A LinkedIn content strategy is critical for successful content marketing. Marketers have discovered the platform’s potential to connect with potential clients. According to Hootsuite:
- 94% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn for content marketing
- 89% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn for lead generation
- 4 out of 5 people on LinkedIn drive business decisions
If you can grow your LinkedIn page performance, your connections could snowball, and your organic reach could explode. Providing quality content on LinkedIn is key to these outcomes. Here are 13 steps to take to improve the vitality of your LinkedIn content and grow your audience.
Getting your LinkedIn content strategy right
Before we delve into content creation tactics, let’s examine the critical elements needed to develop an effective LinkedIn content strategy.
Step #1: Define engagement
You can’t measure what you don’t understand, so let’s define engagement as:
- Likes
- Shares
- Comments
- Direct messages
Whatever you do, do not count views as a measure of engagement. The number of times your page is viewed has no consequence for you. You need participation – people who you can interact with. A million people may see a ring in a jeweler’s shop, but the jeweler won’t sell unless someone makes an enquiry.
Step #2: Commit to posting content consistently
People read and share quality content. You demonstrate your subject authority by posting quality content consistently. Quality content that makes people think, question or debate solicits engagement. Even if a reader’s comment is no more than “Thanks for sharing this,” you have an opportunity to kickstart a meaningful conversation – but it all hangs on providing quality content consistently.
Step #3: Link to your LinkedIn content
Encourage people to view your content by making it easy for them to do so:
- Include a link to your LinkedIn profile on your email signature
- Add a ‘Follow’ button to your website
- Send an email to your email list each time you post a piece of content to your LinkedIn profile
Step #4: Get involved in LinkedIn’s relevant groups
There are many groups on LinkedIn in which you can become involved. Spread your knowledge, your advice, and your brand awareness.
Step #5: Ask your customers to advocate for you
You have customers who are in love with your brand. You’re the first business they call. Use that love to your advantage, and ask them to advocate for you by sharing your content with their contacts.
Step #6: Extend your reach with LinkedIn ads
Tap into potential leads on LinkedIn by employing the power of LinkedIn ads. Your ads will be targeted, and you’ll gain more relevant followers.
Step #7: Engage with every comment
Be good to those who take the time to comment on your posts. Engage in conversations, be good humored and well-mannered, and respond positively – even if the comment is negative.
While you’re in engagement mode, make sure that you engage with the content of those who follow you and comment on your content.
(Read our post ‘How to connect with your potential clients using LinkedIn’ for more ideas.)
Step #8: Conduct competitor analysis
Take note of what content your competitors are creating and sharing and which of their content is achieving the most engagement. Then fill the gaps that will resonate with your competitors’ followers.
Getting your content right
With your strategy in place, you must ensure your content does the job it should. Here are the key steps to help you do so.
Step #9: Focus on creating quality content
While engagement is the goal, it won’t happen if you don’t produce quality content. You don’t create content to go viral. You create great content that goes viral. Create content that is original, engaging, relevant and entertaining. Do this, and engagement will follow.
Step #10: Make sure every post adds value
People will read and engage if your content gives them something they cannot gain elsewhere. Be helpful, and don’t shy away from being controversial. People engage with controversial.
Helpful articles get shared, especially if they contain personal messages that resonate with readers. Think of ways to achieve this (storytelling is a winning method) and incorporate it into your content strategy.
Step #11: Make sure your LinkedIn posts look good
Attract readers with content that looks great as well as reads great. Here are a few tips to help you:
- Use short sentences and short paragraphs
- Employ bullet points to focus attention on important points and critical data
- Add images to incorporate color and help break the page
- Don’t use too many hashtags
- Use subtitles to make posts easily scannable
Step #12: Start with a title that draws people to read further
Don’t neglect your title. If your title doesn’t tell the reader what to expect and entices them to read, you’ll lose any chance of engagement.
Step #13: Maintain momentum throughout the post
Structure your post to maintain momentum throughout, encouraging visitors to read on and engage:
- Let you reader know what to expect by writing a telling opening
- Use statistics to validate your points of view
- Include relevant links
- Include hashtags to make your content searchable
And finally…
Augment your content strategy and great content with a great attitude toward others. Thank people for sharing your content and be open to inviting others to contribute. Oh, and make sure that you optimize your pages for search engines and leverage intent signals in keywords.