Page 34 - Australasian Paint & Panel Jul-Aug 2020

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Marketing
PAINT&PANEL JULY / AUGUST 2020
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Michelle Nathan from Nathans Truck & Trailer Smash Repairs, NSW says: ”Admittedly we don’t use LinkedIn as much as we need to, or should. However, we are ‘trying’ to make the time as LinkedIn is basically ‘Facebook for business’. We plan to ramp this up over the coming months. Where the advantage lies with LinkedIn is the opportunity to easily network and expand our business connections.
Unfortunately our industry isn’t ‘trendy’ for followers so this forces us to be a bit behind in this area of marketing. For business to business – connecting with fleets and insurers it tends to
work better as the people in these positions have a profile in order to create their own networks. Its not a tool for everyone and doesn’t work to reach your potential clients as well as some of the other platforms do, however every little bit helps.
Julie Pettett Numanoglu from Brighton Panel Works, VIC says: “It’s about being visible and keeping your business front of mind with decision makers. It’s a great way to let people know about achievements or improvements that have taken place in the business.”
5WAYS TO USE LINKEDIN TO GENERATE MORE BUSINESS
LINKEDIN IS THE “BUSINESS TO BUSINESS” SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM SAYS SALES GURU CARRIE MYTON.
ARRIE MYTON IS A SALES EXPERT
who has helped many small businesses in the US, UK, Aus- tralia and New Zealand. Myton’s focus is putting marketing systems in place that consistently generate new business enquiries every week easily and effortlessly and she is a LinkedIn expert. LinkedIn is the best platform to stay top of mind for decision makers and re-
ferral partners.
HOW IS LINKEDIN BEING USED?
LinkedIn has become a very powerful tool to connect with decision makers. LinkedIn is where professionals net- work and recruit. 4.5 million Australi- ans use LinkedIn every month.
People work with businesses they know, like and trust, so being connected to key decision makers on LinkedIn, automatical- ly puts you in that person’s network. As an automotive repair shop, a great deal of your business comes from referral partnerships and joint venture relationships.
Let’s take, for example, using Linked- In to set up joint ventures with towing companies and insurance companies. Let’s say that the NRMA manager is looking to extend his network of repair shops in your suburb. The NRMA man- ager may go to LinkedIn, pull up his first degree connections and look for his connections that are smash repair shops in your suburb and state.
In 2015, we did a survey amongst sen- ior managers across ASX listed compa-
nies, and 89% of managers said
they checked out the LinkedIn profiles of key contacts in companies before initialising the first conversation.
LinkedIn is also one of the first things that pops up on Google when people look up your business or when people Google your name. If you just use your profile alone, to stand out and establish trust and credibility, you can appear in the searches when key people outside of your local net- work are looking for a company like yours.
HOW DO YOU USE USE LINKEDIN TO GENERATE MORE BUSINESS?
Here’s what I believe are the top five ways you can use LinkedIn to generate more business:
1UPDATE YOUR BUSINESS
AND PERSONAL PROFILE
Knowing that most people are using LinkedIn for professional networking and recruitment gives you a chance to really sell yourself and your business as
LINKEDIN USER VIEW
the go to smash repair shop in your area. Make sure that you have the right location, your key speci- alities, and something unique about
your business is important.
Add some customer testimonials and
repair photos in the media section of your profile - that helps people looking at your profile see your work, and choose you just because you have photos as well as social proof that you are good at what you do.
2CONNECT WITH YOUR
CURRENT NETWORK
You may not have all the time in the world to sit on LinkedIn. LinkedIn has a brilliant tool that allows you to sync your current email to the platform, sending your current network an invita- tion to connect with you on LinkedIn.
You’ll be surprised how many people that you haven’t heard from in ages see that notification, connect with you on LinkedIn, then re-engage in a conversa- tion to send you business.