How to Navigate Google Analytics Like a Pro (Way Beyond the Basics)

Google Analytics (GA) is one of the most powerful tools on the web for website analysis. When properly set up and used, it allows you to break down your website traffic and gather vital information to power your digital marketing strategy. While GA has been around for some time, many people still don’t use it … Continue reading How to Navigate Google Analytics Like a Pro (Way Beyond the Basics)

Cash Is Flooding Into Short-Term Markets Like Never Before

Money-market funds, banks and other investors are parking over $1 trillion in spare cash overnight in reverse and repo markets—a surge in short-term lending that is raising concerns about whether market unrest lies ahead. The post Cash Is Flooding Into Short-Term Markets Like Never Before appeared first on Get Funding For Your Business And Ventures. … Continue reading Cash Is Flooding Into Short-Term Markets Like Never Before

Cash Is Flooding Into Short-Term Markets Like Never Before

Money-market funds, banks and other investors are parking over $1 trillion in spare cash overnight in reverse and repo markets—a surge in short-term lending that is raising concerns about whether market unrest lies ahead.

The post Cash Is Flooding Into Short-Term Markets Like Never Before appeared first on Get Funding For Your Business And Ventures.

The post Cash Is Flooding Into Short-Term Markets Like Never Before appeared first on Buy It At A Bargain – Deals And Reviews.

How to Use LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index Like a Pro

LinkedIn is a perennially underrated social media platform. It’s not always easy to quantify how effective you are on the platform though. Enter LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index.

This handy metric tells you exactly how effective you are as a social seller while highlighting how you can improve. In this article, I’ll cover everything you need to know about the tool, how to use it properly, and how to improve your score. 

What Is LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index?

Launched in 2014, LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index (SSI) measures how effective you are at social selling on the platform.

LinkedIn uses four factors to calculate your SSI:

  • establishing a personal brand
  • finding the right people
  • engaging with insights
  • building relationships

Each factor is worth 25 points. Complete them all, and you’ll get a perfect score.

There are several reasons to aim for a high Social Selling Index. For starters, a high score increases your reach on the platform. Even if the LinkedIn algorithm doesn’t directly take your SSI into account when determining the reach of posts, all of the individual factors that go into calculating your SSI help you reach a wider audience.

A high SSI can also result in more connection requests and more people following you—which establishes you as a thought leader in your industry and makes it easier to connect with decision-makers.

LinkedIn provides data to back up some of these claims. According to their Social Selling Index page, leading social sellers create 45 percent more opportunities than lower social sellers and are 51 percent more likely to reach quota. In addition, 78 percent of them outsell peers who don’t use social media.

How to Find Your LinkedIn SSI Score

It’s simple to find your SSI on LinkedIn. If you’re already logged into LinkedIn, follow the link below to see your score.

Find your Social Selling Index.

You can also access your SSI through Sales Navigator by navigating to Admin and clicking User Reporting.

LinkedIn's Social selling index dashboard

Key dashboard information to pay attention to includes:

  • your SSI score
  • the score for each of the four components
  • how your SSI compares to your industry
  • how it compares to your network

We’ll discuss what each of these metrics means in detail next.

LinkedIn Social Selling Index Metrics

As I mentioned above, LinkedIn uses four factors to calculate Social Selling Index: establishing a personal brand, finding the right people, engaging with insights, and building relationships.

But what do each of those metrics actually mean?

LinkedIn Social Selling Index Metrics

Here’s what you need to know.

Establishing a Personal Brand

For this metric, LinkedIn looks at how complete your profile is and the quality of the content you post on the platform. Do you have a cover photo, a complete job history, and recommendations? How many posts are you creating, and how many views and comments are those posts receiving?

Finding the Right People

This metric is heavily focused on Sales Navigator, making it tricky for free users to get a good score. LinkedIn wants you to use its tools to find the right people, reach out to them successfully, and create systems and automation to make the process smoother.

Engaging With Insights

Are you sharing popular content? If not, then you probably won’t score too highly in this metric. The more content you share and the more views, likes, and comments it receives, the better you’ll score.

Building Relationships

The final metric is all about network management. It’s a measure of how often and successfully you reach out to people.

How to Use LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index

Exactly how useful is LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index beyond being a vanity metric? It’s a fair question.

Some people, like Andrew O’Hearn, don’t see much value in the tool. He believes SSI is a way for LinkedIn to push Sales Navigator.

Do we really want to reinforce the ‘keyboard commando’ proclivities of some LinkedIn users who don’t often test their online assumptions in the real (face-to-face) business-related networking communities?

I think there are quite a few things you can do with SSI, however. Here are a few reasons to pay attention to LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index.

Measure Your Personal Brand

Checking your SSI is a great way to understand the strength of your personal brand and take actionable steps to improve it. After all, what gets measured gets managed, and you may not realize just how far you are behind your peers until it’s pointed out.

Because every improvement results in an increased score, SSI also provides a way to gamify the process, making you much more likely to actually do it.

Identify Areas for Improvement

You may think you’re slaying LinkedIn, but perhaps you’re not making enough new connections or posting enough valuable content. Either way, your SSI can easily highlight areas to improve.

Use It as a Benchmark

Perhaps the best use for your SSI is as a benchmarking tool. The tool automatically compares your profile to other people in your industry and your network, so a quick glance will show you where you currently stand.

You can also use your personal score to track improvements and growth as a social seller. This is exactly what Microsoft did with their sales reps. When they first onboarded users onto Sales Navigator, their median SSI was 48. After a few months of training and activity, their average SSI score increased to 56.

The impact of that increase was telling. Those with higher SSIs saw a 37-percent increase in opportunities, and every 10-point increase saw 4.3 more opportunities.

How to Improve Your SSI

It doesn’t matter what your SSI score is, there’s bound to be something you can do to improve it. Below I’ve listed five of the best strategies to improve your SSI and increase your effectiveness on the platform.

Fill out Your LinkedIn Profile Completely

The first and easiest thing you should do to improve your Social Selling Index is to completely fill out your profile. There’s a lot to do here, so here are some jumping off points to get you started.

  • add a profile picture
  • fill out your job title
  • add a helpful, keyword-rich summary
  • add your education and skills
  • request recommendations from colleagues and clients
  • add examples of your work in the featured section

You’ll be amazed at how much your SSI score can jump just by filling out your profile properly. Be careful, though. You don’t want to include so much information that your profile becomes unreadable.

Whenever you are adding information to your profile, always ask yourself whether people would find it useful.

Connect With the Right People on LinkedIn

You need a big network to succeed on LinkedIn. Remember, while quantity is important, so is its quality. That means you shouldn’t send invites to random people. Instead, you take the time to find the right people.

That means people who:

  • you know personally
  • are thought leaders in your sector
  • work in your sector generally
  • are people you buy from or sell to

The more cohesion in your network, the stronger it will be.

Use LinkedIn’s advanced search functionality to find the right people to connect with. Some of the features are only available for premium accounts, but even free users can leverage filters to find relevant people to connect with and improve their SSI.

You can also find related connections under “My Network” > “People you may know.”

Post Quality Content Targeted for LinkedIn Users

One of the easiest ways to improve your SSI categories is to post quality content. This will improve your personal brand, build relationships, and engage with other users.

Quality content can come in the form of LinkedIn posts, or you can try more advanced tactics.

Engage With Your Network and Beyond

Having a big network is important, but so is engaging with them. You need to be in regular contact with a good chunk of your network to show the algorithm you’re committed to building long-term relationships.

Don’t just spam a load of people with connection requests. Aim high and start to follow thought leaders in your industry. Engage with their content thoughtfully and try to strike up a conversation. Make sure you’re responding to everyone who comments on your posts, too.

Conversations are becoming more important than ever on the platform. LinkedIn reports a 43 percent year-over-year growth in conversations during Q3 of 2021. The more engaged you are, the higher your SSI score will be, and the more conversations you’ll end up having.

Use Sales Navigator

One of the reasons LinkedIn pushes the SSI is to encourage adoption of Sales Navigator. In fact, it’s impossible to get close to 100 without using the paid-for subscription. If you already are a Sales Navigator user, you’ll want to leverage as many of the tools’ functions as possible.

In particular, use the saved search feature to automate finding relevant people to connect with.

Social Selling Index FAQs

What is a good LinkedIn SSI score?

A good LinkedIn SSI score is 70+. Between 40 and 70 can be considered okay, while under 40 is poor.

How do I find my SSI Score?

Simply follow this link to visit the SSI page on LinkedIn.

How important is the SSI score?

A good SSI score can help boost your influence on the platform and make sure you are doing all the things you need to do to become a good social seller.

How often will my SSI update?

LinkedIn updates the Social Selling Index once a day.

How is the Social Selling Index calculated?

LinkedIn uses four categories to calculate Social Selling Index: establishing a personal brand, finding the right people, engaging with insights, and building relationships. Each category is worth 25 points.

Social Selling Index Conclusion

LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index shows how effectively you’re using the platform. Given the importance of social selling in many B2B industries, that kind of insight is crucial. It’s also a way to see how you compare to your industry rivals and find areas for improvement.

With a little more time spent crafting your profile, growing your network, and engaging with peers on the platform, you can send your SSI soaring. That can mean substantially more leads and sales. So, get out there and start making LinkedIn work harder for you.

What’s your best SSI metric?

It’s Like Free Money When You Stop Wasting Company Cash

How to Stop Wasting Company Funds – It’s Like Free Money Is it really free money? It may not be as glamorous as winning the lottery or venture capital money. It’s not as sexy as your content going viral. And it’s not as exciting as getting a shout out from major market influencers like Oprah … Continue reading It’s Like Free Money When You Stop Wasting Company Cash

It’s Like Free Money When You Stop Wasting Company Cash

How to Stop Wasting Company Funds – It’s Like Free Money

Is it really free money? It may not be as glamorous as winning the lottery or venture capital money. It’s not as sexy as your content going viral. And it’s not as exciting as getting a shout out from major market influencers like Oprah Winfrey and Elon Musk.

But it is often easy, and it is certainly anything that any company can do. It’s the free money you can get from cutting waste.

A Penny Saved is a Penny You Don’t Need to Borrow or Raise

Is your business wasting money? It probably is, in some way or another. Cutting waste should always be on your radar.

What are the Ripple Effects of Cutting Waste?

Save a dollar and you won’t need to:

  • Borrow a dollar and pay it back with interest
  • Try to raise a dollar via crowdfunding
  • Sell a dollar’s worth of your business to an angel investor or venture capitalist
  • Waste time you could be using to sell your goods or services

Get Free Money from Cutting Expenses

When tightening your company’s belt, look at the expenses going out first. There are several kinds of expenses any business can and should cut. Be creative when looking to cut expenses. Here are some kinds of expenses that you might not have thought of.

How to Save Money on Salaries

Employee salaries are the largest expense for many organizations. But did you know that there’s free money lurking in there?

But let’s make one thing perfectly clear. Don’t ask your employees to take a pay cut. Please, never do this! You’ll kill morale. But you should work to tap your employees’ full potential. Hence, pay attention to training.

Employees with more training may not be using that training. So, why aren’t they? Ask employees about their background and interests. There’s a chance that they could do more for you and get more motivated about working with your company in the long run. See inc.com/peter-cohan/first-90-days-13-totally-useless-expenses-your-company-is-wasting-money-on.html.

Stop Outsourcing!

Outsourcing is expensive! Some small businesses pay thousands of dollars to outsource projects. But your company may be able to save a considerable amount of cash, by taking some or all of those projects in-house.

Give your outsourced work to part- or full-time employees. After all, outsourcing work can make it hard to communicate clearly what you want done. This results in costly errors and delays. It is worth analyzing whether hiring a dedicated worker could pay for him or herself within a year.

Save Money with Better Hiring

Hiring the wrong person can be a very expensive proposition. Still, you need someone to do the work, and you don’t have forever to decide on who to hire. So make your job postings clear and only hire people experienced in what you need for them to do.

How can you hire better? Hire employees on a trial basis. This may be through working with a freelancing site like UpWork, or it may mean using a temp agency. In either of these scenarios if you must fail, at least you fail fast.

Demolish your funding problems with 27 killer ways to get cash for your business.

Start Improving the Average Performance of Your Workforce

Let the poor performers go. People who aren’t doing well tend to be unhappy anyway. You may be giving them the nudge they need to get something else. And make sure that all the workers staying on your payroll who do contribute are doing far more than the minimum required. If you can’t motivate your C players to act more like the superstars, cutting them from the payroll will give you the money you need to hire more A players.

Save Money on Tools

Software and tools can account for a huge proportion of a company’s expenses. But far too many businesses either buy tools they don’t need or buy tools that are bloated with features they don’t use. This can be software but also, literally, tools.

The truth is the so-called best tool on the market is often designed with large enterprises in mind. This means that when you’re small, it’s likely overkill. So it’s often better to purchase something that’s better suited to a business of your size. It may be a little less sexy, but it will save you a fair amount of money while still being equally as effective. See embroker.com/blog/business-expenses-startups-waste.

Location, Location, Location

Do you really need all that office space? Can employees share desks and work from home some of the time? Can some employees work from home all of the time? WFH also opens up hiring to other parts of the globe, where potential hires might be okay with less money.

Okay, so maybe you do need office space. But does it have to be in the most expensive part of town? Pay attention to the end date of your lease and start looking for cheaper digs before you’re under the gun.

And if you find less expensive office space elsewhere, tell your current landlord when it’s time to renew. If your business has been a good tenant, they might work to keep you.

Demolish your funding problems with 27 killer ways to get cash for your business.

Office Issues

Do you cater all your meetings? Do you really have to? If you must offer refreshments, why not handle some of them in-house? This doesn’t mean your employees start cooking. But it can mean a better coffee maker or better coffee to brew in it.

Energy Efficiency FTW

Do you have to pay utilities? Can you choose your own appliances? An energy efficient refrigerator will make a difference. So will using energy efficient fluorescent lighting. And just like in your house, turn off the lights when leaving a room.

Can You Imagine How Postage is Costing You Free Money?

Do you use a postage meter? It might not seem like a lot, but paying the exact amount for postage, rather than 5 cents more every time, will add up in the long run.

Would You Like to Save on Business Travel?

We all know about meetings that should have been emails. But they’re not so bad if your meeting is held remotely or just down the hall. Do you really have to be in the southern office? Particularly in the age of Covid-19, less travel is safer anyway.

Business Expenses

Does your business have a documented expense policy? Or can anyone claim pretty much anything at any time? Traveling employees might help themselves to the minibar or rent movies from the front desk, but your business doesn’t have to pay for such things.

Why and What Wasteful Advertising and Marketing is Costing You

Marketing can be trying new ideas to see if they work. That’s okay. But if you already know, then you should stop experimenting so much!

Like the best goals, your marketing and advertising have got to be measurable. Measuring helps you realize a lot more quickly if a campaign is working, or not. See nav.com/blog/4-money-leaks-that-could-be-hurting-your-bottom-line-658859.

Revealed… Saving on Miscellaneous Expenses

When you go grocery shopping, there are always small things at the checkout. They’re often inexpensive. So people buy them on impulse, even if they weren’t on the shopping list. But those packs of gum can add up over time.

In the same way, your little expenses here and there can add up. They can really get away from you if you just open up a petty cash drawer to buy them. So keep track of these expenses and review them every month or so. Determine if they’re working for you.

Demolish your funding problems with 27 killer ways to get cash for your business.

End Poor Time Management and Get Free Money

How long are your meetings? Are they all necessary? Really? A chat program like Slack might make some of those meetings unnecessary, or at least shorter.

Poor Time Management and Commuting

Commuting can also be exceptionally time-consuming. It can also be tiring, making it harder for employees to get going in the morning. Can some or even all of your employees work from home at least one day per week? This is also a way to enhance employee morale.

Free Money, Fixing Poor Time Management, and Enhancing Employee Morale – Yes, There’s a Connection

Consider informally monitoring the weather and telling your employees to work from home when commuting conditions will be truly awful. These are serious snowfalls or blizzards, or heavy rain from the remnants of hurricanes, not brief showers. Not only are commutes longer and more dangerous, but employees are also more likely to be late.

Get Some Free Money with a Proper Financial Professional

A solid accountant will help prevent costly errors. They will also be able to calculate and pay your business taxes correctly the first time. If you, the owner, are still preparing these documents, it’s probably not a good use of your time. If you currently can’t afford an accountant, at least get good professional accounting software.

Check Your Larger Bills Carefully

If you’re just getting a one-page bill from an outside counsel law firm, or other expensive service your business must have, ask for it to be itemized. Sometimes there are billing errors and this can be the only time they’re caught.

Get Free Money from No Longer Wasting It: Takeaways

Is your business wasting money? Stop the bleeding and hire more carefully. Look into your expenses more closely. Measure your advertising to see if it’s working. Keep an eye on ways to save time. A professional accountant is worth the expense. Audit the larger bills your business has to pay, and request itemization, to be sure you’re only being charged for what you actually owe.

The post It’s Like Free Money When You Stop Wasting Company Cash appeared first on Credit Suite.