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Is LinkedIn Premium Worth The Expense?

Posted on by Brian Kolbay

linkedin premium logo
From $30 a month up to $120, LinkedIn offers a wide variety of services. For regular users of the free service, it’s easy to pass at those prices. However, most LinkedIn Premium subscribers say the services are worth it, so let’s take a look to see if LinkedIn Premium is worth the expense.

You can look at LinkedIn Premium somewhat like an exclusive club for sales professionals, job seekers, and recruiters. While many users decide to return to the free version, others continue to pay even if their specific goals are achieved.

What does LinkedIn Premium Offer?

LinkedIn Premium’s base version is geared towards job seekers who are willing to spend $30 a month for three InMail messages, expanded details about the people who view their profiles, and additional tools to help boost profile visibility.

A Step Up for Businesses

The Business Plus plan is $60-a-month and it includes 15 InMail messages. Also included are unlimited searches in your extended network as well as advanced search filters. If you’re looking for a lead-builder tool that provides lead recommendations and real-time insights on existing accounts and leads, you can choose LinkedIn’s Sales Navigator Professional version for $80 per month.

The Best of the Best

Premiemium Hiring, the “elite” LinkedIn service, provides a recruiting-specific design with 30 InMail messages, unlimited visibility of your extended network, advanced search, and automatic candidate tracking and integrated hiring for $120 per month.

While the benefits of LinkedIn Premium aren’t always visible right from the start, they can be very positive for the long term. That being said, if you would like to share your discuss LinkedIn strategy, we’d to talk to you!

Facebook Messenger Self-Destroying Messages

Posted on by Brian Kolbay

Message App
Taking a page out of the Snapchat playbook, Facebook has now allowed users of its Messenger app to send “Secret Conversations“. These conversations allow users to be able to send encrypted conversations that, like Snapchat, disappear after a set amount of time. David Marcus, Facebook’s head of Messenger, said this feature is a way to provide additional privacy and security to messages.

Social media users who have access to Messenger can access this feature from within a normal conversation by tapping the name of the friend they’re having a conversation with and then scrolling down to the “Secret Conversations” feature. Once this is done, a new window will appear and the amount of time the person wants the message to be viewable (once opened) can be chosen. Time options range from five seconds to over six hours. Once selected, the message can be sent by the user.

How To Get Client Testimonials for My Business?

Posted on by Brian Kolbay

smiling face on a card

Receiving a testimonial from a client is a great way to get social/visible proof from your clients/customers in order to build trust with your prospects. Many often ask, “how can I get client testimonials?”.

We’re glad you asked! Here are some points to consider in order to improve the quality and quantity of client testimonials you receive for your business.

Client Testimonials Build Social Proof

Ask yourself how many times you have researched feedback on a company before purchasing a product or service from them. We’ve all done it, right? The third party feedback you seek acts as a level of “social proof” or validation of the business.

Collecting Testimonials from Clients

When you collect testimonials, don’t just get a few sentences and be satisfied with that. Include the full name of the customer, along with location, title, and pictures (wherever possible). This enhances the credibility of the review.

What Makes a Great Testimonial?

The best reviews have a clear understanding of what the situation was before and how it has improved (after) – in easily understood and measurable terms.

So, what are some quick and easy tips to actually get a customer/client to provide a review? Try asking them these questions:

What was the problem they were experiencing before they hired you?
What did they find as a result of your product or service?
What was the best thing about it?
Had they previously tried another company to solve their issue? If so, who/what?
What are three main benefits that they have experienced as a result of working with you?
Would they recommend you to someone else – and if so, why?
Are there any other final remarks they would like to add?

Believe it or not, but testimonials and reviews are one of the most important factors users consider when choosing a business. Your rating is also one of the first things users see when searching for your business. These guidelines should help you with the quality and quantity of your testimonials – so get out there and get to it!