Do you ever wonder why sales professionals use LinkedIn as one of their main tools? Well, the simple answer is: connections. Even though you may think of LinkedIn as simply a way to find a new job, it also has the power to make you money in the job you currently have.
For example, consider the fact that the average household income on Linkedin is over $115,000. That’s a lot of highly qualified potential borrowers!
Plus, with realtors, builders, CPAs and more, looking to network on LinkedIn, you also will have access to a huge pool of potential referral partners.
How Do You Market on LinkedIn Effectively?
Like any social media platform or marketing strategy, your LinkedIn strategy needs to be planned out before you start to connect with others. Here are the top six steps for marketing yourself on LinkedIn in a way that will build your online presence.
How to connect better on LinkedIn:
- Build a great profile
- Connect with the right people
- Join groups of value and variety
- Interact with others’ posts
- Answer questions
- Post content, not just career updates
Build a Great Profile
Creating a LinkedIn profile is a critical step to a healthy online presence as a loan officer, whether you plan to engage heavily in LinkedIn or not. Why? Because if someone (a potential borrower, partner, or your competition) Googles your name, your LinkedIn will probably top the search results.
Because of this, having a polished and complete profile has the opportunity to be one of your most valuable mortgage marketing tools.
Make It Complete
There are many important sections on a LinkedIn profile, and it’s critical to fill out every single one! This will show someone reading about you that you put the time in to do it right. Luckily, LinkedIn actually measures this for you, showing you the “completeness” of your profile and guiding you on the best ways to improve.
Add a Photo
Uploading a headshot to your LinkedIn profile will improve your chances of being seen by 21 times. What does that mean for you? Just add a photo!
If you don’t have a recent photo that you’re happy with, take this as an opportunity to update your headshot. A photo goes a long way in helping those viewing your profile to connect with you.
Add a Headline
Your headline could be as simple as your current job title and company, or it could be something more eye-catching. It’s all up to you and the appearance you’d like your profile to have. Either way, your NMLS number should probably be included in your headline.
Dream Up Your Summary
Your LinkedIn summary gives you the chance to get a little more creative and fun. After all, this is one of the first things that some people will learn about you, so you don’t want this one of your mortgage marketing tools to be boring or cliche.
Much like a resume, you want your LinkedIn summary to be packed full of the results that your amazing career has produced. However, don’t forget the human element. Share why you do why you do, and why you love your job. Potential borrowers and partners will appreciate your passion.
Add Your Experience and Education
This is where the “resume” portion of LinkedIn comes back in to play. Add your current and past work experience and your education to your profile. Don’t forget to include snippets of data about how you made a difference at past companies.
Ask for Recommendations
There’s very few things that are more powerful than recommendations from people in places of authority. Whether you ask for recommendations from past or current managers or supervisors, or past clients, building up your profile with outside sources recommending your work is extremely valuable.
Create a Custom URL
Spreading the word about your shiny new LinkedIn profile via email, other social media platforms, or on your business card, will be so much easier with a custom URL. LinkedIn will generate a profile URL for you automatically, however it’ll probably be clunky and full of random numbers and letters. That’s not the type of mortgage marketing tools you want to have!
All you need to do to fix this is, while on the “edit profile” screen, click on the “edit” button next to your public profile URL. You can then just type in what you want your new URL to be! Try to keep it as simple as possible, and utilize your first and last name if possible.
Connect With The Right People
When you first join any social media platform, it can be tempting to try to connect with every person you can. However, there is such a thing as a hurtful follow request. This is because if enough people decline your follow request and say that they don’t know you, LinkedIn may shut down your profile.
In addition to this, connecting with the right people on LinkedIn can take your mortgage marketing tools to the next level. Whether you connect with other loan officers, professional partners, or friends and family, seek a variety of connections that will build your reputation and place of authority on the platform.
Sending a “Connect” Request
So you want to connect with someone on LinkedIn? Especially if this is someone you don’t know very well, this can be a daunting experience. Before you click that “Connect” button, take a quick look at their profile, to make sure you know at least a little something about them. Then, when you do send a request to connect, you’ll have the opportunity to also send them a quick note.
Introduce yourself in this note if the potential connection may not know you immediately. Then, try to relate to them in some way, just like you would if you were speaking with them in person. For instance, if you are wanting to connect with a real estate agent you met at a recent networking event, tell them that it was great to meet them (and specific where and when you met!). Then, tell them that you would love to stay in touch, and click “Send”! If they don’t respond, don’t worry. Not everyone checks LinkedIn regularly, and even if they do, they may not accept all connection requests they receive.
Join Groups of Value and Variety
Although joining LinkedIn groups of other loan officers can be valuable, it’s also important to mix up the types of groups you join. Do some research into the types of groups available on LinkedIn. One way to do this is to look at the profiles of your current connections who fit the demographic of borrower or partner you’d like to market to. What groups are they a part of? You could join those groups, or look for similar groups.
Interact With Others’ Posts
Once you’ve set up LinkedIn as one of your mortgage marketing tools, and are a part of a few groups, you’ll probably notice something. People do not interact with posts on LinkedIn very often. This gives you an opportunity to make a connection with people in a more organic way than a cold direct message.
Like interesting posts, and leave a friendly comment on articles or ideas that you enjoyed. Chances are, the person who posted it originally will be very pleasantly surprised by the time you took to interact with them. And they may even reach out to you with any loan questions they may have, or recommend you to someone they know who needs a mortgage.
Answer Questions
In much the same way, a great way to build your presence on LinkedIn is to prove your authority in your field. One way to do this is to answer questions. Whether posted in groups or on personal profiles, chances are you’ll run across questions that you have the authority to answer.
When those situations arise, answer the question thoroughly and clearly, and invite feedback. You can also tell the person who posed the question that they are more than welcome to reach out to you if they would like to continue the discussion.
Just like any of your mortgage marketing tools, it’s important to keep these conversations courteous and professional, even if someone else is being confrontational.
Post Content, Not Just Career Updates
You probably have picked up on this by now, but LinkedIn isn’t just for career updates. Seeing LinkedIn for what it is, a chance to connect, interact, and build relationships with people in and out of your current professional network is a great way to market yourself.
One way to do this is to provide valuable content to your network of connections. We know that not everyone is comfortable sitting down and writing a blog post about the mortgage industry, so here are a few tips and tricks for making the process more successful.
Consider What Your Audience Needs
When you’re deciding what to write about, put yourself into your audience’s shoes. Is your network mostly made up of older professionals who may be considering a refinance or a vacation home mortgage? Write an article about the benefits of investing in property or completing home remodels.
By thinking about what your questions your readers have about the mortgage industry, you’ll be able to provide valuable content that they will want to engage with. Plus, once someone sees you as an authority in your field, you’ll be able to market to them even better!
Keep It Simple
Whether you’re writing about loan types, interest rates, or down payments, it’s important to keep your articles simple and the language understandable. Avoid using industry lingo that could confuse the uninformed reader and explain the terms that they absolutely need to know. Instead of getting lost in the details, choose to show your readers the bigger picture. While leveraging any of your mortgage marketing tools, you should answer the questions of “Why do I care?” and “How does this affect me?”
Write an Eye-Catching Headline
Once your article is complete, it’s time to craft a headline. This is your chance to grab the attention of someone scrolling quickly through their feed, so make it noteworthy. If you need some help writing a great headline, check out this article.
Bottom Line
Clearly, there are many opportunities for loan officers looking to market through LinkedIn. Connecting with current and past borrowers, as well as current and potential professional partners is a valuable exercise. This will produce more leads, valuable connections, and help you target market the people who need your services the most.