Tag: LinkedIn

LinkedIn: The Most Important Platform Franchisors Are Still Underutilizing

February 14, 2026 ·

Franchising has always been built on relationships. Long before a franchise agreement is signed, long before a discovery day is scheduled, and long before a territory is awarded, trust must exist. In today’s environment, that trust is formed digitally first. And no platform plays a more critical role in shaping that trust than LinkedIn.

While many franchisors continue to focus heavily on consumer-facing platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok, LinkedIn operates in an entirely different arena. It is not a platform for attracting customers. It is the platform for attracting franchisees, multi-unit operators, strategic partners, vendors, and leadership talent. It is, in many ways, the front door to the franchise opportunity itself.

For franchisors focused on thoughtful, deliberate expansion, LinkedIn is not optional. It is foundational.

Franchisees Are Not Just Buyers. They Are Investors.

The decision to become a franchisee is not impulsive. It is deliberate, analytical, and often deeply personal. Prospective franchisees are evaluating more than the brand. They are evaluating the leadership behind it. They want to understand the people, the culture, the vision, and the stability of the organization.

Before initiating a conversation, most serious candidates will research the franchisor’s leadership team on LinkedIn. They will review their experience, career progression, and professional credibility. They will examine how leaders communicate, what they share, and how they engage with others. They are not simply looking for success. They are looking for authenticity, consistency, and clarity.

A strong LinkedIn presence allows franchisors to demonstrate leadership long before the first direct interaction occurs.

LinkedIn Establishes Credibility at Scale

In franchising, perception matters. A franchisor may have a strong model, excellent unit economics, and a proven operating system. But if that credibility is not visible, it effectively does not exist to those evaluating the opportunity.

LinkedIn allows franchisors to showcase that credibility consistently. This includes sharing milestones such as new franchise agreements, openings, and expansions. It includes highlighting franchisee success stories, operational improvements, and brand evolution. It includes demonstrating the expertise and depth of the leadership team.

Every post contributes to a broader narrative. Over time, that narrative establishes trust.

Unlike traditional franchise portals or broker listings, LinkedIn allows franchisors to control their own story rather than relying solely on third-party platforms to tell it.

It Attracts the Right Franchisees, Not Just More Franchisees

One of the greatest risks in franchising is awarding franchises to the wrong candidates. Growth without alignment creates operational challenges, cultural fragmentation, and long-term brand risk.

LinkedIn naturally attracts professionals, operators, and executives. These individuals are often more experienced, more capitalized, and more aligned with structured business environments. Many are corporate professionals exploring entrepreneurship, multi-unit operators expanding their portfolios, or seasoned entrepreneurs seeking proven models.

By consistently communicating the brand’s expectations, values, and operational standards on LinkedIn, franchisors attract candidates who align with the brand’s culture and philosophy.

This improves not only franchise sales efficiency, but long-term system stability.

It Strengthens the Brand Beyond Franchise Sales

LinkedIn’s impact extends far beyond franchise development. It strengthens the brand’s position across multiple dimensions.

It attracts leadership talent. Strong operators, executives, and managers are far more likely to engage with brands that demonstrate professional credibility and clear direction.

It strengthens relationships with landlords and developers. Real estate partners increasingly evaluate brands through their digital presence.

It enhances vendor relationships. Vendors want to work with brands that demonstrate growth, stability, and professionalism.

It builds confidence among existing franchisees. When franchisees see consistent leadership communication and brand momentum, it reinforces their own confidence in the system.

LinkedIn becomes a central communication hub for the brand’s entire ecosystem.

Leadership Visibility Is More Important Than Brand Visibility

One of the most overlooked realities of LinkedIn is that people connect with people more than logos. While company pages are important, the personal presence of founders and leadership teams carries significantly greater impact.

Prospective franchisees want to know who they will be working with. They want to see leadership’s perspective, philosophy, and approach. They want to feel connected before committing.

When franchisors share insights, lessons learned, operational philosophy, and brand vision through their personal LinkedIn presence, they humanize the brand. This builds trust in ways traditional marketing cannot.

This is especially important for emerging and growth-stage franchise brands.

LinkedIn Shortens the Franchise Development Cycle

Franchise sales cycles are often lengthy. Candidates move slowly because trust takes time to build. Questions need to be answered. Confidence needs to develop.

LinkedIn accelerates this process.

When prospective franchisees have already been exposed to leadership’s thinking, brand momentum, franchisee success stories, and operational philosophy through LinkedIn, they enter conversations more informed and more confident. Much of the early trust-building has already occurred.

This allows franchise development conversations to focus less on proving credibility and more on determining mutual fit.

It Positions the Brand for Long-Term Expansion

Franchising is not about rapid expansion alone. Sustainable franchising requires attracting the right partners, maintaining operational integrity, and preserving brand value.

LinkedIn supports this by positioning the franchisor as a credible, stable, and forward-thinking organization.

It communicates professionalism. It demonstrates leadership maturity. It reflects organizational stability.

For franchisors seeking to expand in markets like Texas and throughout the United States, LinkedIn provides a platform to reach qualified candidates across geographies without reliance on traditional franchise portals alone.

It allows expansion to occur through relationships, not just transactions.

LinkedIn Is Not Advertising. It Is Leadership Communication.

The most effective franchisors do not use LinkedIn to advertise. They use it to communicate.

They share perspective. They share progress. They share lessons learned. They share their vision for the future.

Over time, this communication builds familiarity, credibility, and trust.

Franchisees do not simply buy into a brand. They buy into leadership.

LinkedIn allows franchisors to demonstrate that leadership every single day.

For franchisors serious about expansion, LinkedIn is no longer just a useful platform. It is one of the most powerful and underutilized tools for attracting the right franchisees, strengthening the brand, and building the foundation for long-term, sustainable growth.

About the Author

Paul Segreto brings over forty years of real-world experience in franchising, restaurants, and small business growth. Recognized as one of the Top 100 Global Franchise and Small Business Influencers, Paul is the driving voice behind Acceler8Success Café, a daily content platform that inspires and informs thousands of entrepreneurs nationwide. A passionate advocate for ethical leadership and sustainable growth, Paul has dedicated his career to helping founders, franchise executives, and entrepreneurial families achieve clarity, balance, and lasting success through purpose-driven action.

About Acceler8Success America

Acceler8Success America is a comprehensive business advisory and coaching platform dedicated to helping entrepreneurs, small business owners, and franchise professionals achieve The American Dream Accelerated.

Through a combination of strategic consulting, results-focused coaching, and empowering content, Acceler8Success America provides the tools, insights, and guidance needed to start, grow, and scale successfully in today’s fast-paced world.

With deep expertise in entrepreneurship, franchising, restaurants, and small business development, Acceler8Success America bridges experience and innovation, supporting current and aspiring entrepreneurs as they build sustainable businesses and lasting legacies across America.

Learn more at Acceler8SuccessAmerica.com

Acceler8Success Cafe Small Business Weekly

March 21, 2022March 21, 2022 ·

Small Business Weekly is the weekly edition of Acceler8Success Cafe newsletter on LinkedIn. Moving forward, the newsletter will transition from a weekly to a daily publication. It will then be shared here on Acceler8Success Cafe blog for the benefit of our subscribers. We certainly do not want to leave our loyal followers behind. If you like what you see upon previewing this new content, please take a few minutes to subscribe so the blog will be in your email each morning. If you would, please also share with your friends & colleagues. It’d be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Small Business Weekly

Number of Women in Franchising Has Grown Each Year Since 2016 (credit: 1851franchise.com)

There has never been a better time to be a woman business owner.

For Women’s History Month, Franchise500’s Jeff Cheatham offered a look at the impressive strides females have made in the franchising industry, which indicates a promising future for women in the industry.

First, Cheatham looked at how much the rate of women-owned businesses has grown in the last half-century. The U.S. Census Bureau started keeping records of female entrepreneurs in 1972, when just 400,000 companies were women-owned. Today’s statistics show over 13 million businesses owned by women, a staggering 3,150% increase. Women now account for about one-third of small business owners and franchisees, Guidant Financial reports.

When it comes to interest in franchise ownership, women are currently outnumbering men in exploring possible investments, Franchise Insights reports. And that trend shows no sign of slowing; the number of women becoming franchisees has risen steadily for the last five years.

About 33% of all female business owners and franchisees have been running their operations for more than a decade, the Guidant Financial data shows.

As gas prices rise, small business owners slam Biden’s ‘shortsighted’ energy policies: ‘Out of touch’ (credit:foxbusiness.com)

The pressure that the coronavirus pandemic put on small business, coupled with the historic inflation and spiking gas prices as the Russia-Ukraine war wages and relative inaction by the Biden administration, is creating a rapidly deteriorating situation for small business owners and operators.

Gas prices have reached historic levels amid soaring inflation in the wake of the pandemic and Russia’s war on Ukraine. In an effort to combat soaring gas prices, the Biden administration has already released tens of millions of barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, but it has not been enough to have an impact. Meanwhile, the administration’s ban on Russian energy imports further tightened supply.

Some of the hardest hit have been small business across the U.S., who told Fox News Digital that they are struggling to keep their doors open and are demanding the Biden administration take immediate action to help them.

Value-added Discussions – A Linkedin Best Practice

October 24, 2013November 9, 2013 · 1 Comment ·

In a recent discussion within the LinkedIn Franchise Executives group a question was asked about how best to present products and services to group members. The question stemmed from a revision in group rules put in place to keep the group focused on its objectives of exchanging ideas, sharing information, and promoting best practices within franchising. By attempting to eliminate the clutter of self-promotion, MLM opportunities, and even franchise opportunities, revising the rules was seen as the most practical way to retain group members and increase participation.

Here’s the question and my response regarding value-added discussions…

Question: “Outlining some guidelines is an excellent way to embark and start bringing a format or platform to enhance value to the group, congratulations on your initiative.

Please tell us at what point information and value added discussions should be introduced to the group in your mind. I think anyone here is interested in gaining value and as well, sharing value, but it all sooner or later leads to developing new business, directly or indirectly, that is mutually beneficial. There is a fine line between “advertorials” and “value exchanges”. Are you able to define further what format, discussion or response you think would serve the reader and the writer (group members) best? ”

Answer: “I believe value-added discussions can be introduced at anytime. However, I do believe it’s a social networking best practice to “earn the right” to do so by getting to know group members, participate in group discussions, and contribute to the same.

Then, based upon a perceived group or industry need, I suggest initiating a discussion about that need (or challenge / issue). Certainly, one can lead into presenting within the discussion details of their product and how it could satsify the need, address the challenge or resolve the issue. The key is not to immediately shove the product or service down members’ throats.

I believe what is often overlooked or ignored, is that group members, especially ones being sold to, have knowledge about franchising, are aware of the needs, challenges and issues the industry is facing, and may actually be aware of the companies providing services and products in the area of concern. What they may not be aware of is the person presenting a company’s products and services. And, people buy from people, right?

So, I recommend anyone with the objective of selling products and services be a person first, by developing relationships with group members. Then, be perceived as an expert in your field by sharing knowledge and experience through participation. I believe sales should follow…

As an added note, I believe the same process works within other social media including Facebook and Twitter, with platform appropriate modifications to plan.”

This post originally published January 2011.

Effectively Using Linkedin

August 9, 2012August 9, 2012 ·

As social media continues to gain steam and obviously is not going away, more and more people are looking to participate. Unfortunately, many are intimidated and quickly give up. I routinely work with individuals, in both personal and business settings, explore and understand social media and its benefits. I have found simplicity is key in getting started.

I would like to share my response to a question previously posted on Linkedin, “If there was one piece of advice you would give someone who was new to Linkedin or had not really been effective at using it. What would you tell them or show them?”

The most important piece of advice I would share is defined in my own “Triple P Tripod” plan. A tripod as everyone knows, stands on three legs. If one leg isn’t as strong as the others, is different in length, or is missing altogether, the tripod falls. At best, it precariously stands when leaned against the wall only to fall at the slightest movement. The triple “P” refers to three action words, Personalization, Participation, and Patience.

Personalization – Just as when you enter a room full of people, it’s your personality and how you handle yourself that gets you noticed. On Linkedin, the same holds true. Starting with your profile, make sure it reflects you as you want to be perceived.

Misspelling and poor grammar are akin to an open fly or a skirt tucked in pantyhose at an in-person event. Yes, you’ll be remembered, but for the wrong reasons. Enter discussion groups with grace. In other words, without being obnoxious or obtrusive. Develop your own style, your own points of view. Just as when you leave an in-person event and thank your host and say adieu to the people you have been conversing with, also thank individuals that took the time to answer the questions you posted in a LinkedIn group. Keep in mind, as in anything that is written, your words will last forever as they become your personal stamp.

Participation – It’s important to participate in various groups on Linkedin. Be proactive in groups you’re directly interested in as well as “collateral” groups that touch on your areas of interest. For instance, if you’re interest is in franchising, you would most likely join several franchise groups. Now, look at entrepreneur, small business and marketing groups.

When posting a question in one group, post it in the others to gain a different perspective. For example, the question, “How would you define franchising?” is answered much differently in a franchise forum than in an entrepreneur forum. Certainly, much different in a marketing or sales forum.

At first, I would recommend responding to posts to get a feel for how it’s done and more importantly, a feel for the group. It’s always best to test the waters with your toe than it is to just jump right in. Yes, there may be sharks in the Linkedin waters and they’ll attack at the first sign of weakness.

Next, post simple discussions and remember to respond to and thank each person that has taken the time to participate in “your” discussion. As you’re comfortable, start your own group. If you’re very interested in a particular group and are unhappy with participation or feel membership is lacking, contact the group owner and offer to to help recruit members as a manager of the group.

Patience – At first, a newcomer to Linkedin will feel overwhelmed. Actually, that may be putting it mildly especially if you’re less than experienced in social networking, or texting and sending instant messages by phone. Take a deep breath and understand this is not rocket science. Take it one step at a time.

Preview the Linkedin Learning Center and refer to it again and again. Use the Help section. Search online for articles and tips on using Linkedin. Explore all aspects of Linkedin as a kid in a candy store. You’ll find things you never knew existed about Linkedin that can help you achieve your objectives. After considerable time working with Linkedin, I’m still amazed when I discover something new, either by accident or by learning from others.

To this day, I’m excited by signing in to Linkedin and exploring new groups, uncovering new opportunities, seeing who responded to my last post and who commented on my last response, and most importantly, meeting new people and developing online relationships that over time turn into rewarding personal relationships. I’ve actually connected with one of my boyhood heroes, a former ballplayer turned marketing executive, on Linkedin, that I now communicate with on a regular basis!

Happy networking!

Effectively Using Linkedin was originally posted on the franchisEssentials site November 2009.

An Hour a Day with The Big Three Social Networks

July 29, 2011July 29, 2011 · 1 Comment ·

I often hear many individuals state they don’t have enough time in a day for social media. Well, I know we can all squeeze in an hour of social media work somewhere, but the key is to do it efficiently to accomplish doing it effectively.

Just like eating an elephant, take one bite at a time. Never try to do too much at one time. And, try to make all your social media activity relevant and in line with your goals and objectives for entering social media in the first place. Once you’re past the development stage of setting up accounts at the Big Three social networks, LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter, including establishing “complete” profiles, dedicate 15 minutes to each network which I recommend doing so at the beginning of the day. Total time spent – 45 minutes.

Check previous days’ activity, making sure to use each networks “notifications” features effectively. Respond to direct comments and requests accordingly. Check discussions and respond as necessary, review other individuals’ responses, always keeping an eye open for new contacts. Post a discussion, status statement as appropriate Again, keep your goals and objectives in mind. Last, post a few tidbits of information through links to items of interest to your target group. Hey, I hate to beat dead horse here, but make sure everything you do is in line with your goals and objectives for being involved in social media in the first place.

Establish Google Alerts so you know what is being said about you or your brand throughout the day. As you check your email, whether by computer or mobile device, take a glance at any alerts that have come through, and only immediately address negative comments. Then, at the end of your day, take five minutes to review each of the three networks activity, respond only to activity that is very pertinent or urgent, and mentally prepare for your next morning’s activity. This will give you some time to think about discussion responses, etc. Total time spent – 15 minutes.

Shortcuts and Tools Help!

As for posting links to tidbits of information, as you progress through the day, keep an eye open for information through newsletters you subscribe to and in reading news online. When you find something of relevance, bookmark it for later in the day. Use tiny urls to convert long links to manageable links and to accommodate 140 characters within Twitter. Learn how to use key tools such as Facebook applications that convert your Facebook activity to Twitter activity, and applications that enable you to post in advance throughout the week.

*This post was originally published on this site March 2011

Starting your social media program with the “Big Three”

July 29, 2011July 29, 2011 · 3 Comments ·

Once your social media strategy has been developed, the resources have been committed and everyone is on board, it’s time to put the plan into action. Just like when you first started to read and count, you began with the “Big Three” of A-B-C and 1-2-3. Well, in social media, we’ll start with the Big Three of L-F-T, otherwise known as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Here are some very simple activity highlights that should help you along:

LinkedIn

Develop company LinkedIn profile
Each LinkedIn group has a discussion feature
Start out responding & answering questions
Earn the right to post questions / discussions
Be proactive in LinkedIn Q & A forum

Facebook

Create Facebook page for your brand
Frequently post items of interest & links
Routinely post information about your concept
Utilize photos, videos & blogs

Twitter

Post links that “touch” your franchise concept
Post links to your concept’s website and blogs
Post links to press releases, events and appearances
Search and follow celebrities for causes to align with
Research followers’ profile and follow significant individuals
Search and follow individuals and companies within ideal franchise profile
Post general items of interest and importance to your concept and franchise customers

As you progress in your social media efforts, follow the list below to enhance the foundation you’ve established with your activity:

Develop and promote a company blog
Develop and promote webinars
Post photos on Flickr
Post videos on YouTube
Explore niche social networks
Explore internet radio
Tag, Tag, Tag, wherever possible
Link to social networking sites
Integrate efforts with traditional strategies

Simple enough, right?

I look forward to your questions and comments…

*This post was originally published on this site March 2011

Why Local Businesses Need to Embrace Social Media

July 27, 2011July 27, 2011 ·

There’s an interesting discussion with the same title going on in the Linkedin Small Biz Nation group. The discussion begins with, “The lifeblood of any business is a continuing stream of customers. Local businesses have a special challenge because the available marketing has defined geographic limits. Today the marketing opportunities for local businesses are changing. The once powerful yellow pages is no longer a viable approach – what did you do with the last yellow pages book delivered to your front door? Like you, I promptly placed in the recycle bind.”

Last I checked there were over 75 comments with no apparent end in sight. Definitely proof that social media is on the forefront of the minds of small business owners everywhere. The responses to this discussion shed some great insight on how small business owners should be using social media at the local level. I’ve listed several below…

An Integrated Approach

“One of the tactics business are using related to social media is to develop an integrated approach, but this take a commitment. For example, businesses that take the time to create a blog, use Twitter to micro-blog along a specific theme and then build a list supported by a newsletter have a great platform for building business opportunities. There is no substitute for a well thought out plan and a strong implementation. The approach to local search is a broad topic, but one important task is the registration process – creating a strong profile [as is true with sites like LinkedIn] is essential.”

Improving SEO Results

“Get yourself in directories like Google Maps / Places, HotFrog, Yahoo Local, etc… These do help your SEO results. Also gear your website towards local keywords. This way when someone is searching for your business in their area, you will appear. If you own a business in California that is a local service, it doesn’t help you much to try and get ranked for totally generic keywords about your business. Start with local keywords and move from there. I also like to put a different phone number on all of these directories to see what’s driving call volume, if you are looking for phone calls that is. This way you know where to spend your time and where not to.”

Outsourcing Social Media Efforts

“To embrace social media sometimes you have to outsource this function. Here are a few thoughts on Outsourcing Social Media Marketing. Firms that you outsource to should be able to create well integrated campaigns in your brand’s voice. Here are a few steps they should take to help you:

Develop a strategy – not just a bunch of unrelated accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and/or LinkedIn.
Use a process based on implicitly asking the questions “So what?” and “Now what?” repeatedly.
Show you how social media marketing requires more than simply showing up
Demonstrate the value of having a plan
Provide evidence they can execute the plan and change it as conditions change
Explain how a successful social media strategy elevates your company’s presence
Show the path for bringing visitors to your website (Blog, eBook, event, store, etc.),
Measure your ultimate success by tracking the number of leads generated and converted from visitors to paying customers

A social media strategist can devise a strategy to help you achieve these and other objectives.”

Making Social Media a Priority

“It is so important to use social media tools that I now schedule at least an hour daily. I have to be flexible on the time because I have a family, need painting time in the studio and am involved in community activities. I am going to try to schedule activities the way you suggest by priority but I think the number one task is to keep my website/blog updated on a regular basis. When that is done I can quickly send the update to Twitter, FB and LinkedIn. The other important task is to keep following and reading articles on using SM and through my RSS feed I can keep up with the most relevant sources. These tasks have moved to the top of my to-do list.”

Where Does Google Fit In?

“Everyone that has a small business within a town or city should be using Google Places, as Google maintains that 1 in 5 searches are “local” i.e., keyword + city, and for said local searches, most of the page is taken up by Google Places listings. And the only way to break into that first page of searches is with an optimized Google Places listing. Some local searches are searched ALOT, I’m talking 1,500 times a month. And the first position gets around 40% of the total traffic. I mean, what are leads worth to your business? Someone searches plumber in San Diego, what do you think they’re looking for?”

Adding Customer Reviews to the Mix

“Local search is a powerful way to connect with potential customers and it works very well regardless of the type of business you own – at least I know of no exceptions. While Google Places is the most popular site for local search, I would recommend including Bing and Yahoo. There are additional sites that you can use to gain visibility and support your local search ranking. The list is long and there are services to help you. One important element of any local search campaign [in addition to those Garrett mentioned] is reviews. Obtaining reviews and back links are probably the two most powerful things you can do to improve your ranking. While it can take time to optimize your profile and distribute it on different sites, there is little doubt that doing so will make a measurable difference in your sales pipeline.”

Yes, it has been an interesting discussion with a wealth of information and insight provided, proving once again the power of Linkedin and social networking.

Please feel free to add your comments below.

Are Your B2B Social Media Efforts Making You Blue?

April 30, 2011April 30, 2011 ·

As many franchise executives continue to express doubt and frustration as a result of their unsuccessful efforts to utilize social media effectively for B2B purposes, the ideal social network is right under their noses, and one where most of them already have a presence. I’m talking about LinkedIn.

Now, I’ll be the first to agree that Linkedin could be improved in many areas, but from the standpoint of achieving B2B objectives with social media, I believe LinkedIn is the place to be.

To that end, below please find several articles about how and why LinkediIn should be your go-to social network when your objectives are purely B2B based.

4 Proven Ways For Generating Business Leads On LinkedIn
from Lead Views

Considering LinkedIn is so popular and so effective when it comes to B2B lead generation, at LeadFormix we tried to research and find out, what kind of activities within LinkedIn help with lead generation. The research is based on visitor data collected across websites of 289 B2B clients of LeadFormix. All of them have some kind of presence on LinkedIn, it could be an employee profile or company profile or some group activity. In this post I will not discuss the report, but how B2B marketers can use the findings of this report to improve their lead generation efforts on LinkedIn. READ MORE

LinkedIn’s Mario Sundar on getting the most out of your network
from SmartBlog on Social Media

Mario Sundar is LinkedIn’s first social media expert. Having been with the company since 2007, you could argue that no one is more knowledgeable than Sundar about LinkedIn, and the ways that it can be used by busy professionals. I recently asked Sundar a few questions in hopes of gleaning some of his knowledge. READ MORE

5 LinkedIn Business Goals
from Heidi Cohen

LinkedIn isn’t top of mind when marketers discuss social media marketing. Yet unlike other forms of social media marketing, LinkedIn can help achieve business goals effectively in a business environment that doesn’t require expensive content marketing and advertising to get noticed. READ MORE

Which Social Network is Right For B2B Marketing?
from Digital B2B Marketing

When you consider what social networks can become key marketing channels for your business, there isn’t one right answer. Take a quick look at the very different sharing patterns of the three sites below. READ MORE

Targeted Franchise Lead Generation through Social Networking

October 7, 2010October 7, 2010 · 1 Comment ·

I usually explore social networking groups specific to the area such as the inHouston LinkedIn group and inHouston social network on Ning if I’m trying to generate leads in the Houston area. This type of group is relatively easy to target and expand beyond based upon member recommendations and suggestions. Work the crowd as if you were in a room.

In addition, I focus on networking groups that include individuals that best fit my franchise candidate profile. From there I drill down to individuals in the local area. Let’s say teachers fit my candidate profile. I would search out networking groups spefic to teachers, education, etc. I may participate in discussion groups to get a feel for the group and to be recognized within the group. There’s always a spin you could use. Next, I seek out members from the specific area I’m targeting and communicate what I’m trying to accomplish. It’s been amazing how many times I’ve wound up with a candidate in California that is willing to jump at an opportunity in Texas. It happens.

I also focus on groups that can provide me with referrals such as insurance agents, realtors, financial planners and attorneys. Again, if you’re proactive within networking groups it’s relatively easy to enlist support and gather information.

Lead generation through online networking takes time and effort no doubt. However, once you’re proactive within the groups, you almost windup with a snowball effect as the leads come in bunches. Some leads start out as simple as posting a thought provoking discussion, some back and forth interaction with a responder and the responder saying,”what is it that you do?” Next thing you know, you’re discussing an opportunity and the door is wide open.

Most times it takes considerably more effort but I’ve found people are networking online and participating in discussion groups for a reason. They’re all looking to expand their business, improve their position, seek out opportunities and make money. It sure beats running an ad in the local paper and waiting for the phone to ring.