Here’s some interesting data from Statista: in a survey of popular social media channels, B2B marketers noted that LinkedIn offered the best value – twice as much as any other channel (including YouTube, the most-watched channel on TV earlier this year).

Are you using LinkedIn?

Here’s what I’ve been using it for, and how it’s worked for my clients (and me).

• Regular, organic posts
• A variety of opinion pieces and “thought leadership”
• Links to blog posts (to get readers to go to the website)
• Newsletters – on LinkedIn

Why do these types of organic posts or Newsletters work? Because they maintain your presence in a professional setting, they show your areas of expertise, and they “speak” to your ideal audience.

And if you want to really ramp up your brand’s presence on LinkedIn, you’ll want to do paid campaigns. LinkedIn is expensive but the final return-on-investment can be good, if you’re selling higher-priced products or services. This paid channel can be well worth the cost if your ideal target market is easily defined.

Speaking of your target audience or market, do you think that only older people are on LinkedIn? Well, it’s time you update your data… here’s the breakdown by age group of those using LinkedIn these days. (see below) Are you surprised?

The data from Statista shows that the biggest proportion of users are age 25 – 34, and the next biggest age group is age 18 – 24 yrs. old.

Why do I think this is the case? Most younger people think of LinkedIn as the place to get a job, so my assumption is that most of these users are looking for work, or recently found work, and are still here (with profiles) – for the next position.

One-fifth (21%) of LinkedIn users are Millennials and Gen X – age 35 – 54. This is a smaller share of the audience, but they are most likely the majority of the decision-makers at organizations. This age group is key, when it comes to your organization having a presence on the site.

Now that LinkedIn is a powerhouse as a social media platform, it’s time you think carefully about your strategy there.

• How do you want to be in front of decision-makers?
• What impression do you want to give users of your products and services?
• How do you want to be “known” in the marketplace or in your industry?

If you’re not sure how to answer these questions, contact me and let’s chat.