The very best thing you can do for your pipeline AND your company is to develop your personal brand and your thought leadership. Full stop. 

And I know many of you are thinking...'Ugh, but I hate making it all about me. I don't like the spotlight. And I don't have the time." I've heard it over and over from founders and other executives. I say this with love...get. over. it. 

I had all of the same thoughts myself my first year in business. But then I kept hearing how important (and impactful) it was...and I got curious. I read the book Be, and it convinced me to give it a try.

I made the time, and I committed to a year 'experiment'. 

And many of you know I am quite active on social media today, but funny enough, that ALL started one year ago, almost to the day. 

And it has paid off 10x.

It has amplified all of my other marketing and sales efforts (pun intended 😅). And beyond building pipeline, it also attracted potential investors (I turned them down) and continues to attract top talent to submit their resume, even though I am not hiring. Literally every week I get a sales lead, a talent lead, or both. 

Like most good things in life, it doesn't happen overnight. You have to commit and stick to it for a minimum of 4-6 months before you'll really get the flywheel spinning. But once it's spinning, it's beautiful and it's powerful. 

For those still looking for proof - 

• A brand message from a person receives 561% more engagement than when the brand itself shares the same content (LinkedIn). 

• Leads developed through individual's social media activities convert 7x more frequently than other leads (LinkedIn).  

• 77% of companies are more likely to purchase from a company if the CEO is on social media (Inc).

• 75% of B2B decision-makers source information on social media before purchasing (LinkedIn). 

So, TLDR...

If you start openly sharing the unique thoughts you already have, about topics you already know a lot about...you'll get more leads, more investor interest, and more top talent wanting to work with you. 

Sounds pretty good, right? 

So for the whole month of February, I'm going to break down HOW the heck to do this. My Valentine's gift to you ❤️

Step #1: Give your profile a glow up

There are many social platforms out there now, but this newsletter is focused on B2B sales, so we're going to focus on LinkedIn. 

The same way your website is your 24-7 salesperson for your company, your LinkedIn profile is your 24-7 salesperson for YOU (aka your personal brand)...and your company is the #1 beneficiary of your personal brand. 

So first thing's first, before you start posting regularly, I'd tidy things up to prepare for your new friends (visitors). 

A strong first impression

Remember how we all have ADD and an 8 second attention span? This means you gotta hook people right from the beginning at the top of your profile. 

Let's break down each of these sections - 

1. A clear cover image with a strong message, who are you and what do you want people to know about you. A banner with only a company logo is boring. Tell people in words why they should keep scrolling. You can use the free version of Canva to design this, they have templates. 

2. A professional headshot. Most photographers are $300-500 for 3-5 decent headshot images. Make the time to get some high quality images. This shows people you're serious about your brand and growth. 

3. Again, a tagline that says 'Founder of Amplify' is boring and tells most people who don't me, nothing at all. Amplify is a 2 year old company most people don't know, I don't work at Amazon. Get creative and continue to draw people in with this section. 

4. Add a link to your website or to a 'mini landing page' of sorts like I did using a Link.tree. It's a free tool. 

Add Featured items 

This is free marketing space, people. Add your upcoming events, customer reviews, case studies, a press release, etc. Whatever is relevant and interesting + builds credibility with your target audience. 

A strong About section

This is the real estate you use to show people your personality and continue to draw them in. Speak TO the visitor, not at them in 3rd person. 

Side note - this section is about to be relocated to the top of your profile in the coming weeks (upcoming LinkedIn change). So it's going to become even more important as part of your first impression section. 

Expand on your experience

This section doesn't need to be overkill detailed like your full resume would be, but tell people what you did and continue to highlight your credibility in a brief succinct way.

Questions? Shoot them over! I'll continue to build upon this over the next few weeks. 

Until then...have a great week! 

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With love and gratitude,