Dear Friends & Colleagues:

Happy holidays! I hope you all have some well deserved time off from work. For many of us, this time of year is a time of reflection and goal setting for the coming new year. Some set New Year’s resolutions. Many don’t.

Personally, I am a resolution’s guy. I find the thought process to be helpful and productive. Since I was in my 20’s (25+ year ago), I have set goals for the new year. They include career, financial, personal and family goals. I write these down in a special journal that I revisit during the course of the year.

I don’t always achieve all of my goals. Sometimes I exceed them. But, I do find the process valuable and I enjoy looking back to previous years to see what I was thinking at the time. Wherever you stand on the resolution’s spectrum, I hope you have a prosperous, healthy and happy 2022!

Now, without further ado, here is an excerpt from my new book, How To Win Client Business. This week’s peek is from Chapter 11: Using LinkedIn to Build Your Credibility. In this chapter I discuss what social media (LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.) can do for us in our pursuit to win new client business. Surprising to many in consulting and professional services, having 1000’s of followers on social media will not win you client business.

In an age of viral YouTube superstars and TikTok millionaires, some of us are often led to believe that we can do the same. Candidly, if you’re a financial planner, web developer, strategy consultant, PR advisor or tax attorney, social media will not make your cash register ring. Before you throw up your hands in desperation, social media can be very helpful to us. Just maybe not in the ways and to the extent you once thought.

In addition to the text excerpt below, I’m providing a short 5 minute audio version as well – narrated by me. So, if you’d rather listen to a sample from Chapter 11 in lieu of the text excerpt, here you go. (Note: If your preferred format is audio, the audiobook is now available on Amazon and is beautifully narrated by Barry Abrams – one of the best in the industry.)

Here’s this week’s excerpt. I hope you enjoy it!

Doug

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Chapter 11: Using LinkedIn to Build Your Credibility

It Won’t Make the Cash Register Ring, So What’s It Good For?

 

What Is the Internet Good For?

The internet is the bridge between demonstrating your expertise and building your

professional ecosystem. When used effectively, it is incredibly helpful in sharing

content that signals your go-to expertise, and in building connections with those

you wish to serve.

At its most basic level, the internet provides two essential functions:

    1. Sharing information
    2. Connecting people

These two functions make e-commerce possible. The internet facilitates the

connection between interested buyers and willing sellers, and allows for the sharing

of important information. Crowd-sourced ratings (such as Yelp) allow customers to

vet the reputation of sellers. The internet makes possible large marketplaces like

Amazon, eBay, and Craigslist.

 

Web marketplaces are highly successful at selling products. With the click of

a mouse, we’ll quickly buy a book, a coffee table, or a pair of shoes, possibly even a

new car. Intuitively, one would think that the internet would serve as a marketplace

for professional services as well. If we’ll buy a car online, wouldn’t we do the same

for the services of a tax accountant, financial planner, or marketing strategist? For

the work that we do, I’m disappointed to report this won’t happen with the click

of a mouse.

 

Will the day ever come when clients click on a link to hire us? I’m guessing

it won’t happen in our lifetime. The reasons by now are becoming clearer to us.

Professional services are purchased when a relationship exists between those who

need help and those who provide the help. And, as wonderful as the internet is, it

takes much more than a good photo and catchy marketing for a prospective client

to feel confident in hiring us.

 

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Click here to order your copy of my new book, How To Win Client Business, today!