Wasp Barcode Technologies: The Barcode Solution People

LinkedIn is your secret SEO weapon

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) means you have positioned your business to be“discovered” online when someone initiates a search. The potential for your business to be discovered by potential customers is underscored by SEO. You can use LinkedIn’s Skills & Expertise to get in front of more eyeballs, even if you haven’t jumped on the SEO bandwagon.

Have you ever been asked to endorse someone’s skills? Those skills (driven by your endorsements) are beginning to dominate search engines.

To illustrate, I queried “inventory control,” one of Wasp’s biggest keywords and a LinkedIn skill. Notice that the 3rd organic search result is currently LinkedIn. If you aren’t sure what your keywords are affiliated with your business, read this infographic.

Now, level the playing field

Once you know your keywords, test them in a search engine. Someone who searched one of your keywords might very well find LinkedIn before they find you. If they find LinkedIn first, that’s okay; you may never outrank a company like LinkedIn. Since you are a part of LinkedIn, being present on the appropriate Skills & Expertise page(s) will effectively give you SEO value. If LinkedIn has not yet been search-engine indexed for those skills, you have the opportunity to dominate the index (more to come on this). Here is an example of LinkedIn’s “inventory control” skills and expertise page. Its components include professionals, companies, groups, locations, skills related to the skill you are exploring. Each of those components gives more value to the page AND the rank of related items displayed on that page.

Related Skills

In addition to your keywords, there might be related skills in which you have expertise.  Include the appropriate related skills in your endorsement requests. You will find these under “related skills.” They are related because people who search for your skill might also search one of those terms.

Related Companies, Related Professionals

Ask each of your employees to add the appropriate core company skills (keywords) to their profile. You should also include these skills on your company page. This will improve your rank for “related companies,” and boost your employees’ position in “related professionals.”                                  

LinkedIn Groups

Join and participate in key LinkedIn groups. Put your business in front of the people talking about what you do. The more active your company and its employees are in related groups, the more likely you are to show up in the skills page.

Location, Location, Location

Most consumers prefer to do business close to them. The related locations data displays relevant locations for that “skill.” Make sure your location is represented and if you have multiple sites, employees have selected their location appropriately.

Get more endorsements.

The more people that endorse you for a skill, the more likely you or your business will show up in LinkedIn Skills.