There is no doubt about it – running a business is hard.
It can seem like an uphill battle, especially during the first few years. Small businesses come up against many different challenges, some harder than others to overcome, and regrettably, 20% of companies fail in their first year. A further 60% go bust within their first three years.
With those grim survival rates, it is understandable why many business owners face the first few years with trepidation. But many of these problems are actually solvable. The panacea, LinkedIn.
LinkedIn has grown to become the most valuable social media platform for business professionals, amassing a membership of more than 830 million across 200 countries. It is now the number one marketing platform for small businesses, with up to 94% of B2B marketers using LinkedIn to distribute content.
If you aren’t using this powerful platform for your small business in 2022, you’re missing out on an invaluable opportunity to grow. Here are 7 of the best LinkedIn marketing strategies that you can implement to help scale your company’s online presence and generate leads.
1. Post content regularly.
Have you ever noticed posts appearing on your feed that your connections liked or commented on? This is because of the LinkedIn algorithm – when you direct followers to like or comment on your content, it appears on the feeds of their connections.
It is absolutely essential to keep a steady stream of fresh content on your Company Page. When you post frequently, your content attains more visibility among your direct connections as well as second and third-level connections.
Pro Tip: LinkedIn confirmed that businesses that post at least weekly see a 2x lift in engagement, leading to organic reach.
2. Post compelling content.
LinkedIn has recently announced changes to its algorithm to provide its users with better, more relevant content that sparks conversation. They have decided to downrank engagement-baiting posts and polls that they deem irrelevant.
We recommend sharing informative, educational content – infographics, blogs, photographs and illustrations, videos – anything that your audience might find valuable or relevant. This is the best way to help your Page gain unique followers regularly and create an industry leader persona for your brand.
3. Engage your employees.
It is commonly said that your employees are your most valuable asset – this is also true when it comes to growing your company’s LinkedIn page. Encourage your employees to spread the word with their network outside of your company and connections who may be interested in what you do.
This is one of the most critical steps in boosting your business’s LinkedIn Page. When your employees share your posts or you tag them in your posts, your business’s visibility increases as the post is shared with both networks.
4. Use your customers as brand advocates.
Customer advocacy is essential for small businesses. Achieving favourable customer reviews takes time. LinkedIn provides you with a platform to communicate directly with your audience. Using this social network, they can actively tell others about your business through reviews, content, comments, etc.
To encourage your customers to provide positive feedback, you should try the following:
- Actively responding to comments, thanking the customer for providing feedback.
- If customers share their grievances, you should immediately acknowledge them, provide them with your customer service email or contact number, and approach them.
- Organise contests such as giveaways, discounts, gifts etc., to keep the employee engaged.
5. Join relevant conversations.
Posts that include topical hashtags can also increase your content’s reach and potential engagement. Hashtags enable your content to permeate from feed to feed, reaching new and relevant communities. Whatever your content, it is likely to appear whenever someone searches for that specific hashtag. Also, if the hashtag happens to be trending, you can increase your Page’s visibility by tapping into ongoing conversations about that topic.
Pro Tip: LinkedIn generally recommends using three to five relevant hashtags in a post. Although, in our experience, the number of hashtags can vary depending upon the topic, nature of the content, and topicality.
6. Post at the right time.
The right time to post on any social media platform varies based on several factors, such as brand guidelines, follower active hours, etc. We recommend testing different posting times to determine the best time to post for your desired audience.
Based on research by HubSpot, the best days to post on LinkedIn are Saturdays, Sundays, and Wednesdays. The worst days are Monday and Friday. While the best times to post are around noon when people are enjoying their lunch, or in the evening after people have finished work, between 6 and 9 pm.
7. Use LinkedIn analytics.
By using LinkedIn analytics, you can access the data needed to improve your efforts, quantify the ROI and reach social media targets. LinkedIn analysis helps businesses assess when they’ve reached their goals, whether audience growth or increasing follower engagement.
Under every LinkedIn post, there is a View Analytics button. When you click on it, it reveals all the stats related to the post, including impressions, reactions, click through rate, comments, shares and number of clicks. This data can then be used to optimise your Company Page and marketing efforts to best appeal to your target audience.
Get ahead with LinkedIn.
Not only is LinkedIn extremely useful for job recruitment and sharing career updates, but it is also a valuable platform for small businesses to expand their audience and grow their business.
LinkedIn provides small businesses with an opportunity to showcase their culture, appreciate employees, highlight their leadership, and foster deeper engagement with their customers.
Develop a social media strategy before getting started to ensure you’re offering your audience valuable content with each and every post.