Words: Belinda Connolly
With more than 900 million users across the world LinkedIn is the number-one platform for online businesses. LinkedIn’s mission is to connect the world’s professionals to make them more productive and successful. And it’s fair to say that it works. This is the place where industry news, business successes and staff updates are shared and celebrated; where connections are made, and people are hired. And like any social media platform, achieving cut-through can be tricky.
One of the main reasons LinkedIn remains such an important marketing tool is its ability to provide access to a diverse range of professionals and industries. Whether you’re looking to connect with potential clients, partners, or industry leaders, LinkedIn’s tools and features make it easy to engage with like-minded professionals.
3 ways to use LinkedIn to boost your business marketing strategy
1. Optimise your LinkedIn company page
Sounds obvious, but you may be surprised how many company profiles lie neglected! Make sure your company page features a clear and compelling description of your business, a professional-looking logo and cover image, and up-to-date information about your products and services. Use relevant keywords in your company description and throughout your page to improve your visibility in LinkedIn search results. Hootsuite recommends completing all the fields in your profile: businesses with 100% completed bios receive 30% more views than those that leave sections blank.
2. Create thought leadership content
LinkedIn is where you should be sharing content that demonstrates your expertise and establishes your brand as a trusted authority in your industry. LinkedIn recommends finding your niche and creating content that marries industry trends, customer pain points and how your business plans to grow. Share blog posts, whitepapers, case studies, and content that provides value while showcasing your knowledge. Post content on your company page and in relevant LinkedIn groups to reach a wider audience and potential customers.
3. Engage with your audience
This is key to building relationships and establishing a strong presence on LinkedIn. Respond to comments, ask for feedback, and participate in relevant conversations. This will help build credibility and establish yourself as a trusted authority in your industry. An easy way to create better rates of engagement is to ask open-ended questions in posts: how is your company increasing diversity? What do you think is the biggest issue facing your industry right now? People love sharing opinions – and others can easily respond to comments, too.
The power of employee advocacy
The secret to expanding your reach is your people. Yes, the very people who produce your goods and services, who win awards for what they do and who know what your company does better than anyone.
Employee advocacy involves leveraging your employees’ LinkedIn networks to amplify your company’s message and promote your brand. By encouraging your employees to share your company’s content on their personal networks, you can reach a wider audience and establish your brand as a thought leader in your industry.
It’s important to establish clear guidelines and expectations for your employees. We recommend providing them training on how to be effective advocates for your brand, including tagging your company, using keywords and ensuring posts have no spelling errors if and when they share anything.
You’ll also need to create a library of high-quality content for your employees to share such as blog posts, case studies, and infographics that showcases your expertise. Don’t forget to monitor your results and track progress to identify which strategies are working and which ones need to be tweaked.
Make the most of analytic tools
Another key advantage of using LinkedIn for marketing is its ability to drive traffic to your website and generate leads. By regularly posting updates, sharing thought leadership content, and engaging with your audience, you can establish yourself as a trusted authority in your industry and drive traffic to your website or landing pages.
LinkedIn’s analytics tools allow you to track your performance and optimise strategies. By tracking metrics including engagement, click-through and conversion rates, you can optimise for the content that is working and dial down the sorts of topics and content types that aren’t. These analytics tools are free for company pages, so there’s no excuse for not using them!
