Are you tired of being pitched to on LinkedIn?

LinkedIn is rapidly picking up as the place to do business online, including for lawyers. But the downside of that is that it seems like we’re being subjected to more sales pitches than ever on LinkedIn.

If you want to use LinkedIn as a way to build not just your network, but your business, don’t lead with a sales pitch. That includes not only your initial invitation to connect on LinkedIn but also your first interactions with a new connection. Even if you are well-intentioned and you think your services are a good fit for a new connection, resist the urge to start selling. Don’t even offer them your white paper or direct them to your website.

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What should you do instead?

• Be curious and show an interest in them.
• When you add a new connection on LinkedIn, you will see all of their posts in your feed for the first two weeks. Pay attention to those posts. React to them. Comment and share or repost if you can add value.
• Get to know what your new connection is interested in on LinkedIn. What do they post? What kinds of posts or people do they engage with on LinkedIn? Create some posts around those topics if you can – remember that your new connection will see all of your posts for the first two weeks as well.
• Introduce your new connection to your other connections who might be helpful to them.

In short, build a relationship first. Once you start showing an interest in your new connection, they will be more likely to show an interest in you. If you post content that is valuable to them, they will start engaging with that content. If they are interested, they may ask you for more information, or they may be comfortable setting up a call with you.

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