Level up your LinkedIn

Since its inception 2003, LinkedIn has grown to be the largest online network of professionals in the world, with an estimated 875 million users and 58 million registered businesses globally. 

Over the years, LinkedIn has evolved to be so much more than a platform for people to search for jobs or grow their personal networks. Today, LinkedIn is a valuable platform for businesses to source and attract talent, generate leads, establish themselves as an industry authority, review competitors, learn about emerging trends, and much more. 

If your company’s LinkedIn presence is not up to scratch, or worse, has no presence at all, then your brand is being deprived of an opportunity to connect and grow. It is equally important for your team members, especially senior stakeholders, to have an active presence on LinkedIn, as your people are a reflection of your company values. 

Here are some of the many reasons why every business should be focussed on levelling up their LinkedIn at brand and team member level:

1. Discoverability and authority 

People browse LinkedIn for various purposes including looking for their next role, searching for a product or service, exploring partnership opportunities and more. Simply put, people can’t find something that’s not there to find. However, it’s not enough to simply be on the platform. Maintaining an active, optimised presence on LinkedIn gives your business the opportunity to present with authority so that when prospective employees, partners and customers do discover the company, they will be perceived as being far more reputable. 

2. Lead generation 

LinkedIn provides businesses with an opportunity to generate organic leads via posting regular content, or paid leads via LinkedIn’s campaign functionality – LinkedIn Marketing Solutions. LinkedIn campaigns allow businesses to select from a range of conversion objectives and provide flexibility around budget setting and audience targeting. 

3. Attracting and sourcing top talent 

Up to 75% of job switchers use LinkedIn as part of their search and decision making process, meaning your presence on the platform can play a huge part in a candidate’s choice to select your business over another. 

LinkedIn provides businesses with an avenue for both passive sourcing via posting job ads, or proactive sourcing via LinkedIn Recruiter. LinkedIn Recruiter is a hiring platform that offers users a range of valuable features including the ability to perform targeted searches, build talent pools, and proactively connect with suitable candidates. 

4. Up-skilling and education

For your team members, LinkedIn serves as a melting pot of knowledge and offers both structured and unstructured learning opportunities. 

LinkedIn Learning is an extensive library of online modules covering some of the most in-demand skills in business and is available by subscription. Outside of this, there are learning and development opportunities for your team every time they log on to the platform, from competitor to updates, industry news, access to events, and the sharing of thoughts by industry peers and experts. 

So, how do I level-up my LinkedIn? 

We’ve established some vital reasons as to why you need a quality presence on LinkedIn, so, how do we level it up? 

1. Get on LinkedIn

It might sound obvious at this point, but if you do not have a LinkedIn profile for your business, now’s the time to create one! Read on, so you know exactly what to do when you get there. 

2. Master your company description

Your company description should tell a prospective team member, customer, or partner exactly what you want them to know about your business, including your mission, vision, values, objectives, key products and services, and a clear articulation of your company culture. 

Your LinkedIn company page is indexed by Google, so be sure to include relevant keywords tailored to your target audience. Companies with a completed description see up to 5 times the number of page views versus a page with an incomplete or missing description. 

3. Post regular content updates

Companies that post tailored content at least once weekly receive an average of two times the engagement of businesses that post less frequently. Unlike other social media platforms where optimal content is short and punchy, LinkedIn is an excellent platform for broadcasting longform content including blogs and articles. With more words comes more opportunity to impose your expertise with authority.

Posting regular content also provides an opportunity for your business to expand its organic reach. People are thirteen times more likely to share content from their own employer than other companies. When your team members share your content, not only does this expand your reach, but this employee advocacy strengthens your organisation’s reputability. 

4. Review and optimise

There is no need to fly blind! Through performing various activities on LinkedIn, you will receive access to valuable data and analytics to inform future decision making. 

Is your job post not receiving any applicants? Perhaps the copy needs a tweak to better suit your target candidate.

Is your blog low on readership? Maybe you’re not posting at the optimal time for your audience 

Is your paid campaign failing to convert leads? Your targeting parameters may need to be changed.

Keeping a close eye on the performance of your posts, jobs and campaigns will equip you with the data and knowledge you need to direct the path forward. 

5. Engage your team

Your team and the way they conduct themselves on the LinkedIn platform reflects on your business as a whole and can tell a prospective employee or customer a lot about your company culture. 

It’s vitally important for team members who represent the business in externally facing functions like executive roles, sales or recruitment to have an active presence on the platform, as connecting with people is the basis of their role, but it’s important to be aware of how everyone in the wider business presents on the platform as well. 

You should regularly review the LinkedIn profiles and activity of your people, paying close attention to:

  • Are they on the platform and are they active? If not, how can they be supported to establish a regular presence. 
  • What are they saying about their work and the brand? 
  • If the employee activity is a positive reflection of this brand, how can this advocacy be highlighted and elevated?
  • If the employee sentiment is less than desirable, how can this be rectified?

This article covers just some of the many LinkedIn benefits that businesses can leverage and a few of the ways you can level-up your LinkedIn, but there is much more to perfecting your LinkedIn presence. Nova Partners runs bespoke group and individual training programs to help you and your team maximise their LinkedIn profile, and ultimately, your brand’s reputation.

To learn more, contact Liz Crowe on 0425 202 159.



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