Today, I need to rant a bit about the art of creating a good relationship on LinkedIn, but before I do that, I want to address the elephant in the room.  Connecting with the sole purpose of selling and not forming a relationship is not a good practice.  Here is a real example of what not to do and I believe there is a better way. I got this connection request today they requested to connect. This is what it said, “Hi, I just wanted to connect with you to see if you're interested in adding some virtual assistants.” So what's wrong with that connection request?  It's simple enough, it's innocent, enough, right? I'm going to tell you a few things that I didn't like about it, first of all, asking me for something and we're not even connected yet, that's number one. Number two, they don't even mention my name. Hi, Lorraine. So they have that information, so why not use it? And then they don't even know me, but they're assuming that I may need a virtual...

We hear it all the time: "E-mail marketing is dead."

But is it really?

E-mail marketing has been around for so long that many people think it's outdated, or even irrelevant. And while there's definitely a lot of truth to the fact that email marketing has changed, I'm here to tell you: it is far from dead.

So what makes email marketing so special? Well, for starters, it's an incredibly effective way to reach your target audience. Email marketing has been proven to be more effective than social media marketing, and even some types of paid advertising! And because it's so personal and customizable, you can send personalized messages to your clients based on their behavior and preferences—something that can't always be done on social media channels like gatekeepers standing between you and your customer—it's just you and them talking directly! That kind of connection doesn't exist anywhere else.

At the end of the day, email marketing is a highly effective tool to grow your...

LinkedIn is a great way to build your professional network. But if you're not careful, it can also become an endless stream of inane updates and unproductive conversations.

So how do you make sure your LinkedIn network is an asset instead of a liability?

First, make sure that when you're connecting with people, it's with a purpose. Are you connecting to learn more about their company? Are you connecting so that they can introduce you to someone else? Are you connecting because they requested to connect with you?

Second, think about what value it is that YOU bring to the table. What can YOU offer them as a potential connection? Are there ways that you can use them as a source of information or help them in some way? Is there a skill set or expertise that they might find valuable?

Third, be selective about who makes up your network. Do some research on each person before adding them as a contact—look at their profile and make sure they are someone who could provide value for...

If you've been using LinkedIn for business, you may have noticed that there are some things that can go wrong when using it. We've compiled a list of three issues that we think you should know about.

1. Not connecting with your clients: one of the best things about LinkedIn is the ability to connect with other professionals in your industry. This is a great way to connect with clients and potential clients, but it's also important to keep track of these connections. If you don't know how to manage these relationships, it can be difficult to stay in touch with them because they might forget who you are or how they met in the first place!

1. Not having a professional profile: if your profile isn't up-to-date or doesn't include all the information needed for people to find out more about what you do, it will be hard for people who are looking for consultants like yourself to find out about your services quickly and easily! Make sure that your profile page includes all this information so...

The buzz has been this summer that LinkedIn has done some updating, and they made some big changes to its algorithm. I believe it's important to know what that means for your content. Here is my top 4 tips for making the most of your LinkedIn content.

Before I start with the tips please make sure your profile is up-to-date. This is my pet peeve, take the time to make this right. It's important that your profile is accurate so that people searching for you on LinkedIn will see a complete picture of who you are and what you do! If you don't know what needs updating schedule a complimentary audit with me by hitting the Book a Chat on my Linkedin profile.

1. Create content with your 1st connections in mind. They are the ones that know you. Linkedin will be putting some emphasis on 1st-degree connections. So your content will be shown more to your 1st connections.
2. Engage with other users through comments and likes. This will help increase engagement with your own posts as well. In the past...

Influencers are everywhere. They're in our lives every day, whether we realize it or not.

As an influencer, you can influence others in a variety of ways. When it comes to your work, you can influence others by sharing your ideas and knowledge with them. This is a great way to help people grow their skills and experience.

When it comes to love, you can influence others by showing them how much you care about them—this can be through small gestures, such as sending flowers or leaving notes for them when they're not around; or bigger gestures like helping them out of a tough situation or doing something special for them on their birthday.

Finally, being an influencer means having positive energy around you all the time. This is something that everyone wants but not everyone has! When someone has positive energy around them it makes everyone feel good!

The main take away of this article is to be genuine. Be the same person in public and private life, especially online. Be honest...

Have you ever asked, "How can I make Linkedin work for me?" or "How can I make this platform work powerfully for my business?"

I want to briefly share the top 4 ways we've seen people turn Linkedin into a powerful business tool that can work for them. Try one of them it make work for you.

1. Be active on Linkedin. This might seem like a no-brainer, but if you want to make Linkedin work for you, you need to be as active as possible on the platform. This is where most people go wrong – they only use Linkedin occasionally when they need something from it. If this is how you feel about your LinkedIn profile, then it's time to change how you interact with the platform! Remember this isn't an on one week and off the next week platform.

2. Complete Your Profile and be a rock star.

Your LinkedIn profile is your first chance to make a good impression. It's a place where you can display all the information that makes you who you are, and it's also a place where potential employers and...

Choosing the right social media influencer can be a daunting task, so we've put together a list of 5 ways to help you narrow down your search.

1. Look for an influencer who has already worked with brands similar to yours: This way, you know that they are familiar with your industry and will have some insight into what works best for your brand.
2. Look for an influencer who knows how to engage with their audience: The goal is not just to get people to follow or like the post—it's also about getting people to respond and engage with it!
3. Look for an influencer who has been active on social media recently: If they haven't posted anything in awhile, they might not be active enough to keep up on current trends, which could be detrimental when it comes time for them to create content for you!
4. Look at their engagement rate: A high engagement rate is always a good sign that someone is doing their job well! It shows that people are interested in what they're saying and sharing it with...

Last week, I wrote about how to be an influencer, this week I want to share why. Imagine being paid to talk about things you're passionate about. Or having people listen to your opinions and trust you because of your expertise. These are just some of the benefits of becoming an influencer, a term that refers to someone who has built their personal brand through social media and earned a following.

Let's take a look at how you can use your followers for good by sharing information with them that's valuable or entertaining, as well as how earning money from influencer marketing campaigns can help you reach your financial goals faster.

Be the voice of your audience.

One of the best ways to build an audience is by being the voice of your audience. The better you understand what they want, what they need, and how they feel about certain topics or products; the better equipped you'll be to provide content that speaks directly to them.

In order for this strategy to work effectively, though...

It's no secret that building connections are one of the best ways to grow your business. Whether you're looking to connect with potential employees, customers, or investors, building strategic networks is a crucial part of success. But how do you build well-strategized networks? What steps do you take to build quality networks? And who do you add to your network?

Here are some tips for building connections on LinkedIn:

1. Keep your profile up-to-date and relevant so people know why they should connect with you. You don't need to be a social media expert to know that the most important thing you can do on LinkedIn is keep your profile up-to-date and relevant.

Why? Because if people don't know why they should connect with you, they won't.

So make sure your profile reflects what you do, what you've done, and what makes you unique—because that's what people want to know about!

2. Be specific when searching for people in your industry or who have similar interests as yours because...