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Do you use LinkedIn for business?
Do you have a LinkedIn company page?
In this article, I'll show you how to get the most from your LinkedIn company page, in five easy steps.
Why a LinkedIn Company Page?
The benefits of a well-oiled LinkedIn company page include engaging followers with company news, updates, events and relevant content.
There's also the improved search engine rankings as LinkedIn pages often perform well in company searches. And let's not forget lead generation opportunities from your content marketing.
In fact, research shows that 50% of LinkedIn members are more likely to purchase from companies when they engage with them on LinkedIn.
Here's how to make your LinkedIn company page work for you:
#1: Optimize Your LinkedIn Page
Showcase what your business has to offer. Smart marketers who build out their products and services page tend to attract twice as many company followers than those who don't.
Use this page to tell members what you do best and give them compelling reasons to follow you.
Remember that you can link to just about anything from your products and services page, including your latest and greatest white papers, case studies or how-to content.
You'll best attract customers when you turn your products, services or anything else relevant to your business into focal points. Here are just a few examples of what to feature prominently:
- Products:Â The software you sell or the apps you've built
- Services: A list of your résumé writing services or your tax consulting brochure
- Other:Â Webinars you host or your company's white papers or ebooks
Use the products and services page to raise awareness of your brand, promote career opportunities and educate potential customers on your products and services.
Company pages are also very SEO-friendly. Google previews up to 156 characters of your page's text. Be sure to edit your description so that it leads with powerful, keyword-rich sentences. Plus, members can search for companies by keyword on LinkedIn, so include words and phrases that describe your business, expertise and industry focus.
Finally, remember to include your company contact information, descriptions of offerings and your areas of expertise. Your primary attributes can also function as keyword tags.
Once you've done that, ask your customers to recommend the products and services they favor. Authentic advocacy equals credible endorsement!
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#2: Engage Your Audience
With LinkedIn company pages, you can now like and share content as a company. Before, you could only do so as an individual. This is a big change, so use it to engage other members!
For example, your company page admins can like and respond to member comments that are made in response to something you post on your company page. Consider sharing your customers' and prospects' contentâfrom their corporate blogs, product updates and company postsâto get these kinds of interactions going. And don't forget content from their employees! You'll develop trust with buyers while developing a more professional corporate brand identity.
Hands down, content that's customized to your followers' and customers' professional interests resonates the most.
With LinkedIn's targeted updates, you can easily tailor your message to your audience. For example, when you create an update, you can choose to share it with “all followers” or to a “targeted audience.”
Choose the latter to send your update to a subset of followers based on geography, industry, company size or level of seniority. Just as with any social network, LinkedIn is a community where targeted engagement is essential for success.
When you update from your company page, use these two essential tips for creating compelling content:
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FIND YOUR NEXT FAVORITE TOOL- Think like a journalist. Don't bury the lead! Concise intros and snappy headlines are more likely to result in higher engagement than long, dry copy. You have only moments to show your audience why they should care, so being succinct is crucial. Grab your readers' attention right away by starting your update with your most important thought.
- Make your content valuable and “snackable.” Develop quality content that is quick to consume, so members will want to share it with their connections and networks. In fact, our data shows that the most successful updates include a picture, chart, video or link to an article. When you do not have a link or image to include, engage your audience by asking a question.
Lastly, keep in mind that professionals will check your updates on multiple devices.
#3: Attract More Followers
The more the merrier on the social merry-go-round. Here are some simple, effective strategies for attracting more followers with your company updates:
- Engage your colleagues. Employees are 70% more likely to engage with your company updates, so don't forget to ask them to do it! Initiate communication and make it easy for them to respond.
- Cultivate a larger following with a multi-channel approach. Encourage your teammates to add a link to your company page in their email signatures. If needed, ask your designer for help creating a customized banner or button.
- Add a Follow button to your website. Your web team can pull code for a Follow button from developer.linkedin.com to add to your blog or website. This lets LinkedIn members follow your company with a single click.
Add a Follow button to your website, making it easy to grow your LinkedIn company page follower base.
#4: Follow the 4-1-1 Rule
The 4-1-1 Rule was coined by Tippingpoint Labs and Joe Pulizzi of the Content Marketing Institute. The rule states:
“For every one self-serving tweet, you should retweet one relevant tweet and most importantly share four pieces of relevant content written by others.”
Apply this simple rule to your activity on your LinkedIn company page, and you've struck gold. You'll authentically engage in conversations, build awareness and interact with LinkedIn members without giving the impression that you're a self-centered know-it-all.
For marketers, the 4-1-1 Rule is particularly useful when applied to building relationships with prospective customers. This kind of trust hinges on your ability to foster an informative dialogue regularly. It also keeps you at the front of prospects' minds as they move through the buying phase.
As Jay Baer says, “Sell something, get a customer for a day. Help someone, get a customer for life.”
#5: Analyze for the Prize
Company page administrators have access to LinkedIn Analytics that help them better engage with their followers and monitor their success. There is a goldmine of insights available to help you focus and refine your strategy, including:
- Engagement %Â â Engagement = interactions + clicks + followers acquired. In other words, this metric answers the question, “Of those who've seen my update, how many are truly engaging with it?” Look at updates with higher engagement rates, and note the type of content, people targeted, date and time. Then you'll know how to optimize future content around what's proven to work.
- Demographics â From seniority and industry to company size and function, demographics give you a snapshot of your followers. With this information, you can tailor the type of content you share on your company page, as well as the tone in which it's delivered. Demographics will also help you determine segments to target with targeted status updates.
- How You Compare â Knowing how your company page compares to your competitors' pages is a great way to determine whether you should change your strategy.
Watch this video to learn more about the new LinkedIn company page analytics.
Bonus Tip
Host a company “Lunch & Learn” to evangelize the power of company updates, and share tips and tricks with your team. This can have a significant impact on your company page's overall reach.
Consider third-party apps like GaggleAMP and Addvocate to show employees which updates are most important for your company and are pre-approved for sharing.
Over to You
What do you think? Are you using LinkedIn's company pages to connect your business with the professionals you most want to reach? How do you update your followers on company news, products and services and job openings? Leave your questions and comments in the box below.
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