How to grow a LinkedIn network filled with quality connections
Besides your skills and expertise, a robust LinkedIn network is another critical ingredient for a successful career. But networking isn’t just a numbers game. While it’s true that the more connections you have, the better, that shouldn’t be your ultimate goal and a measure of success. The article asks how to grow a LinkedIn network filled with quality connections.
The thing is that not all connections are equal. Some are more relevant, helpful, and a better fit than others. The company you keep matters because it can open doors, inspire ideas and create opportunities.
That’s why you should focus on strategically growing your LinkedIn network and ensuring it’s packed with high-quality connections.
Here are some tips to help you get your networking efforts to the next level.
Connect with Intent
The first step to growing a quality network is to connect with intent.
In other words, you should always have a clear reason to connect with someone and communicate it in your Connection Request message — adding this short note will increase your odds of getting a positive response.
Don’t just send generic or spammy requests to random people that pop up on your feed.
Instead, research the person’s profile, background, and interests, and tailor your message accordingly.
For example, you can mention a mutual connection, a shared group, a common interest, or a specific piece of content that they posted. This will show that you are genuinely interested in them and their work and increase the chances of accepting your request.
This approach will filter out irrelevant connections before they clutter your network.
Activate Creator Mode
Leveraging Creator Mode will help you establish yourself as an authority in your industry, boost your visibility, expand your reach, and elevate your personal brand, which can significantly contribute to landing lots of new high-quality connections.
When you activate this feature, the Connect button on your profile will transform to “Follow,” thus indicating to your potential connections that you’re a thought leader and a go-to resource for valuable content.
LinkedIn’s algorithm favours Creators, meaning your content will be more prominently displayed on other users’ feeds.
By turning the Creator Mode on, you can add up to 5 hashtags to your profile to highlight the topics you frequently post about so that people interested in these topics can easily discover you through search.
Follow People Whose Content You Enjoy
Another way to grow your network is to follow people whose content you enjoy — influencers, thought leaders, industry experts, or anyone who posts valuable and relevant information that you can learn from or engage with.
By following them, you can see their updates on your feed, comment on their posts, and start building a relationship with them by participating in conversations they start.
You can also share their content with your network and tag them to show appreciation and recognition. This will help you establish your credibility and authority in your field and attract more quality connections who share your interests and goals.
Build an Attractive Profile
You rarely get a second chance to make a stellar first impression, so don’t waste an opportunity to do so with your Linkedin profile. Think of it as your online resume and portfolio that tells your potential connections who you are, what you do, and why they should connect with you.
Therefore, you should ensure your profile is complete, accurate, and up-to-date. Some elements that you should pay attention to are:
- The headline is the first thing people see when they visit your profile, so make it compelling. It should be catchy, concise, and relevant to your current role or goal.
- A professional headshot adds credibility to your profile. Make sure it’s a recent photo where your face can be seen — long-distance shots won’t cut it. Remember that profiles with photos get 21x more views and 36x more messages.
- The summary allows you to tell your story and highlight your value proposition. It should be engaging, informative, and personal.
- The experience section is where you can list your previous and current positions and describe your responsibilities and accomplishments. It should be specific, quantifiable, and relevant.
- The skills section should showcase your abilities and expertise related to your field or industry. Update it regularly and try to get endorsements from others.
How To Use LinkedIn To Find Your Competitor’s Key Customers
LinkedIn is also a powerful tool for businesses seeking an edge over their competitors. With the right approach, it can be used to identify and connect with a competitor’s key customers. Networking through LinkedIn helps you gain insights into what your competitors are doing. And how they engage with their customers.
It is something we can do for you as part of a project, or you can do it yourself. There are also more standard ways of Using LinkedIn for Researching Your Competitors.
Posts and salespeople putting achievements on their profits are excellent for competitor research. It can paint an awesome picture of what’s going on. But there is more you can do with it.
Who Are Their Customers?
Using Linkedin to understand your competitors’ primary customers can be beneficial.
We are not saying this is a foolproof process, and it will be 100% correct. Nothing in intelligence is 100% certain. If you want 100% certainty, you need a historian, not a competitive intelligence analyst. Or market intelligence expert. Even then, the history is written by the winners and all their biases.
Connect with your competitors on LinkedIn. Yes, this is easier for a third party to do for you, as many will be reluctant to accept, but you will be surprised how many do.
It’s Not Bulletproof
You have to be subjective, and it isn’t bulletproof. For instance, your competitors’ sales teams may connect to target prospective customers. But if you have to, say, 12 to 20 contacts from a single company connected to multiple people within your competitor. If you cannot rule them, you have a good sign that they could be a competitor’s customer.
Increase Your Certainty
We know some will dismiss this as inaccurate. But it’s better to have some knowledge of what may be happening than nothing at all. Keep researching, and doing this will only increase your certainty. Or reject it and move on.
Keep Your Network Up to Date by Removing Irrelevant Connections
Last but not least, it’s crucial to keep your network fresh and engaged by decluttering it. So, how to remove LinkedIn connections, and when should you perform this activity? Start by periodically reviewing your connections list and deleting or unfollowing those irrelevant to your career or interests.
For example, if they:
- Are inactive or spammy
- Post inappropriate or offensive content
- Constantly send you messages
- Are recruiters. As most can only communicate one way.
- Have changed their industry or role
- Have no interaction or engagement with you
- Have no mutual benefit or value for you
- Retired. Unless you know them personally, someone retired is unlikely to want your services
Don’t hesitate to bid them farewell.
Doing this can free up space for new connections more aligned with your goals and vision. You can also improve the quality of your feed by seeing more content that matters to you.
How to grow a LinkedIn network filled with quality connections
Growing a high-quality LinkedIn network is not a one-time thing but an ongoing process that requires time, effort, and strategy, but it’s worth it. By following these tips, you can create a network that is large but also meaningful and beneficial for your career and personal growth.
Here is another related article which may be of interest:
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