HOW TO USE LINKEDIN TO GROW YOUR AUTHORITY AND BUSINESS | MINDI ROSSER

MINDI ROSSER [0:00]

If you actually want to build your business using LinkedIn, you have to do a blend of inbound and outbound. And you can't be afraid.

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CAMILLE WALKER [0:13]

So, you want to make an impact. You're thinking about starting a business sharing your voice? How do women do it that handle motherhood, family, and still chase after those dreams? We'll listen each week as we dive into the stories of women who know. This is Call Me CEO.

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CAMILLE [0:34]

So, you want to build on LinkedIn, but you're not quite sure how. This is where I have been and it was in this last year that I met our next guest, Mindi Rosser, who is a LinkedIn expert. She helps B2B business owners, thought leaders, and subject matter experts start conversations on LinkedIn to build their audience, prospects and peers based on trust, authenticity, and consistency.

Mindi is a mother of two living in Honolulu, Hawaii, who is an awesome surfer, such a kindhearted person, and is going to teach us all about LinkedIn. It was when she was working as a content creator for a big business that she found that her true passion really lies in LinkedIn. She fell in love with it and realized there are so many ways that she could work with direct business leaders, help them build their social presence, and leadership to build pipelines to grow their businesses. She is an entrepreneur, values freedom and coloring outside the lines and building systems that work on LinkedIn to help you grow your business too. I am so excited for you to hear this one. Grab a paper and a pen because she gives us a lot of good tips, not just about LinkedIn, but about life. Let's do this.

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CAMILLE [1:54]

Welcome back everyone to Call Me CEO and today we have a very fine friend of mine, Mindi Rosser, who is a LinkedIn expert and helps other business owners excel their businesses by using the keys of LinkedIn. And I don't know if those of you who are listening are thinking, "LinkedIn, I know nothing about it" or maybe you're thinking, "LinkedIn, I love it. That's all I know." Well, Mindi can help all of us because that is what she does and I am so excited to have you here today. Thank you, Mindi.

MINDI [2:25]

I'm so excited to be here. It's going to be fun.

CAMILLE [2:28]

I know. I love your energy. It's so fun because I actually had Mindi as a guest in my 60 Days to VA program and she is so wonderful. So, tell us about how you got started in the LinkedIn business and maybe a little background about who you are, your family, and where you are today.

MINDI [2:45]

Cool. So, how I got started I think in the LinkedIn business, I think as most of us start, it's this zigging and zagging and you're really trying to figure things out at the beginning. So, I actually got started on LinkedIn by reaching out and using LinkedIn to land my dream job at a startup in my early 20s. So, I was like, "Oh, LinkedIn, no one was really using LinkedIn." It was not as popular back then and I really wanted to get on the radar of some startups on the San Francisco Bay area.

So, I changed my profile, got it looking really good, then I tailored my resume. And then, I started reaching out to people individually. So, I would look at the companies that I was applying for. I applied to the job and then I'd reach out to the people at that company that I thought might be hiring, but I wasn't sure. So, it was a shot in the dark and I was just figuring things out. And so, that did land me my job. I had three interviews within two weeks of doing this challenge. I applied for a job a day.

I took one of the jobs and I got my dream job, but I realized I liked LinkedIn a lot more than I liked that job, which was more in the content marketing space. So, I found myself helping a lot of my friends and colleagues with their LinkedIn profiles like, "Mindi, how'd you get that job? That was so cool. Can you help me with my profile? I'm looking for my job."

So, a lot of us are trying to get up, climb the career ladder at that point. Some were trying to be entrepreneurs, but most of them are trying to get their jobs. So, I really had gone into helping people with their LinkedIn profiles and then sharing my ideas on how to reach out strategically to people inside the company using LinkedIn. That led to me over the course of a couple of years doing that on the side while having my full-time job and realizing I liked that a lot more and just going all in on that especially once I had my first daughter.

So, my first child, I was really like I want to be home with her and that was really important for me to have that family balance and I liked being in control of my schedule and all of that. So, that led to me pushing all in on the LinkedIn stuff. I originally started with doing more the social media angle and then it led to a hybrid approach of helping people on the sales front and then the marketing front, so how they interact. And a lot of people are heavy on one and not the other. So, it's helping each person find their unique balance of what does that look like for you, for your business, for your career? So, that is where I ended up. My family, we're based on Oahu in Hawaii. So, we live in the North Shore.

CAMILLE [5:13]

Amazing.

MINDI [5:13]

Yeah. It is amazing like surfing this morning and then coming to have this chat, this is like a perfect day of work. So, yeah. We live here and because of my business, I'm able to do that. And I think it's really powerful when you do find what you're really good and you align the rest of your life around that, so finding where I fit in the career end of the spectrum and the business end of the spectrum, building a solid base there and then being able to go wherever I wanted and have that location independence, per say, to live where I felt like our family really belonged and where we are thriving. So, a little bit about my story and journey.

CAMILLE [5:58]

Oh, that's fantastic. Now, you said that you had your dream job. What was it that you were doing and how were you able to take that leap? If someone listening to this right now is thinking, "I have a good job or even a dream job," what was it that gave you that courage to jump and what was the job that you we redoing before?

MINDI [6:14]

That's a good question. So, the job I was doing, I was doing content marketing at the time and I was a content marketing head at a startup. And so, there were parts of the job that I really, really enjoyed. I really liked the content. I liked the social media end of it. I liked communicating with people. I liked using words. But there was something missing for me in that role.

I think the autonomy is something that I value a lot. So, being able to call the shots, also being able to identify things that I felt like in the initiatives that we were working on, that would actually drive the business forward, and there were just so many roadblocks. There was a lot of permissions and reporting to other people. I wasn't able to do those things. And so, I got very frustrated and just as a self-driven person, I'm like, "Just let me do this initiative. I can tell you the results are going to be there." And so, I think that aspect was something that was also pushing me to explore that on my own.

And then, I think I got the courage when I was in that job, I had to relocate. So, I had to work 100% remote and deal with a sick family member. And also, I was about to have my baby. And so, there was a lot of stuff on the family side of things where I was like, "You know what? I really, really want that autonomy. I want to take that risk." And I feel like if I take that risk, it's going to pay off, but I'm just going to have to try and give it six months.

And so, I think just making that shift, and in my head, I think trusting that I had the skills and trusting that I had the persistence to try and fail and try and fail and just go through that process and figure out where I fit in the spectrum of things, I think that was a very big part of it, along with the support of my family. My husband has been amazing. I would say he is my biggest advocate in helping me through transitions and really figure things out.

So, I think all of that combined just really drove me to pursue this passion and to pursue my purpose in helping people in a bigger way besides that role in the company. And I don't think there's anything wrong with having a dream job. I think they're fantastic. And a lot of people thrive I think in that environment.

But for those of us who don't and we feel like something is missing, it's like don't be afraid to explore that and push in. And I think having some stuff on the side like doing a little bit of freelancing or just dipping your toe in the water just a little bit can be really helpful and help you decide, is this something that I want to do all the time or is this just a hobby and passion of mine and I should stick with my full-time gig? So, I think doing a little bit of testing is really, really important in that exploratory phase.

CAMILLE [8:52]

I love that. I just read a quote this morning that said, "We live in a culture that celebrates going $30,000 in debt for a car, but says starting a business is too risky." And I thought, that is so true. That is so true and I love that it was a phase in your life where you loved it, but you also were weighing the benefits and the risks of staying or going. And so, the fact that you were able to do that and really discover that for yourself and trust your instincts and to have that support system, I feel like that is the recipe for success. Would you agree?

MINDI [9:26]

I would agree. And I think the support system, if you have the opportunity, if this is at the back of your head and you're thinking, "I'm not sure or maybe I've never really thought about it and I really do want to explore," build that support system first if you have the opportunity. So, even while you're going through things in your head and you're trying to figure out if this really is the path for you, start building it now.

So, getting your finances, I feel like having a little bit of push in there is huge. And a lot of people underestimate that. They will think, "Oh, it's okay. I have a little bit of savings." But if you don’t have good amount that you feel comfortable with, unless you're really good at bootstrapping, some people really are and they like that challenge, it's like have a little bit set aside because that will give you I think the momentum and the confidence to go all in or as all in as you want to go at a certain point without being afraid that you're not going to be able to pay your bills or that you're not going to be able to put food on the table, all of that kind of stuff. I feel like that's something that's really, really important and gives you that freedom.

And then, I think also setting a timeframe. So, setting a timeframe like, "Okay. I'm going to do this for ninety days or I'm going to do this for six months." And as long as your finances are good for that point of time, then you can just relax into the process during that timeframe. And if it doesn't work out, that's okay. You can always come back. You can always come back to your career. There are always people looking for good experts in their niche.

CAMILLE [10:48]

That is so true. I love that advice, a steady financial foundation, so that you can really be present in building and being all in. Because if we're going into something with fear, that's a recipe for disaster from the beginning. So, I think that's really good advice. Let's switch gears into talking about LinkedIn. That’s your baby. What do you think the number one misunderstanding or misconception is about LinkedIn?

MINDI [11:14]

I think probably the number one misunderstanding is that people think it's just a place to find their next job, especially if they are in corporate and they see it as, "Oh, I only need to work on my LinkedIn when I'm looking for another job." And so, I think that's probably the biggest misconception that I've come across from people that are currently in a job.

For those that are entrepreneurs, I think the biggest misconception for them is that it's really spamming and that is like, "Oh, this is not worth my time. It's just spam. People really aren't there. It's not that fun, so why should I invest in it?"

So, I think two sides of the same coin, but I think there's a lot of misunderstanding around how to use LinkedIn, what it is good for, and the fact that it is the best relationship building tool out there for professionals right now. So, I think that is something that's underestimated by both sides.

CAMILLE [12:04]

That's interesting because I definitely fall into the category, I think there's a third category. There's people who may be business owners or content creators who know it exists, but have no clue why it is so important. I think that's the category I fell into and I'm just now starting to learn more about that. So, what are some benefits or some things that you would want people to know to build a business using LinkedIn if they're listening and wondering how to get started with that?

MINDI [12:36]

That's a really good question. And I think a lot of people look at LinkedIn and they're like, "Okay. How fast can I do this on LinkedIn? Can I do this in 90 days, 60 days, 30 days? Can I just start booking three to five calls a week on my calendar?" And I think having a realistic timeframe first of all when you are getting started on LinkedIn, it is not usually instant gratification. You aren't normally going to see a ton of results or build your business and fill your pipeline within the first 30 days. If you are going about it strategically, it usually takes 60-90 days to really get that momentum going. And then, it's pretty simple to maintain after that.

So, I think that's the first thing is be aware that there is a getting started phase and setting things up. Once you get it going, it's not that hard to maintain. I think the next thing people need to think about is, "Okay. What do I need to do first on LinkedIn?" If I'm looking at LinkedIn like, "Okay. There's a lot I could do. Should I be posting content? Should I be working on my profile? Should I be reaching out to people, connecting, networking?" It can feel really, really overwhelming I think with just all the functionality and there are so many voices of people saying, "Do this. Do that." And there's so much noise I think around what to do on social, specifically on LinkedIn when you're getting started.

So, the first thing you really need to think about is doing your LinkedIn profile. So, really getting that dialed in because everything else you will do on LinkedIn from that point is going to stem and pull people back to your LinkedIn profile. So, this is your website. Some people don't even need a website. I've worked with some business owners. It's like they have barely a landing page as the website, but they drive all of their business just from their LinkedIn profile.

So, investing in your profile first and really getting that feeling good, and if you're a business owner with the objective to attract new business and let people know that you're open to collaboration, that's going to be the focus. If you are in corporate and looking to get your next job or just to be seen as a thought leader, then it's really to build up your expertise on your LinkedIn profile and showcase yourself as the expert in whatever it is you're an expert in.

So, I think there's similar objectives, but the first thing is the LinkedIn profile. And then, once people get confidence, the beauty of that is once you do your LinkedIn profile and you're feeling really good about it, then it is easier to do all the other things, so whether that is growing your network, whether that is posting content on LinkedIn, reaching out to people in your DMs, but start with the LinkedIn profile first.

And then, you're going to figure out, "Okay. What's the next thing?" which I typically recommend is building your network. And so, you're going to want to look at building that to 500+ connections if you don't already have those and figuring out how many connections you need to sustain your business, which is a little bit of a process. But once you find that sweet spot, then it takes the stress and pressure of, "Okay. It has to be bigger, bigger, bigger." Because that's not necessarily the case. Sometimes, a lot of my clients, it's 1,000, 2,000 connections and they are happy and running a 6 to 7 figure business with just that number of connections. So, it's not always bigger is better.

CAMILLE [15:39]

Okay. I have a couple comments about this because I've noticed that reading your business profile on LinkedIn, it very much tells a story. Would you say that that is the way to go with your profile is to paint a story and to tell who you are and why you're the expert?

MINDI [15:56]

That's a very good point. I think for most people, telling a story is really, really important on the LinkedIn profile. Too many people treat the LinkedIn profile like a resume, so they will just take whatever's on the resume and put it over there, maybe add a few key words to make sure that it's popping up in the right searches.

But they don't tell the story. And on LinkedIn, when we are coming to LinkedIn profiles, we want to know how you got from there to here. We want to hear about that journey. So, that about section is really important and that's the place where you do want to tell your story. And yes, it may feel like you jumped all over the place, but the funny thing is like most of us have jumped all over the place too. We have all tried various things. None of our trajectories are straightforward and very linear. It's usually a hodgepodge of things that come together to form who we are today.

And so, we want to touch on all of those things and let people know the common thread that runs through all of that. So, what is that common thread? Is it your passion to help people? Is it that you really enjoy marketing or you just have a thing for sales? Everybody has something that's that common thread that runs through all of their various work experiences. We're looking for that thread and then making sure it's there in the telling of your stories, so people can feel, "Okay. This is logical." Yes, you were all over the place, but it all makes sense because this is what you're passionate about. We're all individuals and it's like we don't want to look like robots. We don't want to look too linear. We want our story and our personality to come out because that's what starts building that connection to people.

CAMILLE [17:30]

I love that. And let me ask you when you mentioned that once people have dialed in their bio and then started making connections, and then that turns into business for them, how is that turning into business?

MINDI [17:43]

That's a really good question. So, the building of connections is the next steps. Once your profile is good, it's like, okay, building connections, conversations. So, connections will turn to conversations within the right context. So, that's why I like to tell people, "You want to be thoughtful about the people you're building connections with." I've seen a lot of people hurry and they're like, "Oh, I'll just connect with everybody or just the people that I think will say yes." So, they fill up their connections and their network with people that really are not relevant and aren't going to want to do business with them, not going to want to collaborate and they're just not adding value to each other.

So, when you are adding people to your network, you want to be sure that you can provide value to them and that they can provide value to you in some way because that's what makes a network function and that's what's going to drive business. So, for example, meeting people in the space that are in synergistic businesses like you and I. We have businesses and we serve a lot of the same people, but in different ways.

And so, I think building that connection, it allows us to collaborate with each other, share business, and generate business for each other and awareness. And the same thing happens in other people's networks, so you really don't exactly know where your next opportunities are going to come from a lot of times. But building those connections and looking for people that are in similar areas to you and that you can help each other and raise awareness and you're on a similar mission on the same path, that can be very beneficial.

There is also an aspect to strategic targeting on LinkedIn that I like to bring up as well. For those people who are very, very thoughtful about how they want to approach their target market and they know who exactly their target market is and their target market is really active on LinkedIn, you can use the LinkedIn search functions to find these people and that has been very powerful for me and for a lot of my clients.

Some entrepreneurs are a little more open to serendipity and connecting with people and playing in their DMs. Some people are like, "You know what? I just really want to laser focus just on these specific prospects." So, you can go about it in many different ways and I think just knowing that there are ways to go about it that don't feel spammy or automated is good. And so, for the people that do want to get laser focused, using the LinkedIn search tool especially Sales Navigator really helps you get granular.

You can reach out with very specific messaging, tailored, personalized to people who are a perfect fit clients for your business and it's just about the approach, so really figuring out what that approach is to get them into that first conversation. And that's different for every single person, every individual, so it's figuring out what that is for you and finding and trying things and not being afraid to fail because sometimes you have to try a few things before you find the recipe that works.

CAMILLE [20:32]

Oh, for sure. So, can you give us an example of what that might look like? Because I don’t know about the Sales Navigator. And when you're looking the search bar, is that looking for terms that apply to your business or what does that look like exactly?

MINDI [20:46]

Yeah, so if you have a free or a premium LinkedIn account, using that search bar is probably going to be the most helpful way to search for people. You can do a lot of searching there, but if you're going to want a consistent flow of people that their businesses are $3-$9 million in revenue, they have 200+ employees. If you're getting that granular with your targeting, you're going to want to use something like Sales Navigator because you can plug all that data in. So, then LinkedIn will spit out a list of all the people that have the perfect job titles for you.

They fit all these criteria, but you still have to go through that list and that's the part where a lot of people will just spam. They're like, "Oh, great. LinkedIn gave me a list of all my criteria." And then, they will just start sending. And you've probably been on the receiving end of this, "So, you work at fill-in-the-blank business. Here. Do you still work there? Are you looking?" That feels very robotic. So, you still have to go through that list and then pick out the people that you really want to reach out to and look at their profiles.

So, when I'm working with somebody, if they have a VA, a lot of times, a VA can be very, very helpful for helping them sort through this list, finding the people with the right criteria, figuring out how to personalize that invitation by doing a little bit of research and homework and then really being thoughtful about approaching that person in a way that feels natural to them even if you have to do something as creative such as looking at their LinkedIn profile content and commenting on something, getting on their radar in other ways versus just sending them a straight up sales message. You want to be thoughtful and make it feel very human in the way that you're approaching people.

CAMILLE [22:21]

Yeah. I agree. Because that can apply to so many different business relationships, but it's that dating phase or courting someone, whether it's a brand you want to work with or collaboration you want to do or something, if you can show them in multiple ways that you are aware of the work that they do and you appreciate their quality of content or whatever they produce, their product, I think that goes a long way to say, "I saw that you did this and I liked it" because that just feels so much more genuine.

MINDI [22:52]

It does. And it's so powerful. How good do you feel on the receiving end when you get a message like that? You're like, "They actually read my article." Sometimes we feel like we're saying things in a vacuum and nobody's listening. And so, for one person to come out of the woodwork and say, "I paid attention and I listened to you," that's a powerful thing. And unless you're a crazy influencer with 100,000 followers, the rest of us are not there. So, getting those messages is very, very heartwarming. So, think about how you like to receive communication and give that to other people as well. Pay attention to the things that you go, "Oh, that was delightful. That made me smile." Sometimes, we just gloss over those. Pay attention to that. How can we do the same for somebody else and pay it forward?

CAMILLE [23:37]

Yeah. You talked about an article and I know that this has become something that happens on LinkedIn all the time that people will write and share articles on LinkedIn. Are those articles coming from a website that they own or are they just being posted right on LinkedIn? How would you suggest people do that the best way?

MINDI [23:58]

That's a really good question about LinkedIn articles. So, you could approach this in multiple ways. The way that I tend to recommend just because I'm a big LinkedIn advocate and if you are trying to get more interactivity, more interaction on LinkedIn itself, then posting the article directly to LinkedIn is going to be your best bet because LinkedIn will first of all put it higher on the algorithm for when people are looking for content. So, that's good. It will be higher in the news feed than if you're just sharing a link to your own blog.

And then, it also looks really good on your profile because you can actually feature that. So, if you've written a really good article, you can feature it on your profile and it looks really professional. So, it's something that I tend to recommend people do. So, even if you're posting it, for example, for myself, I post my blog on my blog and my website. Sometimes, I'll change the title just a little bit when I repost it to LinkedIn. Pick a different image and post the same exact article to LinkedIn, so it's in both places.

Now, some SEO experts may say that it may affect your SEO. I'm not worried about SEO. For me, it's really about getting it out to my people and my network. So, if SEO's a big thing for you, then maybe do a little bit more research there to make sure you're not crossing any SEO issues. But for those who are really focused on, "Okay. I really want to be sure my network sees this and I really want to get this content out," then don't be afraid to post it in both places. It doesn't take that much time and it looks really good on your profile too when people can go back in time and say, "Oh, he posted an article every month for the past year." It adds to that trust factor on LinkedIn as well.

CAMILLE [25:35]

That's a good question to lead into is how often should someone be posting to grow on LinkedIn whether it's to engage with other people's content or an article that you write yourself? What would you say is a good amount?

MINDI [25:53]

That's a good question too. I think growth and maintenance are two different things. So, when you're specifically asked about growing, for those who are like, "Okay. I really want to up my game on LinkedIn, not just maintain," I would say twice a week if possible that you could be posting and sharing on LinkedIn. It doesn't mean you have to spend 60 minutes a week writing LinkedIn content. A lot of times, you can repurpose something you're sharing elsewhere. A lot of people are doing a podcast or they're doing a blog article each week, so you can write two posts from that one piece of content that you've created.

So, you can use a lot of different tools and repurpose content, but I would say twice a week because that really helps LinkedIn realize that you are showing up consistently and the consistency is really important on LinkedIn. So, you don’t want to post a bunch like post five times in a week and then the next week, you post nothing because the algorithm pays attention to this and it actually does grade your profile on the back end and it will not pop your content to the top of the feed if you're an inconsistent poster.

So, it's better to go slow and steady. And even if you can manage one time a week to start, that's okay. Start somewhere that you can be consistent. Once a week is good. Twice a week is optimal and I would shoot for Tuesday and Thursday. Those tend to be the best days to post on LinkedIn when you're going to get more engagement.

CAMILLE [27:13]

Oh, that's super helpful. Look at all these helpful tips. I love it. I love that you're saying this because I should be doing this for my podcast. How are people sharing podcasts onto LinkedIn?

MINDI [27:27]

That's a really good one too. I think with podcasts, there are different ways that you can share it. Some people will take the image and they'll share whatever banner image they're using for the podcast with the guest or with the topic, whatever that looks like, and then linking off to the podcast.

If you're going to link off anywhere on LinkedIn, put it on the comments. In the text area, say, "The link is in the comments if you want to watch the full episode." That's one of the ways to go about it, probably the simplest and most straightforward way. If you want to get clever, people that really want to play with the algorithm, they will take a snippet of the podcast and they will just do a short video snippet, post that, and say, "Watch the full podcast. Link's in the comments." You're going to get a lot more engagement.

So, there are multiple ways that you can go about it, but it's really what is your intention? If you're like, "Okay. I just need to get it posted," keep it simple. Don't make it too complicated on yourself and then you can always play with it later. If you're already making short videos snippets, those are gold on LinkedIn and people love them, especially if you have a guest or there's two people talking and you have captions going. It's like, "Oh, this is going to be fun to watch." So, it just gets people paying more attention.

CAMILLE [28:37]

And are vertical videos being seen on LinkedIn as much as they are everywhere else or are they more horizontal?

MINDI [28:46]

They're more horizontal on LinkedIn, but there are more mobile users these days. So, I don't think it's a problem if you want to shoot it vertical. For a while there, the LinkedIn experts are like, "Don’t, don't."

CAMILLE [28:58]

Don't do it, yeah.

MINDI [28:58]

"Don't do it. Go horizontal." I tend to probably share more horizontal videos just because that's easier for me to make, especially if I'm pulling it from something else like I've done on YouTube. If you are doing it in the moment and you like to go vertical, that's fine. It will take up more space, especially on mobile when people are watching it. So, if you notice that a lot of your target prospects or a lot of people in your network tend to use it on mobile, that's actually a good strategy because it will take up a lot of space on their feed.

CAMILLE [29:27]

Yeah. Do you use a scheduler with LinkedIn or is that bad for the algorithm?

MINDI [29:33]

I wouldn't say it's bad for the algorithm. So, if you do like to use a scheduler, I think that's fine. It shouldn't mess with the algorithm aspect. The downside to a scheduler is that you cannot tag people. So, if you're trying to tag companies, some schedulers will let you tag companies, but they won't let you tag people. And so, for a lot of the content that I do share, I like to tag people in the text. And so, I will just go straight on to LinkedIn because otherwise I can't tag people. So, if you're just scheduling out maybe your podcast episodes or some videos and you're not really tagging people in those, it's fine to use a scheduler. So, I usually use a blend of both.

CAMILLE [30:06]

What scheduler do you like to use?

MINDI [30:09]

Buffer. It's my favorite. Yeah. I do also use HubSpot sometimes for some of my clients that like HubSpot. Hootsuite, I have used in the past and it's pretty good. I personally am not like a Hootsuite user. I don't like the interface. But Buffer is really, really simple and they do have a free version if you're just wanting to give it a try.

CAMILLE [30:27]

Oh, that's really helpful. You talked about tagging people in your content. That's not seen as spammy like people are okay with that if you tag them?

MINDI [30:35]

That is very contentious topic on LinkedIn. Should we tag or should we not tag? My clients and I go back on forth about this. So, tagging has to be done tastefully. So, when it makes sense to tag people, so for example, if you are sharing a piece of content and maybe you interviewed a guest on a podcast and you can tag that person, tag the guest, tag their company, tag anybody that's related to that podcast episode, that's fine and that's seen as tasteful and that's seen as okay. You're shouting out somebody that's appropriate.

The problem happens when people just tag and then tag, tag, tag. There's 20 tags inside the text. It technically will get the people's attention, but it's very frowned upon on LinkedIn unless you know those people really well, then you really want refrain from that. And I recommend not tagging too many people. It dilutes the power of the tag. And so, when you're thinking of your tag and how you're like, "I'm giving them some visibility," you're not really if you're just adding them to a list of people that you're tagging. People see that as selfish and self-serving because they know you're trying to gamify the LinkedIn algorithm.

So, if you really want that tag to be powerful, use it strategically and only put one or two tags of people inside of your text. So, you want to think about that from a personal branding perspective too because I have been tagged by some people and I'm like, "I like you as a person, but just tag me with 20 other people, ugh." It just gives you that sense of you're not special.

So, think of the tag as special. When you are tagging somebody that's special or it's a friend that you know has asked you to say, "Tag me whenever you're posting content about X." So, be really, really thoughtful about the tags, especially when you're using them in the text or the post. Also, don't overdo it in the comments. I've seen pipe five comments below, each of them has 20 tags in it just to drive traffic to their post. LinkedIn is getting smarter. The algorithm is getting smarter and they're learning our behaviors and so they're going to adjust for that and they're going to downgrade their profile. So, just be thoughtful. LinkedIn wants you to use it like a human, not like a bot.

CAMILLE [32:44]

Yes. Amen and amen. I think that applies to every social media I've seen and I know even on Instagram and on Facebook, if you see multiple tags and you get tagged in those, you're just like, "Why are you tagging me?" Especially if it's someone you have no idea who this is or it's just totally off the wall. So, that makes a lot of sense. What would you say the number one mistake that people make on LinkedIn when they're trying to build their business?

MINDI [33:11]

I think how they reach out on connections, how they're connecting to people. I feel like there's two sides to that coin. So, they're either too scared to reach out and connect with people who will be a perfect fit for their business. So, they see their prospects and they're like, "Oh, I would love to reach out to that person." We're just paralyzed. Or they take the opposite approach and, "I'm just going to nail them. I'm just going to reach out to all of them. I'm going to use automation or have my VA send out 100 of these things in a week."

So, I think there's a happy medium between the two. But it's all about reaching out because if you are not doing a blend of inbound, just posting great content on LinkedIn is not going to drive your business. And I think a lot of us fall under the assumption, "Oh, we're just going to attract people and they'll just ask us." No, they're not going to. You might get some people that way, but if you want to actually build your business using LinkedIn, you have to have a blend of inbound and outbound and you can't be afraid.

You can't be afraid that somebody's going to say, "Oh, I don't want that" or "No thanks," send you a reply that is maybe not so nice. But for the most part, if you're reaching out thoughtfully, people are either just going to ignore you if they're not interested or they're going to say, "Thanks, but no thanks." That's the worst that typically happens if you're reaching out thoughtfully.

Now, if you do go the approach of reaching out like a bot and trying to send the same message to a bazillion people, you're probably going to get some not so nice reply comments like, "Did you even look at my profile?" But for those of us that are acting like a human, reach out. That is the number one way to build your network, to grow your business on LinkedIn. You have to reach out and not be afraid to reach out.

CAMILLE [34:52]

Oh, I love it. This has been so helpful. I'm curious if there is ever a time in your life as a business owner and now up to this point where you've made a blunder or you've made a mistake or something where you thought it was the right move and then you realized that it wasn't or what lessons did you learn along the way from that mistake?

MINDI [35:14]

Yeah. I think something that's happened this past year on making the mistake of partnerships in business. I think it was a very big blunder that I felt I made and I would say it was just mismatched in directions where we were headed. So, doing business with people, it's like you're getting married to them in a sense when you are very closely collaborating. And so, being on the same page and when you notice that you start to drift apart, I think it's calling attention to that sooner rather than later rather than just letting it escalate and both parties being hurt.

So, I feel like that's something I learned this year is how to do business partnerships correctly and the ways not to do them because I had a business partnership that just ended and it could have ended in a better way. And I feel like taking responsibility for my part, I think the communication. I think learning and we blunder our way through these things. We think, "Oh, I've been communicating," but there was definitely some underlying communication that just didn't happen.

And I feel like having some conversations after that partnership and just learning more about myself, I'm like, "Okay. Now I know how to do that better. I know how to work with other business better. I know how to be a better collaborator and a better business partner and be very thoughtful and make sure that our missions are 100% aligned before saying yes."

Because I tend to be just a yes person by nature. I just want to make everybody happy and sometimes that's not always the best approach. It's establishing those boundaries and making sure that that alignment is there. And so, I think that would be my word of caution and advice if you're getting into business partnerships. Listen to your gut. Look for the alignment and over, over, overcommunicate.

CAMILLE [36:57]

Those are all really good bits of advice. Speaking of boundaries, as a working mom, how have you been able to create healthy boundaries for your family?

MINDI [37:05]

That has been a challenge I would say over time. And I have tried a lot of different ways. I've done daycare with my kids. I've tried to have family members watch them during the day. So, it's been a learning process and an evolution and what we actually came to, my husband and I, we sat down. He was working full time and I was trying to run my business full time and we're like, "Hey. We have to do something here and as a team, what is going to work better for our team?" And we had to have some hard conversations around that like, "Okay. We can either continue working two jobs and pushing the kids to daycare afterschool programs," which I think there's nothing wrong with that. It's just not the way that our family functions the best.

We call ourselves like a tribe. And so, we're like the Rosser tribe and we do everything together. So, what actually fit for my family was my husband coming home from work and supporting me on that front. So, I'm the breadwinner. My job and my role is to work on the business, focus on the income and that aspect. And he now takes care of the household and the kids, getting to and from school. And I feel like having that support system and figuring out what works well for us has been magical and it's just very freeing because I don't feel this tug of war like, "Oh, I should be doing the dishes right now or I should be picking up the kids." That takes up so much space.

So, if you do have the luxury to do that or to explore that or even a grandparent or a friend or somebody that you can trade off watching kid times, I've found that that works really well too. But it's really getting that support system. It comes back to getting to that support so that you can do and focus on your business during the times when it works best for you.

CAMILLE [38:43]

Yeah. Was that a hard transition for you and your husband to figure that out?

MINDI [38:50]

It was very tough. He was a very macho man. He was in construction. He's used to being a breadwinner. So, I think for him, it was this process of personal growth also that had to happen to allow him to be okay with his role now. And I think the beauty of that is it's been 18 months since we've made that transition and to see how closely our family has grown as a result of that transition and how he has also grown as a human is really, really neat and me being able to step into my role and not feel like I have to do both. Because I feel like we're both trying to do 50/50 and we're both trying to do household chores, both trying to work, and it just didn't have that flow.

And so, we were really searching for that flow for our family and what really works now. And yeah, it was definitely an adjustment process trying to get here, but now on the other side looking back, it's like we made the right decision and now we have the freedom and the time I think that both of us were really looking for.

CAMILLE [39:46]

That's awesome. What a huge mountain you've climbed some big ones this year with the partnership that failed and figuring out with your family. That's a lot of growth. Would you say that the pandemic has helped you weave your way through that? Did that help you get that self-discovery that you were looking for?

MINDI [40:06]

That's a really good question and just thinking of it in those terms, the self-discovery part, yes. I feel like since the pandemic started, it totally changed I think how I saw business and how I wanted to do business and where I wanted to go with my business. It also changed I think how I function as a human on the outside.

So, there's that people just see the external, but they don't see that inner transformation that happens and that affects your business in such a big way. And I feel like I was able to step into more of who I was and actually discover that. And I feel like with the pandemic, it gave me that time for introspection and really to go deep with myself, with my husband, like us in our relationship, our family dynamic. And so, I think it's been challenging as we all know, the pandemic has not been easy, but I think there are some full side effects or byproducts of the pandemic and this is one of them.

CAMILLE [41:00]

Oh, I'm so happy to hear that. It's been so fascinating to me over the past year to interview so many who have had so much self-discovery because of that time and allowing themselves to really dig deep. So, I appreciate you sharing all of that today. This has been so wonderful. Tell our audience where they can find you and also how they can learn more about LinkedIn form you

MINDI [41:22]

Sure. So, you can find me on LinkedIn, of course, Mindi Rosser. I'm the only Mindi Rosser, so if you look me up, you'll find me. Also, my website, mindirosser.com. If you like Hawaii stuff and fun Hawaii things like surfing and lingos and all that good stuff, then look me up on Instagram. It's @mindirrosser, so it's two Rs in the middle. And you can touch base with me there and I love getting DMs on LinkedIn or Instagram, so shoot me a message and I'm always happy to chat.

CAMILLE [41:50]

Awesome. I wanted to let our audience know that you are doing a LinkedIn Accelerator. It's opening up October 21st. There are only five days, but it's a mix of life training and hybrid coursework with homework and everything else which is awesome. And Mindy is so nice to offer 20% off for everyone listening. I don't know what that code is yet. Do we know what that code is?

MINDI [42:14]

We'll put it in the Show Notes.

CAMILLE [42:16]

Say it's CamilleWalker. There we go, it will be CamilleWalker, 20% off. I'll give more information there, but if that is something that you are looking into especially as a brand-new business, I've always said that business is growth through relationships. And LinkedIn is the perfect place to do that. So, Mindy, thank you so much for teaching us today. This has been so helpful.

MINDI [42:39]

Thank you for having me. It's been a pleasure.

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CAMILLE [42:43]

Hey, CEOs. Thank you so much for spending your time with me. If you found this episode inspiring or helpful, please let me know in a comment and a 5-star review. You could have the chance of being a featured review on an upcoming episode. Continue the conversation on Instagram @callmeceopodcast. And remember, you are the boss.

Over the last 10 years, my life has been greatly blessed by being able to work as a stay-at-home mom to help us pay down debt and also have more financial independence to do things we like, like vacationing and having fun activities for the kids. A question I get asked a lot is, how can I too create my own at home business? And after racking my mind for quite a long time, I decided that a virtual assistant business is where it's at right now.

There are so many ways to be a successful virtual assistant and this is something that I wanted to help other moms be able to do. And that is why I created this 60 Days to VA program and it has been so wonderful to see these women who had no previous experience be able to create a business of their own with clients and success.

I have a recent graduate, Rachel, who says, "I can't believe how much I learned in only 7 weeks. When I started the course, I learned how to do administrative work that I found online, to have my own LLC, beautiful website, knowledge how to properly market myself on any platform, and the ability to use my different business programs. I feel so professional and confident to take on new clients. I would highly recommend this course to anyone who is thinking about joining. The live sessions with Camille and other experts are worth the investment alone. You will complete the course with all the tools and resources you need to be your own boss, make additional income for your family, and really feel content in the value you add to the business world."

I want this for all of you and I can tell you that this is the kind of confidence that will come to you as well when you take my virtual assistance course. If you are interested, go to camillewalker.co/VA. Again, that's camillewalker.co/VA.

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