Developing an Awesome LinkedIn Company Page
An outstanding LinkedIn company page can help you establish your brand’s credibility.
A LinkedIn company page (sometimes called a LinkedIn business page) is different from an individual LinkedIn profile. It allows brands to establish a presence on the professional social network and engage with potential employees, customers and partners. Each LinkedIn company page features a brand’s logo and name, as well as a brief description of its products or services.
With a LinkedIn company page, brands can do the following:
- Prominently display a branded header image
- Link back to their company’s website
- Post status updates
- Post job openings
- Create an event
- Create a Showcase Page
- Track analytics
Each of these tools can improve a brand’s ability to communicate its value to its audience, whether that is job candidates who can help the company grow or customers who want to pay for products or services.
Benefits of a LinkedIn company page
A LinkedIn company page offers brands a way to gain recognition among an audience of professionals, making it especially effective for business-to-business (B2B) companies. It can also be easier to grow organic content on LinkedIn than on other social media platforms, said Taylor Aldredge, buzz director, and partner at marketing agency Quality Control.
“Twitter is a hard platform to stand out on now,” Aldredge said. “Facebook and Instagram require paid content to boost posts. But on LinkedIn, you can still go viral in a really big way.”
To improve the odds that your brand will go viral, or at least gain significant traction, consider using a LinkedIn company page in the following four ways:
1. Share company updates.
A LinkedIn company page can be used to share status updates in much the same way as an individual’s LinkedIn profile. When your brand shares company news through your business page, it will appear in the news feeds of your followers. A business page can be used to attract any type of LinkedIn user your company might want to connect with, from professionals to potential customers. Determine your target audience to better tailor content to the type of LinkedIn user you want to engage with your brand.
“Share things that are important to your business model or your company goals,” Aldredge said. “You can contribute to your brand growth in that way.”
2. Recruit and hire.
LinkedIn is a platform dedicated to professionals, entrepreneurs, and employers, so the connections and followers you gain are likely to be skilled, experienced, and motivated. Though LinkedIn charges a fee for the job opportunities you post, job seekers are plentiful on this platform.
“LinkedIn is a really great way to get jobs up there and keep them organized,” Aldredge said. [Read related article: How to Hire for Your Business]
3. Publicize events.
LinkedIn allows you to create and promote events. For example, if you are hosting a webinar, you could create and publicize the event on LinkedIn through your company page. Your followers will then see the post in their news feed. For an additional fee, brands can sponsor posts and events to reach a wider audience.
4. Review data analytics.
As your LinkedIn following grows, you can gain marketing insights by reviewing the social media platform’s analytics data. LinkedIn Page Analytics offers data points such as follower and visitor demographics, which can be used to refine your larger digital marketing efforts to better target your audience. You can also use analytics reports to evaluate the effectiveness of the content you post on LinkedIn.
Who needs a LinkedIn company page?
Not every business owner needs a LinkedIn company page. Freelancers, for example, are better served by an individual profile that showcases their work experience, Aldredge said. However, if the business takes off and a freelancer decides to hire an employee, it might be time to create a company page.
Additionally, LinkedIn tends to lend itself better to B2B brands than to business-to-consumer (B2C) brands. While some B2C activity can occur on LinkedIn, it’s far more likely for B2B businesses to find customers on the platform. [Read related article: How to Use LinkedIn Groups to Generate Business Leads]
“Your business should be on LinkedIn if customers are finding you or you have positions available,” Aldredge said. “If you’re a small business owner who does retail, you might not need a LinkedIn company page unless a lot of your employees are also on LinkedIn.”
However, LinkedIn can be useful for B2C businesses as well. Although LinkedIn might not drum up as many sales as Facebook, it can still be an effective brand-building tool. When you’re determining whether you need a company page, think about the type of users who are on LinkedIn. Aldredge gave the example of Tesla’s LinkedIn company page, which has over 7 million followers.
“People aren’t going there to talk about consumer products,” Aldredge said. “They’re going there because they’re engineers or professionals. It’s a consumer-facing brand, but people are there for B2B reasons.”
Whether you are trying to find employees, suppliers or investors, there might be a good reason for your B2C brand to be present on LinkedIn.
Is a LinkedIn company page free?
Yes, it is free to create a LinkedIn company page and begin sharing content. To create a free LinkedIn company page, a user just needs a company name and a company email address. However, you’ll need to pay for the platform’s premium features, including sponsored content and advertisements.
How to develop an awesome LinkedIn company page
Creating an effective LinkedIn company page boils down to your branding, linking, and content. These three elements combine to establish your brand presence, encourage engagement and drive conversions (whether that’s identifying job candidates, gaining followers, making sales, or something else entirely).
1. Branding
It is important to have your basic branding ready to go when making your LinkedIn company page. A logo and branded cover photo are among the first things users will see when they navigate to your company page. Make sure these components are eye-catching and consistent with your branding efforts elsewhere.
Remember the nonvisual elements of your brand as well, especially when developing the content of your company page. Your brand message should be reinforced on your company page, and everything should be written in your brand’s voice.
2. Linking
It is great to get visitors to your LinkedIn company page, but it is even better if they click a link back to your website (especially if you are an e-commerce business). Make sure users have the opportunity to do just that by prominently displaying a link to your company’s website just below the tagline.
3. Content
The content you share on your LinkedIn company page is what will attract your intended audience. Incorporate what you already know about your audience into your content creation. For example, if you are looking for young professionals interested in a career in technology, you should develop content that resonates with adults between 18 and 35 who have an interest in technology. Growing your following is important, but it is critical to growing the audiences you actually want — not every follower is created equal.
Search engine optimization also matters. Including relevant keywords in your content can help people find your brand through relevant searches. For example, if you own a retail shop, be specific about the products you carry, as users searching for those products will be more likely to encounter your brand.
