The end of the year is near and we’re all scrambling to implement a digital marketing plan for 2015. As you sit down with the stakeholders in your organization to determine which social networks your company should be on, you may find yourself hesitating when you come across “LinkedIn”. LinkedIn is a great social network for professional individuals looking to connect with other professionals. But how can a company effectively utilize the social platform? Good question.
LinkedIn is best suited for B2B companies since it is all about the professional connection. In fact, 94% of B2B marketers cite LinkedIn as their most used social media platform (Business2Community). So why aren’t you using it? No worries, we have outlined 5 tips to help you optimize your company’s LinkedIn profile.
- Implement a Creative Banner Photo
The banner photo on your LinkedIn page is one of the more important elements overall. Even though they say not to judge a book by its cover, we always do. People may not stick around and read the description and posts on your LinkedIn profile, so you need to capture their attention with an intriguing and descriptive banner photo. This means displaying your products or services in a graphical and creative way. For example, we chose to list our top services beneath our slogan, with our office as the background.
- Optimize Your Description for Keywords
SEO is just as important for your social media sites as it is for your website. In other words, you must optimize your company LinkedIn profile for search. Google will take into account your LinkedIn description when producing search results. Identify the top keywords that you want to be found for and include them in your company description. This way, people searching for the services you offer in Google, may just stumble across your LinkedIn page in search results!
- Invite Personal Connections to Like the Company Page
If you, your boss, or your employees are active on LinkedIn, it is time to utilize those connections you have built up. Take inventory of your connections and determine who would benefit from following your company’s LinkedIn updates. Draft up a personal invite and send to your relevant connections. Don’t just ask for a “follow”; let them know how your company page will benefit them.
- Create Specialty Pages
LinkedIn now allows you to create specialty pages for your various products or services. These specialty pages resemble the secondary, landing pages on your website. Determine what your 2 top services are and start there. Put just as much time into setting up your specialty pages as you did setting up your main LinkedIn profile. They are just as important!
- Include Calls to Action (CTAs) in your posts
First off, make sure you’re posting daily! Keep these posts short, sweet, and to-the-point. And always end with a strong CTA. Ask your followers to like the post, comment, or share the post on their feed. This will encourage interaction, which is great for both broader reach AND networking opportunities.
These quick, do-it-yourself tips for optimizing your company LinkedIn page should be enough to get the ball rolling. Of course, there are a multitude of features on LinkedIn Company pages that you should learn to utilize over time. If you need assistance with setting up or managing your LinkedIn page, contact the Informatics social media management team.
