Can you hear that? It’s your LinkedIn followers, clamoring for more. The question you need to answer is, more of what? What do my devoted followers actually want to see from my LinkedIn profile?
To the extent that your followers sit up at night thinking about these things – and, let’s face it, they don’t – they want more of some very basic types of content and engagement that you’re more than capable of providing. Do these five things, in particular, and you’re sure to boost engagement and goodwill on LinkedIn.
- Accurate, Up-to-Date Information About You and Your Company
It sounds like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many neglect it – and how miffed that neglect makes otherwise mild-mannered followers.
Case in point is the main LinkedIn profile for United Airlines. United is a household name; virtually everyone visiting its page for the first time will already be aware of the company and its basic objectives. But United nevertheless includes a painstaking amount of demographic detail about the company’s history, mission, fleet, and the like. Whoever made this LinkedIn page goes so far as to list United’s second headquarters address in Santiago, Chile, half a world away from its Chicago hub.
- Details About the Charitable Organizations You Support
If you’re proud of the community groups you support, use your LinkedIn profile to promote their activities – and, by extension, your social consciousness. The LinkedIn profile for Manitoba entrepreneur David Janeson includes substantial detail about Maskwa Project, a youth initiative in Janeson’s home province. It’s quite likely that Maskwa has received inquiries on the strength of Janeson’s endorsement; your own LinkedIn content choices could redound to similar effect.
- Endorsements and Accolades
For better or worse, LinkedIn endorsements are the platform’s best proxy for credibility. If your profile is thin on endorsements, why should anyone trust what you have to say – or hire you, or ink a contract with your company?
You can set this right by reading up on how to attract LinkedIn endorsements that actually matter, then going on an endorsement spree of your own. Reciprocity is a powerful thing: when you scratch a colleague’s back with a coveted endorsement or performance review, they’re likely to return the favor.
- Detail-Rich, Thought-Provoking Original Content
Never forget that your LinkedIn profile is a powerful megaphone, far more so than the typical personal or professional blog. (No offense.) The LinkedIn page for CBRE Global Capital Markets is a great example of the power of targeted content: its detail-rich reports and analyses are exactly what real estate professionals need to do their jobs.
- Engagement With Your Connections and Colleagues
Last, but not least, engage freely with connections and colleagues. Like their posts. Respond with comments or tags. Share particularly compelling posts on your own profile, or through other social channels. They’ll return the favor on your posts – and round and round you’ll go.
Keep Your LinkedIn Presence Interesting
Nothing good ever came from crossing a line on LinkedIn. Of every social media platform you’re likely to use regularly, LinkedIn is the most buttoned-up and professional. You want to keep it that way, even if you feel tempted by fate (or the bane of your existence down in accounting) to do otherwise. Remember, interesting doesn’t mean scandalous — however much we might wish to conflate those terms these days.