The key to any marketing activity is consistency and this is certainly the case with Linkedin.
To proactively build your connections with relevant people that you know you can deliver value to, your ability to establish and manage a daily process is a critical success factor.
Activity:
I’d strongly recommend that you establish an “Hour of Power” – a dedicated period of time each day to undertake marketing activities.
During this time, use your Excel/ Google sheet to systematically track activity – review the activities undertaken by your ‘targets’ (both individuals and companies) and make appropriate comments.
When the time is right, send a connection request.
Set yourself a daily target of say 10 comments and 10 connection requests – this should take you more than 1 hour a day, but at the end of the first month, you will have engaged in a minimum of 200 ‘events’ and will have an estimated 140 new connections with people of interest.
Moreover, you will have already had some engagement with these new connections and the early stage of a relationship will be forming.
So, your connection request has been accepted.
Now what?
First of all, you must always send a thank you response. This simple acknowledgement that they have taken the time to respond positively should be recognised with a straightforward message. Again, please don’t try to sell anything or be too eager to set up a meeting.
A simple acknowledgement and follow up on any promise that you made within the connection request is sufficient.
Something like – “Hi xyz, just want to drop you a quick note to thank you for accepting my connection request – it is appreciated. I look forward to hearing more from you in respect to (the original area of interest) and getting to know you better….” – will often get an immediate positive response and that is the aim of this process – to actively start the engagement and nurturing of the relationship – more of which is covered in the next section.