In a social media savvy world, sharing and distributing content has become easier than ever before, with organisations using social channels to target receptive, relevant audiences. LinkedIn's recent 2014 Professional Content Consumption Report looked into the way professionals are connecting with and reacting to online content.
Not surprisingly, LinkedIn was the most popular source of information for professional users, with 9 out of 10 of them regularly using it to keep abreast of industry updates and fresh content, ahead of new sites - 64%, Twitter - 29%, Facebook - 27%, and Google Plus - 16%.
As a result of these statistics, LinkedIn is also the first choice for big businesses, with 86 of the FTSE 100 companies having LinkedIn profiles. In contrast, 70 are active on Twitter, only 42 have Facebook profiles, and just 12 use Google Plus, making LinkedIn comfortably the most popular social media platform for businesses.
With LinkedIn being so popular among industry professionals, we decided to investigate the most successful and influential brands on the platform, to provide some insight into the best professional content marketing tips. The following three (Inc., Word Economic Forum, and Forbes) have achieved the highest LinkedIn content marketing scores, according to the aforementioned report.
Inc.
Inc. Magazine rank third for their LinkedIn content marketing score, and one of the reasons behind their success is their effective implementation of case studies. These are absolutely perfect for professionals, as they provide actionable examples of industry successes that users can then go away and implement themselves. They make content instantly digestible and relevant, rather than just boring readers with an overload of inapplicable theory.
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum have reached second spot on LinkedIn because of the fresh perspective they apply to their content. Rather than just regurgitating the same standard stories about their interest areas of academia, politics and business, they analyse and provide expert insight into the issues they cover. This all boils down to understanding the purpose of LinkedIn, compared to other social networks. For example, users wanting live updates on a breaking story will use Twitter, and those seeking their friends' opinions on a topic will use Facebook. LinkedIn, on the other hand, is for providing innovative views and industry specifics on a topic, making it perfect for professionals.
Forbes
Forbes Magazine have established themselves as the most effective LinkedIn content marketers by constantly presenting brand new, engaging research. Their strategy is to become a genuine thought leader by providing professional users with a constant stream of top quality content. All of their output is specifically targeted at their highly career-focused audience, and presented in a way that is easy to digest. Forbes' commitment to providing this regular content and the engagement metrics behind it are both impressive; in the last twenty-four hours at the time of writing, ten original articles had been published, some achieving over 100 likes and all of them obtaining multiple shares and comments.
In addition to this, Mark Williams, the UK's first certified LinkedIn trainer, has assembled seven tips for maximising opportunities on LinkedIn that businesses should refer to when considering their strategy for the platform. These are:
- Stop selling - rather than direct, product-focused campaigns, look to become a thought leader.
- Provide fresh research - make your content stand out by providing original industry research.
- Engage your users - provide them with content they will want to like, share and comment on.
- Connect with people - genuinely interact with your followers, rather than just connecting.
- Provide regular, useful content - give your users a regular stream of content that serves a purpose.
- Build trust with your followers - build a rapport with your followers, so content is not a one-way street.
- Meet up with people - meet people, attend events, and expand your network face-to-face.
Referring to these tips, as well as the using the top LinkedIn professional content marketers as examples to aspire to, is a great way for businesses to formulate an effective strategy for the platform and ensure their professional content is as effective as possible.