Social media has become one of the most important content marketing tools. But when most people think about using social media, it’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram that pop into their minds first. In the world of busy professionals and entrepreneurs looking to make contacts and to push their profile or brand, it’s the LinkedIn network that’s emerged as the most prominent platform.
This was proved beyond a doubt when LinkedIn opened up its content platform—initially only for established moguls like Bill Gates and Richard Manson—to the wider public in early 2014. For brands looking to use this platform for marketing purposes, the opening provides a tremendous opportunity. It makes LinkedIn an essential element of success when it comes to any online marketing effort.
In fact, the site has produced two very useful tools for businesses and brands to measure their content marketing status. All this proves further that, in order to succeed as a brand on Linkedin, content is still king.
Content Marketing Score
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You're gonna want higher scores than this guy.[/caption]
How many social media platforms out there actually have an analytics resource that provides you with the kind of data that can help you expand your profile? That’s what the “Content Marketing Score” does for your business when you sign up onto LinkedIn. The tool calculates a “score” by dividing the number of users who have seen your content over a period of a month, by those who have generally been active on the platform for the same time period.
The opportunity for businesses to produce content that reaches people who’d genuinely be interested without having to rely on a search engine is game changing. LinkedIn will also measure your content marketing success and compare it to your competitors. It’ll give you tips on how to improve your score over a certain period of time in order to attain a better rank.
Nobody goes on LinkedIn just to check out people’s photos and statuses. They don’t log on just to hang out online. There are other platforms for that purpose. LinkedIn is where you can raise the profile of your brand among people who’re looking for the things you offer.
Trending Content
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How you want them all to react to your content.[/caption]
This is another tool by LinkedIn that can help you expand your online presence. All marketing strategies, particularly ones concerned with inbound traffic, have to consider what the top trends are. The “Trending Content” tool on LinkedIn takes all the trending topics and content related to your business and aggregates them.
The topics are usually broken down into the following segments: executive, health, pharmaceuticals, financial services, IT, high-tech technologies, students, automotive, capitalists, venture and small businesses. You then pick the best group for your business, and the trending content tool will aggregate the relevant content.
What Does All This Mean?
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Teamwork makes the dream work.[/caption]
As a start, all your team members should be on LinkedIn, as ambassadors of your brand. The more heads you can put together to push your brand, the fresher your content will be. Use both the Content Managing Score and the Trending Content tool to measure and produce the most successful kinds of content. That’s going to be key.
Treating content that’s published on LinkedIn with the same level of attention and quality, as content to be presented in other high-profile publications will only help you. Businesses will have to make sure that their content is relevant and original, and a good reflection of what they do. Anything that falls short will degrade the integrity and reputation of the brand.
And learn from those who’re doing well, especially when you’re just starting out. LinkedIn puts you into a pool of prospective and real-time competitors. Not everyone is going to be doing amazing all the time. Pay attention to what works and what tanks and integrate your findings into a marketing strategy. That way, you optimize your chances for getting the most out of LinkedIn.
