Attracting Ideal Clients

Secrets to Leverage LinkedIn Groups

LinkedIn is a great social network for connecting with your ideal clients. As much as I like Facebook, I think LinkedIn offers more of an ability to connect with a Person of Influence (POI).

One of the best places to find your ideal customers and clients is in LinkedIn Groups.

Here are 3 quick tips to leverage LinkedIn Groups:

1) Focus on adding value

Make sure that you share information that people want to read. One great strategy is to include a link out to your blog post. This will help to position you as an expert. It will also allow you to generate leads if you have an opt in box on your blog.

2) Connect with people you meet in groups

After you have interacted with people a few times in a LinkedIn Group, then send them an invitation to connect.

LinkedIn Groups also gives you the capability to follow people. This is similar to the way Twitter works. It's an easy to build a base of followers who read your posts and comments.

3) Send personal messages to people on LinkedIn

What good is a network unless you actually intend to communicate with people. Make time every day to reach out to someone on LinkedIn and send a personal message. Share a resource, congratulate them on a recent success or ask them for 5 minutes to chat by phone.

LinkedIn Groups is a great tool for making connections with powerful and influential people. Set a goal now to leverage this tool to grow your business.

Rick Cooper
Online Marketing and Social Media Trainer

Blog Whisperer Jerry Kennedy Reviews Crush It from Gary Vaynerchuk

Jerry Kennedy, the Blog Whisperer recently wrote about Gary Vaynerchuk's book Crush It. Jerry says,

"He writes about the importance of building your personal brand as it relates to major markets.  A lot of Fortune 500 companies are still quite wary of allowing their employees to share their connection to the company online along with their employees’ personal online presence. Companies should heed the advice Gary has in encouraging businesses to allow employees to further a company’s brand via their online presence and online connections. Companies not doing this should realize they are missing an untapped marketing resource."

Jerry brings up a good point. This is a huge untapped marketing resource for many companies. I will be giving a presentation on Twitter to a group of strategic marketing professionals in a few months. One of my messages is that their companies should encourage people to blog and to use social media. This is a challenge for a lot of companies to give up control of their message. But, in reality, the control they think they have is an illusion.

People are already blogging about your company. They are already posting on social media. And if they aren't, you're missing the boat!

So, heed Gary's message and get into action. Expand your online presence and your online connections.

Social Media Quote: Gary Vaynerchuk

"I pride myself in listening. When you have people paying attention to you, your biggest job is to listen what they want. Deliver what your community wants."

~Gary Vaynerchuk

Social Media Tips to Network Online

Social Media offers huge potential to market your business online. But, that doesn't mean you should just spam people. You need to connect, develop relationships and add value. In this video I share several critical ideas to help you leverage social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.

Watch this Video Now!

Join me for an upcoming teleseminar on May 28th
How to Use Social Media to Attract Clients

Click here to register:
http://TinyURL.com/SocialMediaCoolTips

Rick Cooper
Online Marketing Expert

Twitter Tip to Create Social Currency

Twitter is a great tool for people who want to attract clients and find joint venture partners. I’ve heard a lot of feedback that some people don’t really understand Twitter or how to use it. Are you clear about you can leverage Twitter?

One of the ways I use Twitter is to search for people in a particular profession. I work with small business owners to help them market their business online. And I specialize in working with Coaches, Speakers and Experts. So, I’m very clear whenever I go onto Twitter that I want to find Coaches, Speakers, Virtual Assistants, Professional Organizers, Graphic Designers, Web Designers and anyone who offers a professional service and wants to be positioned as an expert.

Use Twellow to Find Potential Clients by Profession

There are many third party sites that can be used in your efforts to leverage Twitter. One of my favorite sites is Twellow. This is like the yellow pages for Twitter. And it organizes people according to their profession. If you don’t have a profile on Twellow, go set one up. You can add yourself to 3 categories.

Twitter is one of my favorite sites for social networking and it’s also great for sharing promotion and product offers. As with all social networking sites, make sure you take time each day to connect and engage people.

Social Currency happens when you create value for someone else. You can do this on Twitter with  retweet. You can post a link to someone's article or blog post. You can even acknowledge them on #FollowFriday. Think strategically about who you want to ackowledge and recognize. Do it sincerely and do it often.

Rick Cooper
Online Marketing Expert

Build a Community Online

Social media allows you to create a community online. Position yourself as an expert and you will attract people to you. People are drawn to experts. They seek knowledge and enlightenment. They want answers. And they’re excited to be around people who are up to big things.

There are several ways to build a community online. The most popular method these days is simply to use social media. There are so many websites where you can connect with people. Just remember people didn’t come there just to connect with you. They have other friends and interests. So, if they show interest in you, don’t take it for granted.

Another great tool for building a community is a blog. Your blog can showcase your talents. People can leave comments on your blog. Be sure to respond back.

3 Tips to Build a Community Online:

1) Provide Value

People will join your community and stay in touch if they think you offer something of value. So, don’t disappoint them. Share information, tips and resources. You have specialized knowledge that people want.

And, be sure that you provide value consistently over time. It’s easy to get on a creative run from time to time. It’s tough to create and provide a high level of quality content week after week. And yet, this is exactly what you need to do.

2) Communicate

It seems like a cliche, but to maintain an audience, you need to communicate with them. When someone posts something on your Facebook wall or clicks the Like button, be sure to pay attention and respond back. If someone tweets you, tweet back.

If someone sends you an email message, reply back. If they call you, then call back. It’s important to respond in kind. There was a reason they chose that medium to communicate with you. People want dialogue. And they like to see that you’re a real person.

3) Recognize and Acknowledge

People want to feel important. Even though you’re the expert, you need to take time out to acknowledge others. People like people who like them. They will be much more likely to come back and interact with you if you show interest in them.

Take a few minutes to think about your community. How many people are in your community?

Why not set some goals for your community. Set a goal for the number of people you want to reach through your community.

Here are some questions to ask yourself:

-What are you doing to connect and develop relationships with people in your community?

-What events can you hold to attract members to your community?

-What can you offer people to encourage them to remain in your community?

Building a community can be a valuable activity. It can help you grow your business. And you can even monetize your community by launching a membership website. What a novel idea.

Rick Cooper
Online Marketing Expert

Drive Traffic by Commenting on Blogs

There are many reasons to become a blogger. One of the best is simply to generate leads. And yet, the challenge is always to get people to your blog. You can't generate a lead unless someone lands on your web page.

So, once you are in the habit of blogging and you have the ability to capture leads, then you simply need to send more people to your blog.

Here's a simple technique that people often overlook. Many people look for the more challenging or complicated techniques. I look first to do the simple things that will drive traffic and create backlinks to your site.

The technique is simply to comment on other people's blogs.

It's a simple idea in concept, but how do you actually implement it consistently?

Here are 3 simple tips:

1) Compile a list of blogs where you can post comments

It's not enough to simply post a comment once and you're done. To be effective, you should post periodically to different blogs. When you get started, post a comment on a site once per week. Then, later cut back to once or twice a month.

Engage Other Bloggers in Conversation

Why this often? First, you want to engage the other blogger in dialogue. It's just like connecting on a social networking site. If you post often enough, people will remember who you are and you will become friends.

In addition to that, if they like your ideas, they might actually feature you or their blog. Or, they might share a resource you offer.

2) Keep your comments short

Remember, this is their blog. Don't write a novel, keep it brief.

If you feel compelled to write more on the topic, write it on your blog. Then, link back.

Don't include a hyperlink in the body of the comment. See the next section for more details on how to send people to your blog.

3) Link back to your blog

When you post your comment, you have the opportunity to include a link back to a website. There will be fields for name, email and website. But, where should you send people? Should you send them to a lead capture page, a website, or a blog?

In general, the best approach is to send people to your blog. If a person is interested in reading blogs, then they will probably be interested in reading another similar blog.

So, should you send people to the home page of your blog? The SEO experts say that it's best to include a link directly to one of the posts on your blog. Pick a post that has similar content to the one you are commenting on. Or, write a new post and link to it.

Are you in the habit of commenting on blogs? Or, is this a new idea for you?

If you want more traffic to your blog, then try this strategy. And be sure to pick some high profile blogs to comment on also. Make sure the topics are relevant. If you're writing about organization tips, don't comment on a political blog. Different audiences, different interests.

Set a goal now to comment on 3 blogs in the next 2 weeks. And while you're reading this post, take a moment now to comment on this blog. Make it happen!

Rick Cooper
Marketing Coach

Find More Clients on the Internet

One of the common challenges facing most businesses, and particularly professional services businesses, is to find clients. A cost effective and simple strategy you can use to find clients is to leverage the power of the internet.

What is the most effective way you have found so far to get clients? Select this one strategy and optimize it. Think about the process end to end and look for ways to improve your results.

So, how do you find clients on the internet? There are literally thousands of different strategies you can implement.

Let’s consider 3 simple strategies you can quickly and easily start with.

1. Social Media

Are you using social media effectively to attract clients? Many people spend hours of time each day on sites like Facebook and Twitter. Yet, are they actually getting a return on the investment of their time?

Be careful not to abuse this powerful medium though. Some people are too aggressive in promoting their business and run the risk of having their account shut down.

Send People to an Opt In Page

Follow the rules on sites likes Facebook. Look for simple ways to communicate one on one. Take time to build rapport. Then, use a simple, but effective lead generation strategy to send people to an opt in page.

In fact, it’s a good idea to create a web page that welcomes people from the site. Speak to people one on one, but acknowledge them as part of an audience.

2. Article Marketing

An article can be a great tool to generate leads. How? By including a call to action in the byline along with a URL or web page link.

At the end of an article, include a brief byline that explains your expertise, the company you work for and mentions a specific free resource that is available to them. Then, include the link.

3. Landing Page

One of the most effective strategies to generate leads on the internet is the use of a landing page, or squeeze page. This is a standalone web page with the sole purpose of capturing contact information.

Of course, you have to give people a reason to opt in. You need to provide something of value. Offer them a free resource like a special report, ebook or audio program.

The 3 strategies I have shared here can be used in multiple ways and in combination to attract clients.

What can you do this week that will help you attract clients? Take action or at least take the first step in moving forward. You have the ability to attract more clients than you are today. Get started now!

Rick Cooper
Marketng Coach

Social Media Quote: Matt Dickman

“Social media isn’t the end-all-be-all, but it offers marketers unparalleled opportunity to participate in relevant ways. It also provides a launchpad for other marketing tactics. Social media is not an island. It’s a high-power engine on the larger marketing ship.”

~Matt Dickman
technomarketer.typepad.com

Social Networking Tips to Leverage Twitter

Twitter is an amazing tool which can allow you to connect with people across the world. You can attract clients, find joint venture partners and reach out to connectors and other influential people.

Many people have tried Twitter and given up. This is a mistake. It's a very powerful tool and one of its strengths is simplicity.

Here are some of the common complaints I hear about Twitter:
*Too much spam
*I can't follow conversations. It's too confusing.
*Why are people following me? Where are they following me to?

Let me address the questions one at a time.

Too Much Spam
Yes, there is more spam and promotion on Twitter than on most social networks. That's okay. If you know how to filter tweets, you can avoid most of the spam.

I can't follow conversations. It's too confusing.
Twitter can feel a little like walking into a crowded room and trying to listen to all of the conversations at the same time. If you go to a library, do you feel overwhelmed? Or, do you simply look for one book to read? Twitter is the same way. Take a deep breathe. First, you do not need to read everything everyone posts. Second, you can use lists to filter people into categories. For example, you could create a Friend List so you can read tweets just from your friends.

Why are people following me? Where are they following me to?
This is one of the most unique qualities of Twitter and one of the most powerful. On most social networks, you have to ask someone's permission to connect with them. And once you connect to them, that gives you access to their network and to information about them. Twitter works the opposite way, anyone can follow anyone, except in certain situations like someone protects their profile. This makes it possible to build a large network quickly.

Make a Short List of People You Want to Communicate With

Now, let me share 3 ideas to help you leverage Twitter as a powerful social networking tool:

1) Build your network

Invest some time in following people. The larger your network, the better opportunity you will be able to connect with influential people. It will also increase your opportunities for lead generation.

2) Focus on communication

Forget about trying to chat with everyone. Make a short list of people you want to communicate with. Create a List on the Twitter website of people to communicate with and focus on them. You can also use tools like TweetDeck which improve the communication process.

3) Add value

Make every tweet count. Post quotes, tips, and link to blog posts that add value. Limit promotion to one out of every 10 tweets. This will prevent you from being labeled a spammer and being blocked or unfollowed by other people.

If you implement these simple tips, you will be well on the way to getting better results on Twitter.

Sign up for a Free Teleseminar April 13th:

How to Use Social Media to Attract Clients

Click here to learn more

Rick Cooper
The Attraction Marketing Expert