LinkedIn isn't just a good resource for professionals.
When used the right way, it can be a powerful tool for businesses too—and not just for recruiting, the way most managers think of using the site.
Businesses that navigate LinkedIn properly engage customers, generate sales leads, and swap internal information among employees.
We got in touch with Krista Canfield, LinkedIn's senior manager of corporate communications. True, it's her job to get people to use LinkedIn, but we think she has a perspective worth sharing, since she trains companies on nontraditional uses of LinkedIn. She knows the platform like the back of her hand, having joined LinkedIn when it only had 18 million members and 200 people on staff (now it has 187 million members and 3,177 employees). Her team has also trained more than 13,000 journalists to better navigate LinkedIn.
Canfield told us the most common mistakes she sees businesses make on LinkedIn, and how all companies can use the professional social network better.
1. Your company isn't even listed on LinkedIn
"More than 2.6 million companies already have a LinkedIn Company Page," Canfield says.
So why is it a big deal to add yours?
LinkedIn shows companies statistics about their followers for free. Companies with pages can also share news and information with their followers to keep people engaged and attract new clients or employees.
Canfield recommends checking out LinkedIn's own company page (which has a hidden joke for hackers), as well as CNBC, Dell, and Philips for some good examples.
2. Your company doesn't follow competitors on LinkedIn
LinkedIn company pages can be a good way to keep tabs on the competition.
"When you follow a competitor’s LinkedIn Company Page, you can find out what talent is joining, and leaving, those companies," Canfield says. "You’ll also get updates from the companies (when they share recent news articles or discussions with their followers) and you’ll be the first to know when they post jobs on
LinkedIn. This information can help clue you in to the direction those companies might be heading in."
Canfield also recommends following company pages for partners, potential customers and acquisition targets on LinkedIn.
3. Your employees haven't spent much time on their LinkedIn profiles
Employees are an extension of your brand on LinkedIn, so it's important to make sure their profile pages are a good representation of your company.
"LinkedIn Profiles (which appear in Google search results not just for names, but also in Web searches for skills and areas of expertise) may be the first encounter a potential customer or business partner has with your company," says Canfield. "A bare-bones profile on LinkedIn suggests that your employee and your company may not have stellar online networking skills, so encourage your people to fill out their profiles so they are 100 percent complete."
Canfield suggests even little touches, like making sure employees have uploaded profile pictures. A LinkedIn profile is 7 times more likely to be viewed if it has a photo.
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