Kari Switala
LinkedIn is the top professional networking site in the world, with 675 million monthly users worldwide. But with 30 million companies posting on the site, how do you make your business stand out? To get you on the right track, we’ve compiled a list of content ideas to help boost your business on LinkedIn and get you noticed by the audience that matters most to you.
1.) Blog Posts
Blog posts are a great way to offer useful information to your followers about a variety of topics and position your business as a thought leader in your industry. There are a few ways to share blog posts on LinkedIn:
- Create them directly on the site via LinkedIn’s native publishing platform. Long-form blog content (around 2,000 words) tends to perform better than shorter articles when using this method.
- Share the link to an article on your company’s website as a status update. But don’t just share the URL – include a few lines of “teaser” text to draw your audience in and encourage them to click the link. A particularly compelling excerpt from the blog itself can pique your audience’s interest and make them want to read more.
- Have individuals from your company republish blog posts from your website onto their personal feeds via LinkedIn’s publishing platform (also known as syndication). If you do this, publish the blog to your website first and include a link to the original blog in the syndicated post.
2.) Third-party Content
Another way to build your reputation for being a source of valuable content for your audience is to share relevant third-party articles. This type of post won’t point people to your website or brand, but if your audience sees you as an informational source they will be more likely to click on your original content. A few tips for sharing third-party content:
- Don’t just share a link – add your own thoughts and opinions to your post to reinforce your position as a thought leader on the topic.
- Use hashtags to make you more visible among other relevant trending topics and steer more viewers to your post (and therefore to your company).
- Shorten long URLs using a site like bitly so the link doesn’t take up too many of the 1,300 characters LinkedIn allows for a post. Use those characters to share your thoughts on the article.
3.) Video
Video is much more attention-grabbing than text or photos, and is more likely to engage your followers. Consider creating videos to share tips and tricks, highlight new products or services, celebrate company wins, answer FAQs, share statistics, or announce upcoming events. When you post a video:
- Keep it short – definitely below 5 minutes, but the shorter the better.
- Use subtitles – about 97 percent of viewers watch video without sound!
- Include a Call To Action (CTA) to give viewers next steps to connect with you.
- Add a text introduction to your post.
4.) Text-only Posts
On the other end of the spectrum, there are times when a text-only post is the best option. If the text you are sharing is especially engaging, images and video can distract from it. Text-only posts can break through an image-heavy newsfeed and come across as especially authentic or intimate. This can boost engagement and make your followers feel more connected to you. If you are sharing something genuine that touches on topics your audience relates to, an occasional text-only post can be the way to go.
5.) Statistics and Infographics
People love statistics – especially when they’re presented in a format they can easily share. A branded infographic offers relevant information in a quickly digestible, highly shareable format. People also love trivia, so creating interesting statistic-based content that is also fun, such as a list of “Did You Knows?”, can really draw people in and boost your engagement.
6.) Product Launches or Feature Enhancements
Keep your audience up-to-date on the latest happenings in your business by announcing new products or upgraded services. You can also use this opportunity to educate your audience about how to best take advantage of these new features and how their businesses can benefit from them. Consider doing some kind of online-only giveaway or discount alongside the launch to grab the attention of your followers.
7.) Celebrate Company Milestones
People want to do business with people, not faceless companies. Give your followers a behind-the-scenes look at your company by:
- Celebrating employee anniversaries
- Sharing big wins or goals you’ve reached
- Highlighting other company celebrations and milestones
- Expressing your gratitude for the support of your customers
Sharing these things publicly makes your audience feel more connected to you, and therefore more likely to engage with you both online and in person.
8.) Highlight Company Leaders
Similarly, highlight your top employees as thought leaders in your industry by sharing how they have helped move the company forward, innovations they have implemented, certifications they have earned, articles they have written, and goals they have helped the company reach. It’s another way to give your followers a peek inside your company culture and boost their confidence in your business.
9.) Promote Events
Promoting upcoming events does two things for you: it boosts your event registration and shows your audience that you have something new to offer them or reminds them of services you offer that they may have forgotten about. It’s another way of encouraging your followers to learn from and connect with you.
10.) Promote an eBook or Guide
If you have a downloadable eBook, guide, or other resource available on your website, LinkedIn is the perfect place to promote it. Include an image of the cover page and a few statistics, quotes or tips pulled from the eBook as a preview of the valuable information it includes. And don’t forget to post a link to the website where users can download the resource.
11.) Original Research or Case Studies
Original research or case studies are invaluable information to share with your audience. More than anything else, these things will cement your company’s reputation as a thought leader in your industry by demonstrating your expertise and showing how you have helped solve a problem. Focus on the problem and on how your solution can be applied in practice.
12.) “How To” Posts
“How To…” or “Top X Ways To…” posts are internet gold. As far as LinkedIn publishing metrics go, this type of post performs better than all others across the board. And for good reason – who doesn’t love a quick and easy list of ways to learn something new or do something better? Don’t be shy about sharing your expertise with your audience – they’ll love it!
13.) Job Postings
LinkedIn is made for networking, and everyone knows that the best way to find a great job is to know someone who knows someone. This is the perfect place to get the word out about open positions and encourage prospective candidates to connect with you. And as a secondary perk, job postings show that your business is vibrant and growing!
14.) Tell a Story
Whether you’re telling the story of how your company began, how your product or service can solve a problem, or a company success story (or even a failure story!), sharing stories with your audience helps to create meaningful connections. Give people the opportunity to celebrate your triumphs and empathize with your failures – it will humanize your company and cause readers to form an emotional connection with your business.
15.) Ask or Answer a Question
Pose questions to your audience to encourage comments, start conversations, and gather ideas for future blog posts, videos, or other online content. Or, flip it around and do a series of posts (text or video, or a combination of the two) where you answer Frequently Asked Questions.
Bonus Tips: No matter what kind of posts you choose to do, make sure to always:
- Post Consistently. Choose a posting schedule that works for you – whether it’s once a day or a few times a week doesn’t matter as much as being consistent.
- Write Strong Headlines. Use your limited character allowance well by starting off with an engaging first sentence. An intriguing, relevant headline is a crucial part of drawing your audience in.
- Always Include a CTA. It doesn’t matter how great your content is if you don’t use a clear Call To Action. Direct readers to take the next step – contact you, read an article on your website, comment on your post, etc.
Up your LinkedIn game by adopting some of these ideas. You don’t have to do everything at once – start by including one or two new types of posts on your content schedule, and add more from there. Offering more diverse, compelling content is guaranteed to draw your audience in and boost your engagement.
Do you want help implementing a LinkedIn Strategy for your business? We’d love to help! Wild Fig Marketing is your digital marketing agency! Whether you’re looking for marketing help in the form of website design, sales or process automation, content marketing, email marketing or lead generation, we have the knowledge and experience to help you rock your brand. Contact us on our website or set up a complimentary 30-minute strategy session!
