About a decade ago, Dennis Reynolds from Fox’s long-running sitcom, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, shared his secret to seduction. He believed any girl was putty in his hands if he followed a carefully crafted, ‘foolproof’ system, using tricks along the way to gain her trust and make her totally dependent on him.
We now of course know Dennis is an alleged murderer. His system, if nothing else, was a poorly strung together collection of manipulative techniques—deeply sociopathic, problematic, and degrading to quite literally everyone.
But that doesn’t mean we can’t apply the method’s more clever, strategic qualities to develop our own foolproof method for LinkedIn conquests.
We’re not suggesting you trick anyone into being your friend just to make money. Sometimes it’s good to not have motives behind friendships.
However, cultivating and maintaining a business-casual relationship with a colleague is the key to success in the case of LinkedIn marketing.
This system is meant to take you through the process of converting your victim prospect to a lead. It utilizes both your company LinkedIn profile and the personal profiles of the head of marketing or other team members with insight into the company’s sales and marketing strategy.
It takes time and patience, but the results are incredible and long-lasting.
D: Demonstrate Value
The first step is arguably the most important. It’s the only one that remains unchanged from the show’s original system. This first step should be utilized throughout any social media campaign.
Before you make personal connections, it’s imperative to build up a collection of posts that set out to prove one thing: Your company is a subject matter expert and will continue to deliver quality content to your LinkedIn followers in the future.
Building up a couple months of posts (posting approximately three times a week) seems to be that sweet spot.
If your company already has a similar LinkedIn presence and has posted regularly in the past few weeks, you can skip this step. Take this time to improve your personal posting schedule, share your own subject matter expertise, if applicable, or invite some relevant connections to follow your company page.
The higher your number of followers, the more reliable a source you will appear to be.
E. Evaluate Your Prospect
The next step takes tact. Yes, we are suggesting a little lurking on your part. But that’s conducive to the nature of the platform—LinkedIn is teeming with lurkers. In fact, the majority of social media users do not actively engage. This may make it difficult if your prospect does not use the app to interact.
If they do, however, watch these subjects and take note of how they interact with each other. Maybe your prospect is in a business you’re not familiar with. Get familiar! Learn everything you can about your prospect and their endeavors. Follow the people and pages they follow. Join the groups they’re active in. It’s crucial to do this before reaching out, or you may end up sticking out like the Philadelphia Eagles’ Jason Kelce in a Mummer’s Costume.
(As a greater Philadelphia-based marketing company, we’re here for all the Philly references.)
N. Navigate the Comments Section
The best relationships start organically. The comments section is the place LinkedIn members truly make connections. The platform’s ‘past activities’ feature is also a great resource, as it allows you to see every interaction your prospect has on LinkedIn.
Did they share their hot take about their subject matter? Let them know how great it was!
A caveat: Be careful of profile views. Don’t forget about the LinkedIn notification that alerts your prospect that you’ve viewed their profile. There are ways to go into private mode, but make sure notification timestamps don’t give you away. It’s all about strategy!
N. Nurture the Relationship
This is another step that will take time and careful attention. It’s still not the time to reveal your true intentions. Like a baby Gritty, nature needs to run its course and your tender love and care will allow the relationship to grow.
Continue innocent interaction and casual shop talk for a few weeks. Let that friendship blossom.
(He grew up right before our eyes)
I. Invite the Connection
It’s time to make your move. If they haven’t already requested to connect, send out that LinkedIn connection request! If your prospect lives in your area and is comfortable with it, it may also be time to suggest a real in-person coffee date.
Slide into their DMs and see if they’re ready to ride that networking SEPTA train for real.
S. Sell Strategically
Finally! After all that exhausting social interaction and light stalking, you’re ready to finally get down to business. Think about your prospect as your audience. What is their particular pain point that needs to be addressed? How can you craft your message with the right nuance?
If they say yes, you get money! If they say no, you have a friend who can help you earn money elsewhere by recommending your services to colleagues and friends. It’s a win-win.
Well, there you have it. There’s nothing worse than getting an unsolicited connection request and obnoxious DM from a stranger who just wants to chat about how great their business is… and nothing else. Wouldn’t you agree?
We want to talk about your audience, beyond their specific business needs. At the end of the day, all we have are the connections we make, so let’s connect. Let’s be friends!
River Avenue Digital can help fine-tune your business’s social media strategy on all platforms, including LinkedIn. In other words, River Avenue Digital wants to be your friend.
Want to connect? Hit us up!