LinkedIn - Your Company's New Best Marketing Resource

LinkedIn have just introduced the ability to post updates directly from your Company Page*. Overnight, this has transformed LinkedIn in to an important, highly focussed and free marketing resource for organisations.

You really want to be working on developing this company updates facility into a powerful marketing tool for your business. There are, however, TWO tricks involved.

TRICK ONE

Firstly you have to select "Designated users only" as the option for Company Page Admins. Sounds complicated but it's really not to hard. And it will be worth the effort.

Go to your Company Page via search or the Companies tab. Then enter edit mode via the blue Admin tools tab. Next you select the "Designated users only" button and find your designated users via the "Start typing a name box". (For some reason, finding your designated user or users seems to work much more smoothly if you type in surnames.)

You should end up seeing something similar to the image below (but not with me as your designated user!).

Click the blue "Publish" button and it will take you back to your Company Page. It will now include a "Share an update" box similar to the one shown below. And you can start sending updates in the same way you do from your personal LinkedIn profile.

TRICK TWO

The updates from your Company Page only go to people who are followers of your company. You've probably not worried much about this before, but you had better now start encouraging people to follow your company.

As a minimum, make sure all company employees are followers. Then encourage them to "like" company updates, which will help to propagate the updates throughout their network of connections.

You may also wish to start promoting your LinkedIn Company Page on your website, Facebook page, Twitter account and other marketing collateral.


* Don't yet have a Company Page on LinkedIn? Then log-in to your personal account, go to the Companies Tab, then Search Companies, then Add a Company.

If you need any additional help getting this valuable new marketing resource working for your business, don't hesitate post a comment below or email me.

Still Paying a High Price for SMS Messages?

Is your company paying for SMS Messages sent between staff members? 

You can avoid these costs by having all personnel use a mobile phone application which provides free messaging. Suitable applications include Skype, Microsoft's Windows Live Messenger and What's App.

These mobile applications themselves are also free. Apart from text messaging they often include support for the free transmission of images and videos. Group messaging may also be a handy facility for some businesses.

Skype's Mobile Product Offerings

The major snag is that all personnel need to have the same application loaded on their mobiles phones. But this is pretty simple to organise. The applications can be downloaded directly on to mobile phones from the websites listed below. You may also wish to get other key business contacts, such as, clients, suppliers and business partners in on the act. Saving you all money.

You do need a "smartphone" to run these applications. Smartphones, such as the iPhone, have the computing power to support third party applications, Internet access and email. Not sure if you have a smartphone? The websites listed below will help you there as well. Some personnel don't have smartphones? It may be time to address that, smartphones are going to become increasingly integrated your business environment, like it or not.

How can messaging be free? Your messages are sent over the phone's Internet connection, instead of via a telecommunications carrier service. This does use up some of the data transmission allowance, but as long as you don't overrun the monthly plan, there is no additional cost. Text messages, for instance, only use infinitesimal amounts of data.

You can download free messaging applications, also known as apps, from the following sites:

Skype -  http://www.skype.com/intl/en/get-skype/on-your-mobile/
Windows Live Messenger - http://explore.live.com/windows-live-messenger-mobile
WhatsApp - http://www.whatsapp.com/

For an additional perspective, see this recent article in the The Sydney Morning Herald http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/mobiles/free-texting-could-spell-doom-for-sms-20111011-1lip1.html

To find other great free services for your business, check out the ebook Free Business Resources.