
- How to use LinkedIn to get the word out that you’re in the market
- How to polish your LinkedIn profile even further, to highlight your best (and most employable) characteristics
- How to find out where people with your skillset are working
- How to check if a company is still hiring
- How to identify new recruits (and perhaps pick their brains)
- How to find out who’s who in your target industry
- How to network shamelessly to future-proof your career
- How to build your personal brand
- How to enhance your Resume with LinkedIn Testimonials
- How to find (and capitalise on) inside connections at potential employers
- How to search the hidden job market for opportunities
- How to use LinkedIn to prepare for your job interview
Lesson Four: How To Use LinkedIn To Generate Business
Can you actually use LinkedIn to create business? Yes, indeed you can, and we’ll show you how. Along the way, we’ll talk about:
- How to use LinkedIn to find business opportunities
- How to Use LinkedIn Groups to build relationships with prospects and attract new leads
- How to decide who you should connect with (and who doesn’t make the cut)
- The power of a clear Call To Action
- LinkedIn Special Offers (and where it’s appropriate to make them)
- How LinkedIn’s Advanced People Search feature can be your very best prospecting friend
- How to use LinkedIn for sales success
Lesson Five: How To Use LinkedIn ‘s Paid Services
You’ve probably noticed that, whilst many of LinkedIn’s services are free, you are occasionally encouraged to buy some stuff there. Reportedly, around 2% of LinkedIn members have paid-for subscriptions. So should you dip into your pocket?
In Lesson Six, we evaluate the pros and cons of:
- LinkedIn paid advertising — how it works, what you can expect to pay and what results to aim for
- The surprising response rates of LinkedIn InMails (and when using them is worthwhile)
- How to use LinkedIn’s Profile Organizer
- The LinkedIn paid account options and what they provide
Lesson Six: How To Use LinkedIn To Promote Your Business
So far we’ve looked at how to use LinkedIn to make sales and build your reputation. But LinkedIn is also an ideal vehicle for promoting your organisation to other businesses.
In Lesson Six we’ll look at the promotional potential of LinkedIn, including:
- How (and how often) to craft status updates that will appeal to your target customers and clients
- Best practices for sending out mass messages and invitations (without being a pest)
- How to use Groups to build your authority and keep in regular touch with your prospects
- How to connect from LinkedIn to the rest of the web, using widgets and plugins and other automated services
- How to share useful articles and resources without overdoing it
- How to add videos and presentations to LinkedIn
- How to use the right tools to manage your LinkedIn content to avoid getting overwhelmed
Lesson Seven: How To Use LinkedIn For Recruiting
We’ve already covered using LinkedIn to find a new job. In Lesson Seven we look at the flip side of the coin — how to use LinkedIn to find the most appropriate candidates for vacancies within your organisation.
In this lesson, we consider:
- why LinkedIn is a fertile ground within which to find perhaps 80% of your prospective employees
- How to use LinkedIn to tap into the most effective recruiting source of all
- The crowd-sourced accuracy of LinkedIn profiles
- LinkedIn’s job-posting facilities (and whether you should use them)
- Soliciting introductions: the appropriate protocols
- How to use LinkedIn to search and compare
TIMING
The next “How To Use LinkedIn Effectively” course begins on Monday No upcoming date found in provided date list.
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INVESTMENT
This seven-part online training course is available for $497. However we offer an Early Bird Discount of $100 — the course is just $397 for bookings made and payment received by Monday No upcoming date found in provided date list.
Bookings are confirmed on receipt of payment, which can be by bank deposit or credit card. We can raise an invoice in advance if you need it.
To reserve your place in our “How To Use LinkedIn Effectively” course, please pay by credit card through PayPal by clicking here.
If you would prefer to pay by bank deposit, or require an invoice, please send an email to bookings@socialmedia.org.nz with your requirements.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
You’ll receive our emailed confirmation of your booking. Then on the first day of the course we’ll follow up with details of your Login and Password, along with an Enrolment Key for the “How To Use LinkedIn Effectively” online training course.
If you have any questions, or would like more information, please email us at info@socialmedia.org.nz