July 22, 2019

Use This Trick to Get Your Next Client on LinkedIn

Parker Byrd

Running your managed services business takes up a lot of time, and when it comes to sales and marketing, sites like LinkedIn probably fall further down the list of priorities. However, today I want to share a simple tactic that takes little time and can produce big results. For a while, LinkedIn became an echo chamber of sales pitches and spam. More recently though, LinkedIn has put more guardrails in place to prevent this. In turn, valuable, organic content has risen to the top. Businesses will normally go with whoever brings the most perceived value, and this 10 minute trick can help you do just that!Before jumping right into the strategies, there are a few things you need to do to set yourself up for success:

Make sure your profile is optimized

Your Linkedin profile should be filled out, including your photo, headline, and background. Your headline and bio shouldn’t necessarily focus on what your job title is or what you do, but what solutions and outcomes your provide for your customers. After all, that’s what your customer will be looking for. Here’s an example:Rather than saying that you “I provide X services”, something that will resonate more with a prospect would be something like “I help businesses run faster and safer”

Use LinkedIn search to find possible clients near you

LinkedIn has a great searching feature, made even better with their premium search. Search for companies either in your vertical or in your area, and locate the decision makers in that organization. You can filter by job title to achieve this.

Connect and engage with relevant people

The key to making the most of your time on LinkedIn is to only connect with people relevant to your goal. 2,000 random connections means much less than 500 engaged ones.After you’ve made connections, take time each morning to engage with your connections, offering your $0.02 on any post relevant to you. Asking questions, offering advice, and sharing value builds your influence on the site, and help your content see more eyes.

The simple strategy to get business on Linkedin

Here’s how to use linked to find managed services customers.When you make a new connection, reach out and offer something free. It could be an ebook or other resource, or an offer to help out or answer a question. The key is establishing yourself not as a service but as a resource.If they are looking for an IT provider, this will help you rise to the top of the list. If they currently have a provider, this will help keep you top of mind when they switch. Or, in rare cases, it will make them wonder “Why doesn’t my current MSP actively offer advice?”.

Here’s what it may look like:

“If you ever have any technical questions or need any help, let me know and I’ll have one of my people come help you out!”“I wanted to send you a list I made called ‘5 Tools that can increase your productivity by 200%’ These have been very helpful for me and my clients, and hopefully will help you too”“I love keeping our neighborhood safe, so if you ever have any tech questions or you’d like to test your organization’s security at no charge, hit me up!”Simple messages like this not only build your trust and likability, but help position yourself as consultant rather than just a service provider. And consultancy opens the door to MRR much faster.A general piece of advice to follow when you’re social selling is to give way more than you ask. Selling your products and services on LinkedIn should barely come to mind. Instead, sell yourself and the value you have to give.If you can start dedicating 10-20-30 minutes in the morning to do this, not only will you naturally become a better salesperson, but you’ll start seeing real benefits down the road when folks start reaching out to YOU for business.