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What is your LinkedIn SSI score and why is it important?

Measurements are crucial to our marketing and sales activity. How do you know what is working if you don’t measure it?

LinkedIn gives us some main measurements for us to track how well we’re doing. We can check these metrics daily to keep us on track.

For a more top-level statistics, LinkedIn also give us access to our ‘SSI Score’. SSI stands for ‘social selling index’. Without going into the detail of what is social selling etc., the LinkedIn SSI score essentially tells you how effectively you’re using the platform.

Helpfully, LinkedIn divide your score into 4 sections or ‘pillars’ so you can identify your strengths and your – well – less strengths!

The 4 pillars of social selling on LinkedIn are:

1. Developing your brand

2. Connecting with the right people

3. Engaging with insights

4. Establishing relationships

LinkedIn give you a handy chart and they also tell you how you’re doing compared to others in your industry. I guess it’s important to see how well you’re doing against your competitors.

“Social selling leaders create 45% more opportunities than peers with lower SSI”

You will see I have an SSI score of 80%. As you see I’m in the top 1% of people in my industry and the top 2% of my connections on LinkedIn.  Sure, I’d love it to be higher but, in honesty, once you get to 70%+, you’re doing pretty well. LinkedIn set a high bar!

You will also see where I excel – full marks for ‘Build relationships’!

Ok, so what do these 4 pillars mean?

1. Establish your professional brand

What LinkedIn are measuring here is how complete is your profile and also the amount and quality of your posts. If you’ve got a fully completed profile with a profile photo, banner, headline and about section you’re looking good my friend. Coupled with some high quality articles and longer form posts and you should be hitting high numbers here.

2. Find the right people

This is all about outreach. Using tools to search for relevant people to connect with. LinkedIn are referring to the search tool on LinkedIn and some would say, you’re being pushed to purchase Sales Navigator. I think if you’re getting a score of above 15% without using Sales Navigator, you’re doing pretty well here.

3. Engage with insights

Are your posts getting high levels of shares, comments and likes? If they are then you’re going to do well in this section. LinkedIn describe this as “Discover and share valuable information to initiate or maintain a relationship.”

4. Build relationships

This is exactly what it says! LinkedIn measure how well you are at building relationships with your audience as well as with those not in your audience to build those connections too.

HOW TO FIND YOUR SSI SCORE

Click here to see yours

HOW IMPORTANT IS YOUR SSI SCORE?

I recorded a film about this a while ago – click here to see it – and people have mixed views.

I think it’s a great way of seeing the effectiveness of your marketing efforts on LinkedIn. While LinkedIn don’t make a direct correlation between a high SSI score and high levels of sales success, the do claim that:

“ Social selling leaders are 51% more likely to reach quota.”.

What do you think? Do you think your SSI score is a vanity metric or a useful indication of how well you’re using the platform? 

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Ditch the dull keynote speeches in favour of fun-filled, laughter-inducing groups and seminars that get the audience involved from the get-go.

I’m bubbly and vivacious by nature, which you’ll find out in my presentations. 

I strive to appeal to those across sectors and disciplines, whether it be to those in more traditional professional roles, such as senior executive management, or those who are solopreneurs, freelancers or working in creative industries.

I ended up leaving my day job behind and achieved a diploma in Social Media Marketing. I set up Sarah Clay Social to help businesses promote themselves on social media. While using various platforms to promote my business, one stood out – LinkedIn. I seemed to attract new clients without really trying. All without a cheesy sales pitch and just by being myself. 

I was astonished by the success I had with LinkedIn and couldn’t get over how handy my childhood techniques had been. I realised that all the tools I’d learnt as a child were immensely useful! Soon after, I realised that other business owners weren’t using LinkedIn to its fullest potential. 

That’s why I’ve made it my mission to help business owners, just like you, harness the power of LinkedIn and be more successful in business.

Are you ready to leverage LinkedIn’s potential?