Key Takeaways:
1. Candidates and buyers expect a certain level of sophistication and proficiency from you on LinkedIn.
2. Content is a key strategy for SEO and PR.
3. Encouraging your employees to shape their personal brand may be daunting, however, it is necessary to further your message and create credibility.
Content can be a strategic tool or your downfall.
You decide.
It’s a strategic tool when you see the long-term value it creates for your business. When used wisely, it is a window into your company’s soul and how buyers, investors, and candidates can get to know you.
If you don’t see the value that content provides, it will be relegated to the back burner, neglected, rushed, and poorly crafted.
Everyone, I do mean everyone, is talking about hiring, talent acquisition, retention, and culture these days. For a good reason too.
I was recently on a panel discussing this topic, and we talked about the absolute need for content to attract talent—stories, insight, both informative and spontaneous, designed to attract talent across all areas of the organization.
I’m not sure in-house recruiters and HR professionals see themselves as natural storytellers. Perhaps that’s a skill worth acquiring.
There is no single group of professionals working harder to create relevant content than marketers. However, I notice they too can fall into pitching products and services repeatedly rather than telling stories, creating emotion, and inspiring action.
Our approach for LinkedIn is straightforward and focuses on creating strategies for attracting talent, investors, buyers, donors, sponsors, and volunteers.
Regardless of the audience, the process requires the same elements: an engaging, credible presence, a strategic network, and relevant and value-added content.
Without one of these elements, it falls apart. Without two, you’re barely on the radar, and without a presence, network, or content, there’s no chance of standing out and gaining sustainable traction.
Traditionally, LinkedIn has been known as a place to go when you need a job. While that philosophy is quite dated, I hear it often enough to know that lots of job and career seekers, along with those looking to fill positions and gain new clients/customers, remain uninformed and uninspired by LinkedIn and the power and variety of ways it can be used throughout one’s career and current job, regardless of role and responsibility.
If we know this, then why don’t we invest more in how we show up and engage?
There are a few reasons.
We suggest working with your teams to think differently about their approach and consider the importance of showing up professionally on LinkedIn.
Hubspot, in their article LinkedIn 277% More Effective for Lead Generation Than Facebook & Twitter [New Data], references the importance of content and the trust factor associated with LinkedIn.
Check out the stats related to hiring from FinancesOnline:
When you consider all the stats, and the qualitative input from colleagues or peers, you can’t bury your head in the sand. You need LinkedIn, and you need to put a plan in place.
If you are hiring across generations, young professionals, or entry-level to executive level, you need content that speaks to these demographics. Why? They value different things and need to know what it will be like for them to work for your company. Opportunity looks different at various points in a career journey.
If you’re an individual, posting every day isn’t necessary. However, depending on your business/career goals, you can choose one or two content themes weekly or bi-weekly to grab your network’s attention and establish yourself as a thought leader.
A few months back, Eddie Resende, Co-CEO of the World Trade Center Insitute, and I spoke on the phone, discussing his desire to do more on LinkedIn and learn more best practices. We discussed the feedback he received on a recent post he created.
The post that attracted the attention and engagement spoke of Eddie’s challenge around remote work and returning to the office. It was real, authentic, and slightly vulnerable.
Eddie is well respected within his organization and throughout Maryland. He shared what so many other CEOs were dealing with and didn’t discuss publically.
Eddie is engaging and approachable. He is the kind of person people want to work alongside.
In my opinion, this is a post that speaks to culture, adaptability, empathy, and building a world-class work environment.
It’s a post written thoughtfully by someone who cares.
His message also demonstrated an interest in learning and understanding how this type of activity would serve his audience and organization. His posts continue to attract the desired comments, reactions, and shares.
Promote an environment where individuals feel comfortable building their own brand. Recognize while they are building their brand, they are also supporting your brand and creating greater visibility
Jim Ries, Director of Business Development for Offit Kurman, develops a variety of content from Java with Jim, BusinessBits, Cannabits, Business Development tips, movie quotes, and more. Something for everyone in his network.
Bryan Howe ran a weekly series, “Breakfast with Boomer,” his Golden Retriever. Who doesn’t want to see a photo of a Golden enjoying life on a Monday morning? Bryan’s content brought it all together.
If you don’t have a culture of powering up your employees, start simply with one person.
One of the goals of content is engagement. If you want engagement on your posts, engage with other people’s content. Be social. Be active.
My good friend, Des McCabe focuses on sharing and promoting his client’s content. Des’ network is significant, with 13,000+ 1st level connections at the time this article is published, and creates strong amplification for Des’ connection/client. This is PR at its best. Very little, if any, of Des’ content is about him or what he does.
An engaged network that understands the reciprocal nature of social engagement is critical.
Des beats the recommendation that for every four posts, only one should be promotional in nature.
You’ll notice he doesn’t just comment or share the post, a few make it to his Featured section. Brilliant, Des.
Don’t miss my podcast with Des McCabe on Intero Advisory or your favorite podcast channel.
Not every post deserves a comment or share, but most deserve more than a Like.
Comment on posts where you can add encouragement, value, and affirmation.
Choose content posted by candidates, customers/clients, and companies and give it some love.
I like to give people, especially clients, referral partners, and COIs, shoutouts as a way to let them know I appreciate them.
Marketers are confident in publishing content on their LinkedIn company Page, however, posts need to reach into the employee networks, and often, the marketing person/team hasn’t built a strong network of clients/prospects/strategic partners. They should.
This is why you need your leadership, sales, and other client/customer/talent facing teams to step up, learn how to engage effectively, and use your company’s content to spark new conversations.
Recruiters, marketers, salespeople, and leadership need to get comfortable using content to attract others, increase credibility, and showcase their culture, services, and products. Less promotion, more insight.
If you’re not designing and amplifying your content, you’re losing in the race to grow your business and attract talent. It’s just that simple.
If you haven’t read our other 2022 posts, check them out here.
Showing Up is Just the Beginning— Mindset Sets the Tone
How Companies Can Increase Their Digital Voice
Why You Need Your Employee’s LinkedIn Network
The Key to Greater Employee Advocacy on LinkedIn? Invest.
We’re about providing you with content you can use to build your strategy, ways to go deeper, and the how to’s that make a difference. Our content is here for you to gain the insight you need to maximize LinkedIn for branding, business development, and recruiting.