Our Outlook

Traditionally, LinkedIn has served as a platform to connect professionals with others in their networks. Now with more than 400 million members, the site has grown into a space for its members to establish a voice and showcase their expertise.

LinkedIn now provides users with effective ways to start conversations and directly engage with their target audiences. This provides opportunities for professionals to establish themselves as thought leaders in their industries and elevate their professional reputations, as well as those of their organizations.

Read on for four ways to use LinkedIn as a thought leadership tool. 

1. Produce short form posts. Similar to Facebook’s timeline, LinkedIn’s homepage news feed is populated with updates from people in your network and companies that you follow. Start a conversation by sharing an interesting industry article you read, a photo from a conference you attended or asking followers their opinions on a hot topic. Post 2-3 times per week.
2. Publish long form posts. Through LinkedIn Pulse, you can publish original articles on topics relevant to your target audience. LinkedIn recommends that authors use personal anecdotes and share opinions to yield trust among readers. Think of Pulse as your own blog or news site, a hub to share value-added and timely content that showcases your knowledge in your field. Use relevant tags to increase your post’s searchability with people outside your network. Publish 1-3 times per month.
3. Engage with others. Don’t only publish posts to your page. Interact with others by liking, commenting or sharing their posts. This will allow you to share your thoughts and ideas with others outside your network and gain new followers.
4. Share! Cross-promote your posts on other social media channels and ask your colleagues to do the same to maximize reach.

Have you had success building your professional brand on LinkedIn? Tell us about it in the comments section below.

Sam Prichard is a Senior Account Executive at Lovell Communications. Connect with Sam at Sam@lovell.com or @sammyprichard.