Not that long ago, we shared 11 Simple Ways to Propel Your LinkedIn Profile into ‘All-Star’ Status. We noticed several visitors asked if those tips could also be used for a company page on LinkedIn. While some of the advice could definitely translate into a LinkedIn company page, such as completing the profile and including target keywords that are industry specific, there are also some differences.
Image Source: Sheila Scarborough/Flickr
Even if you weren’t one of the people who left an inquiry, it’s still a great idea to optimize your business LinkedIn page. Why? Because LinkedIn company pages are more and more popular among marketers who are looking to engage with their networks, generate leads, and showcase their products. Instead of being left behind, why not join the over 3 million companies who have created a Company Page on LinkedIn.
Once you sign up for a Company Page, follow these 8 steps and you’ll have an optimized business page on LinkedIn in a matter of minutes.
1. Be Consistent
When you create or edit your company page on LinkedIn make sure that it’s consistent with all of your social networks and website. This will keep your brand consistent. This means that you should have everything from the same tone to graphics. The last thing that you want is for visitors from your website, Twitter, or Facebook to wonder if this is the same company when they check out your LinkedIn page.
Also, double-check all of your company’s information. Make sure that it’s accurate and up to date not only on LinkedIn, but across all of your social media channels. For example, if you have a new email address or phone number, make sure that information has been changed. You don’t want to miss out on a major opportunity because you didn’t take the minute to update your information, right?
2. Add Administrators
If you’re serious about creating a company page LinkedIn, this is a great option. By adding admins, you’re allowing connections to edit the page and publish status updates. Instead of only one person doing this daily, you could have several people sharing the workload.
Simply head over to “Edit” and click on “Designated Users Only.” From there, select the connections that you want to grant admin access to. Just remember to add yourself. If not, you’ll have to ask one of the new admins to add you, which would be kind of embarrassing.
3. Post Status Updates at Least Twice a Day
This isn’t exactly a groundbreaking tip. Sharing relevant and quality content is an effective way of not only increasing your presence on LinkedIn, but it can also drive traffic from your LinkedIn page to your website. Just make sure that you are committed to doing this frequently. For example, you could share an article first thing in the morning and some sort of question later in the day to start communication.
You can also take it one step further and create your own content. Is there any better way to increase you network and keep your target audience interested. You could create some interesting content by using LinkedIn’s own SlideShare for sharable and easy to digest material like infographics.
4. Image Profile and Banners
Did you know that LinkedIn allows you to add up to three banner images to each of your company profile pages? But, why are banner images so important? For starters, you can create hyper-linked banners featuring calls to action. This is a great technique to serve targeted content. You can also measure the measuring ROI from banner ads thanks to click-throughs. Most importantly, however, banners spice up your page by bringing in some character and color.
Besides the addition of banners, remember that your profile image should always be your brand’s logo – remember how we just mentioned brand consistency? Here are some helpful tips on banners and your profile image.
The banner image should be 646×220 pixels.
The most important information should be placed at the top of the image, such as key messaging or your company’s value proposition. Keep in mind, however, that the message on LinkedIn will be different from on Facebook, Twitter, etc. because it’s a different audience.
Again, make sure it is consistent with your existing branding. Have the same color scheme, typography, etc.
5. Highlight Products
You’re a company, right? So let people know what you’re offering. List at least one of your products or services in the “Products” section, and then explain why it’s valuable. To do this, simply follow these steps: Products Tab >> Admin Tools >> Add a product. Follow the wizard from there.
You can also have three products or services with rotating banner images. But, unlike the banner on the homepage, these feature clickable links that will direct users to relevant landing pages on your site. This is powerful tool to showcase your goods or services.
Finally, you’re allowed to create variations of your Products & Services pages. This means that you can target an audience based company size, job function, industry, seniority and/or geography.
6. Add Videos
Who doesn’t enjoy wasting time on YouTube? But, it’s also a great tool to optimize your LinkedIn company page by engaging visitors and offering a visual presentation of your brand. It’s been estimated that as many as 60 percent of the Top 100 brands on LinkedIn now routinely post videos linked to their YouTube channel.
You can easily add videos from your YouTube account (or anyone’s) by simply going over to “Add your YouTube video …” and then copying/pasting the YouTube video link. What an awesome complement for your written content. And, don’t hesitate to add more than one video on your page. In fact, it wouldn’t hurt to have videos on both your “Products & Services” and “Careers” pages.
7. Link to a Landing Page
We understand that it’s tempting to link to your homepage, but there’s a better option. A landing page. By linking to a landing page you’re not only providing more details regarding your brand or company, but also creating a lead generation opportunity that can increase your chances of driving leads and customers.
8. Encourage Involvement from Employees
You know what says a lot about a company? How employees feel about the company. Are they enthusiastic and proud to be a part of the team? Then let them share that excitement with others. After all, your employees should be some of your biggest advocates.
Encourage your employees to share and like company posts. This can help establish a community within your company and signals to others that your company is doing something right – why else would their employees promote the company like this? Just make sure all of the LinkedIn profiles of your employees are appropriate and up-to-date. If not, it could defeat the whole purpose.
Do you have a company page on LinkedIn? What has helped you increase your optimization?