Crack the code of LinkedIn – ‘the clever person’s Facebook’

LinkedIn started off in 2003, the year before its competitor, Facebook, mostly as a recruitment platform. But it has managed to grow and reposition itself as “the clever person’s Facebook” in recent years – as the go-to social media platform for educated people and professionals to connect and build reputations.

According to Hootsuite, LinkedIn now has more than one billion members. Effectively, this means that one in eight people globally is on LinkedIn – confirming it as a vast and powerful marketplace for individuals, brands and companies to tap into. By comparison, Facebook is the world’s largest social network, with over three billion members. LinkedIn would argue their followers are better quality.

But beware: LinkedIn is not a platform for the hard sell! It’s more about connecting with others in an authentic manner and building a profile that will ultimately benefit you and your business.

Whether you want to use this platform to drive awareness of yourself or your business, highlight achievements, generate leads, strengthen your company culture, position yourself as a thought leader or learn from others, here are 10 ways to win at LinkedIn:

1. Supercharge your LinkedIn profile

Your LinkedIn bio is your calling card, so make it stand out. Use a recent profile photo (smiling, ideally) and a simple image in the header field to give a sense of who you are. Keep your job description concise and professional for maximum impact. Search for and link all the educational institutions and companies you’ve been affiliated with. If possible, verify your account (it’s free) using your passport, to lend extra credibility to your profile. (This function is still buggy, so you may battle a bit.)

2. Solicit recommendations

Don’t be shy to ask for recommendations to add to your profile – and give them generously in return. Other people endorsing you and saying you’re wonderful is far more effective than saying it yourself!

3. Connect with others

There is a big difference between LinkedIn followers and connections: you might follow the account of someone you admire, but it doesn’t make them a connection and your posts won’t show up in their feed. You also won’t be able to send them inmails – direct messages via LinkedIn. Grow your network by sending connection requests to people in your industry or who work at organisations you admire – even if you don’t necessarily know them. You might just gain access to some highly influential people.

4. Develop content pillars

When planning your LinkedIn posts, it’s helpful to devise content pillars. Find four or five topics, interests or values that you or your brand embody, and structure your content around these themes. For example, for Kate Groch, CEO of rural education non-profit the Good Work Foundation (a Flow Communications client), content pillars could include innovation, conservation, leadership and education. For Camille Burns, CEO of the Women Presidents Organization (WPO), content pillars could include women in business, entrepreneurship and WPO events. Having a basket of topics as a guide helps you vary your content, and keep it lively and relatable to your network.

5. Create quality posts

LinkedIn’s algorithm filters outposts deemed too promotional and “spammy”, preferring to serve its users quality content that adds value. A good rule of thumb to ensure your content lands in other people’s feeds is to ask yourself before posting: is it relevant to my audience? Does it showcase my or my company’s expertise in a particular field? Is it likely to attract engagement, particularly comments with substance? If your content ticks any or all of these boxes, LinkedIn is likely to weight it favourably – and this is how a post can end up going viral.

6. Be authentic

Don’t just write a LinkedIn post for the sake of it. Be clear in your mind about what you want to achieve with a piece of content before you start creating it. Be real (your thoughts are far more interesting than those generated by AI!) People connect with authenticity, and can spot fake, disingenuous sentiment from a mile off. 

7. Stick to what you know

It’s tempting to weigh in on random topics on LinkedIn so that you can sound knowledgeable but be wary. Rather talk about things you know or are passionate about (remember those content pillars). People will follow you for your proven expertise and informed insights, and that’s how you will position yourself as a thought leader in your field.

8. Know what types of posts work best

Posting about events is always a winner, especially if you tag people who were present. It also positions you as a mover and shaker who has your finger on the pulse of what’s happening in your industry. Visual content fares well (even bad pictures are better than no pictures), and you also have more leeway with your word count (including the functionality to publish articles) than with other platforms. So go ahead and pen thought leadership pieces, especially those highlighting something new in your field of expertise or interest.

9. Your team is your greatest resource

Team-centric content performs exceptionally strongly on LinkedIn. Your colleagues and employees are not only your biggest assets in the workplace, but also in cyberspace. Ask your employees to follow your company page and tag themselves as working for you, and encourage them to post and engage with your content. Statistics show that people will engage more with a brand post that comes from an employee than with a similar post on your company page; it comes across as more authentic. 

10. Be smart with your content

It doesn’t have to all be professional, serious content on LinkedIn. Pull at the heartstrings. Speak to the human element. Share your safari snaps. Heck, you can even post about cute puppies if you like. Polls are a great way of interacting with your audience. Share media coverage, tagging the outlet. If you’re bold enough, take a stance on issues that mean a lot to you. All of this speaks to authenticity. And repurpose content – at Flow Communications, we encourage our clients to extract maximum mileage from every interview, article and video.

Very importantly, remember that LinkedIn is a social network – and who wants to connect with someone who only talks about themselves? So, don’t just blow your own trumpet. Celebrate your team and others in the industry and give kudos to people and initiatives you admire. Above all, be human and real – that’s how you’ll win at LinkedIn.