LinkedIn can be an extremely valuable tool for professionals in the commercial real estate industry. With over 722 million members worldwide, LinkedIn provides access to a massive network of potential clients, partners, and deals. However, maximizing your LinkedIn presence takes strategy and effort. Here are some tips on how to use LinkedIn effectively for commercial real estate.
Complete your profile
The first step is making sure your personal LinkedIn profile is complete, professional, and optimized for search. Include details on your background, experience, skills, accomplishments, and commercial real estate specialties. Having a robust profile establishes your credibility and helps you come up search results. It also gives people more information to determine if they want to connect with you.
Profile photo
Use a high-quality professional headshot as your profile image. This will be the first thing people see when visiting your profile or coming across your posts and content.
Headline
Your headline appears right below your name at the top of your profile. Use keywords potential clients would search to describe who you are and what you do, such as “Commercial Real Estate Broker” or “Retail Property Manager.”
About section
Flesh out the About section with a few paragraphs summarizing your background, experience, services, specializations, and what makes you uniquely valuable to commercial real estate clients. Include keywords and phrases that prospective clients may search.
Experience
Detail your work experience, especially as it relates to commercial real estate. List your positions, companies, dates, and achievements. This establishes credibility by showcasing your track record.
Skills & endorsements
Include key skills for commercial real estate professionals, such as financial analysis, deal negotiation, property management, market research, etc. The more endorsements you have for certain skills, the more those skills are highlighted on your profile.
Recommendations
Ask clients and colleagues to write LinkedIn recommendations highlighting projects you worked on together. Recommendations boost your credibility and help you stand out.
Expand your network
Growing your LinkedIn network expands your visibility and access to insider information. Connect with past clients, colleagues, fellow commercial real estate professionals, and strategic partners. You can also join relevant LinkedIn Groups to connect with industry professionals.
Connect with past clients
Past clients can provide endorsements, recommendations, and referrals, so send them an invitation to connect if you haven’t already. You can also leverage your shared connections to get introduced through mutual contacts.
Connect with colleagues
Current and former coworkers are great additions to your network. They have firsthand knowledge of your skills, experience, and work ethic that they can advocate for in their own networks.
Connect with industry players
Search for commercial real estate professionals in your geographic and specialty areas and connect with ones you have something in common with or would be strategic to know. Commenting on their posts and engaging with their content raises your visibility.
Join Groups
Groups like Commercial Real Estate Network, Commercial Real Estate Advice, and Commercial Real Estate Professionals contain your target audience and facilitate networking. Participate in discussions and establish yourself as an expert.
Showcase your expertise
Positioning yourself as an expert in commercial real estate establishes credibility and gets you in front of potential clients. Share insights, experiences, and thought leadership content.
Publish long-form posts
Write long-form posts using the LinkedIn Publisher platform about commercial real estate topics you have expertise in. Include photos, videos, slides, and links to generate more engagement.
Comment on other posts
Commenting on others’ posts, especially those with high engagement, raises your visibility. Offer insightful remarks on industry trends, news items, advice posts, etc.
Share content
Repost (with credit) interesting commercial real estate content you come across, whether articles, infographics, research reports, etc. Sharing valuable information builds credibility.
Go live
Broadcast short live videos in which you provide real-time commentary and insights about what’s happening in commercial real estate. This showcases your expertise and personality.
Research connections & companies
LinkedIn provides extensive data on people and companies that can give you valuable intel for pursuing deals and partnerships.
Utilize search filters
Use LinkedIn’s advanced search filters to find connections and prospects based on location, company, job title, skills, groups, and other criteria relevant to your targets.
Look up profiles & companies
Research people and companies you may potentially work with to better understand backgrounds, experiences, philosophies, organizational structures, service areas, etc.
Identify key decision-makers
Figure out who the executives and managers with buying authority are so you know who to direct pitches and messaging to.
Company Info | Key Insights Gained |
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ABC Commercial Properties |
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XYZ Capital Partners |
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Search job listings
The Jobs section of LinkedIn is an excellent source of commercial real estate job opportunities. You can look for openings and also be found by recruiters and hiring managers.
Set job preferences
Go to the Jobs Preferences section and check off “Open to opportunities” so recruiters know you’re interested. Select commercial real estate under industries to specify your field.
Customize job alerts
Set up alerts to get emailed when new jobs matching your desired position types, titles, locations, companies, etc. are posted. Be notified right away so you can apply promptly.
Watch the job feed
Regularly check the LinkedIn Jobs feed filtered to your preferences to catch new openings as soon as they are listed.
Let recruiters know you’re available
Update your Headline, About section, and Open for Work settings to signal that you are actively job searching. Recruiters search for candidates this way.
Advertise services & listings
LinkedIn provides self-serve advertising platforms to get your services and listings in front of targeted audiences.
Create Sponsored Content ads
Generate brand awareness and leads by promoting your best long-form posts as Sponsored Content to your target demographics.
Run Sponsored InMail campaigns
Send targeted personalized InMail messages to decision-makers at companies you want as clients. Pay per InMail sent or by engagement.
List services on LinkedIn Marketplaces
Marketplaces like LinkedIn Professional Services allow you to list your service offerings directly on LinkedIn and get contacted by prospective clients.
Advertise property listings
Target buyers for specific property listings by advertising them through LinkedIn’s self-serve platform and measuring lead quality.
Ad Type | Overview | Potential Campaigns |
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Sponsored Content |
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Sponsored InMail |
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Marketplace Listings |
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Sponsored Listings |
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Keep up with news & trends
Leverage your LinkedIn feed to stay on top of major news, trends, and topics impacting the commercial real estate sector.
Follow thought leaders & influencers
Keep tabs on prominent industry analysts, economists, investors, and journalists covering commercial real estate by following their LinkedIn accounts.
Follow companies & publications
Get real-time news and updates directly from commercial real estate firms, brokerages, and industry publications by following their company pages.
Join industry hashtag conversations
Track hashtags like #CRE, #commercialrealestate, #realestate, etc. to see the latest discussions among professionals on LinkedIn.
See who your network is following
Check which industry thought leaders, news outlets, and hashtags your connections are following to discover new ones to follow yourself.
Conclusion
Used strategically, LinkedIn can be a gamechanger for commercial real estate professionals. By implementing the right mix of profile optimization, networking, thought leadership content, company/job research, advertising, and news curation, you can capitalize on LinkedIn to generate new business, opportunities, and deals.