CREATING A SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY THAT’S RIGHT FOR YOU – PART 4 (LINKEDIN)
We’re back with our last installment of our social media marketing deep dive! If you have followed along through Parts 1, 2, and 3, you are well on your way to becoming a social media maven. Now that you’ve got your hashtags down and your engagement up, we are going to tackle one last platform: LinkedIn.
Don’t make the mistake of brushing LinkedIn off as a networking or job-seeking website. As a business owner, it’s the sphere you probably want to be in, especially if you’re B2B. In fact, it’s the perfect network to get your business in front of other business owners and potential customers, resulting in new connections and lead generation. Remember, each platform is known for its own specific audience. LinkedIn is no different, except for the advantage that 62% of business owners report using the platform. In other words, it’s a game changer.
When you sign up for LinkedIn, you will want to create a fully-fleshed out company page, complete with relevant and up-to-date information. Some people prefer to create a C-Suite level personal page over a business page, deeming one person the “face” of the business to keep communications more humanized. There are pros and cons to both, and you can choose what you believe will best suit your business. However, it is typically best practice for your organization to have its own company page so employees can link their page to yours within their job descriptions. Whichever you decide, make sure the profile is complete. According to Hootsuite, “…completed Company Pages generally receive twice as many visitors than those with incomplete pages. And organizations that post at least monthly generally gain followers six times faster than those that don’t.”
The content you publish here should be aimed towards business professionals, keeping in mind to keep content polished but not stuffy and ultra-formal. It is still a social network, after all, just not nearly as casual as Instagram. The best way to grow your audience is by showing up consistently. This is a great place to demonstrate your expertise by writing articles and white papers, sharing industry-related news, and interacting with others. LinkedIn says that companies that post weekly see a 2x lift in engagement with their content.
You will want to keep your content fresh by including images and video whenever possible. LinkedIn does suggest adding links as well, but it has been shown that outside links that take people off the platform tend to get less reach, so publish directly to the platform when you can. Posts are optimized for SEO, so you will want to add keyword-rich descriptions to your posts as well. You can even target your posts to a specific audience.
Like other platforms we have reviewed in this series, LinkedIn has its preferred posting times. Recent research suggests the best time to post on LinkedIn is 8 am, 12pm, and 5-6pm. Most users seem to engage with LinkedIn during their commutes or work breaks. The best days to post are Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, with Tuesday generating the most clicks and shares. Therefore, try to avoid scheduling at the beginning and end of the week.
There you have it! Now you should be equipped with multiple tools you can use to build brand recognition, ignite excitement about your business, and make the most of your social media strategy. If you have questions or would like assistance in crafting your social approach, feel free to contact us! We can work together to take your social media presence to the next level.
