What to Post on LinkedIn? Examples and Best Practices

Published: Nov 19, 2021
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LinkedIn occupies a special position in the world of social network platforms. The site is about professional networks rather than personal ones. Being more serious than other social media platforms, many people have a difficult time knowing what to post on LinkedIn. How can you deliver LinkedIn content that enhances your brand reputation, nurtures leads, and establishes new connections?

The answer lies in high-quality content with clear value propositions. People have faith in the content that appears in their LinkedIn feeds. The platform ranks number one when it comes to “digital trust.”

linkedin logo on a dark background

Social media users put trust in LinkedIn’s:

  • Security
  • Community
  • Ad relevance and experience
  • Legitimacy

You need to respect that trust. Do your research, check your grammar, and be polite to others as you post and engage on the platform. Content should be smart, clean, and innovative without feeling gimmicky. You want to energize your readers with industry news, professional tips, and thought-provoking — but not sensitive — material.

The bar is high but attainable. Follow these tips and draw inspiration from the LinkedIn post examples that follow to help curate your presence and grow your network.

 

LinkedIn Post Best Practices

In general, the best things to post on LinkedIn are business-related insights, articles, and third-party material designed to appeal to your community.

Frequency and engagement rates also matter. Here’s what you need to know on what content you should post, along with when and how to use the site.

Content: What to Post on LinkedIn

Whether you’re writing a short status update or creating longer blog content, there are many elements to your message. Consider each of the following aspects:

Audience

Pitch your LinkedIn content at the right level. The platform has almost 740 million members, and its user demographics are unique. Compared to most other sites, your target audience has a greater chance of being:

  • High-earning: Of LinkedIn users, 44% make more than $75,000 per year.
  • International: The U.S. has the most LinkedIn users, but more than 75% of users come from other countries.
  • Millennial: Almost 60% of LinkedIn users are between the ages of 25 to 34.
  • Well-educated: More than half (51%) — of U.S. adults with a bachelor’s or advanced degree are LinkedIn users.

In other words, aim for quality content and interactions.

Headlines

When it comes to original content such as blog posts and articles, different headlines perform well on LinkedIn compared to other platforms such as Facebook or Twitter. The most shared LinkedIn titles tend to be shorter and to include phrases such as:

  • The future of
  • X ways to
  • Need to know
  • X tips to
  • How to get
  • In X years

Aim for about six words in your headline and make your purpose clear. How are you going to help your reader?

Media

Most social platforms are intensely visual, and LinkedIn is no exception. The more dynamic, the better. According to LinkedIn, posts that include an image tend to attract twice as many comments, while video gets five times more engagement.

Just don’t expect to hold your audience’s attention for long. Short clips under 15 seconds are more likely to be seen in full. You can always show a short promo and link to longer content.

Tags

You can tag employees and other users, alerting them to relevant content that pertains to them. This makes it more likely that they’ll engage with your post.

Don’t push too hard, however. If you’re trying to forge a new connection, make sure that the post warrants the call-out and that there’s a good chance this person wants to connect.

And, limit your mentions — both to the number of people you tag in any one post and the number of times you connect to the same person.

Hashtags

Hashtags are one of the easiest ways for new people to find your content. People often search or follow hashtags, pulling up posts that wouldn’t otherwise show up in their feed.

This isn’t Instagram, however, so don’t go too hashtag-crazy. Limit yourself to two or three of the most powerful and relevant tags.

Links

A lot of LinkedIn posts link to longer pieces. If you're writing a longer article, decide whether you want to publish on your site or LinkedIn itself, using the " Write Article" feature. You could also do both — just change up the title, meta-description, and featured image.

If you're sharing third-party content, consider a simple trick that might make you more attractive to the LinkedIn algorithm: Try removing off-site links from the body of the post and put them in the first comment instead.

LinkedIn wants people to stick around and consume in-platform content, so it may penalize content that leads users away from the site.

Content Suggestions

Are you stuck trying to come up with post ideas? Take advantage of LinkedIn’s Content Suggestions feature.

When you go to manage your page, click on “Content Suggestions.” It will provide insights based on different audiences.

You can consider:

  • The whole LinkedIn community
  • Your page followers
  • Your employees

After specifying your audience, you’ll find trending content — topics with which that group has engaged recently. Pick your favorites, and LinkedIn will provide a selection of relevant and engaging articles.

You can use Content Suggestions to find material to read and re-share for easy posts. It’s also a good idea to search trending topics for inspiration. How can you meaningfully participate in an ongoing conversation with your content?

Balance

Don’t only post original and self-promoting content. Not only is it more work than sharing found material, but it also doesn’t serve you in the long run.

Look for interesting and informative content that fits your brand and gives it the recognition it deserves. To be a LinkedIn superstar, you want to ensure you’re boosting other people’s accomplishments and insights on the platform, too.

Frequency and Timing: When to Schedule Your Posts

Be present but not overwhelming. Regular reader engagement leads to an active audience, but there is a margin of diminishing returns. Time your posts and publish them when you're most likely to spark engagement with your readers.

When should you post? You should schedule LinkedIn posts:

  • Regularly: Try to post at least two or three times a week and ideally once every weekday.
  • On weekdays: People use the site at work, so avoid the weekends — particularly Sundays. Wednesday and Thursday see particularly high engagement rates.
  • In the morning: Users often check the site upon arriving at work. Lunchtime and the end of the workday also see spikes in engagement.
  • When it makes sense for your business: Pay attention to LinkedIn analytics to discover when your audience is most receptive. Depending on your industry and international presence, that may differ from common best practices.

Engagement: How to Keep the Conversation Going

One of the most important things that you can do to make your posts successful is to interact with other pages and users. Comment on their posts, and they’re more likely to return the favor.

Try to attract comments with your posts and respond to each comment you receive. This kind of interaction is the social networking that pays off.

You can also reach out to your friends and peers to let them know that you’ve just posted a new piece of content. Rapid engagement matters. The algorithm rewards posts that quickly pick up likes and comments, so get friends engaged early.

LinkedIn Post Examples

If you’re still wondering, "What should I post on LinkedIn?" it’s time to look at some examples for ideas and inspiration. The following posts cover a variety of content types, but each serves as a model for how to write a strong post on LinkedIn.

Article: Social Media Today

screenshot of social media today article on LinkedIn

As a publication focused on social media platforms, Social Media Today knows what to post on LinkedIn. It serves up a longer article, only teasing it here. Interested readers can find the full piece on the company blog.

The title of the piece couldn't be better suited to LinkedIn — "26 Predictions for Social Media Marketing in 2022" offers readers an expert's take on the future. LinkedIn audiences are intensely forward-looking. The article also promises to be a listicle, an easy-to-read and popular form of content.

The featured graphic is well-chosen, too. It's busy and packed with different screenshots of social media feeds. The future is uncertain and confusing, and Social Media Today wants to inspire those feelings in its audience and lead them to the solution.

Third-Party Content: Layla Addison

Layla Addison Third-Party Content Screenshot

Layla Addison shares an article that will definitely interest LinkedIn readers — after all, it's all about how to increase your levels of engagement on the platform. Equally important, the blog fits her personal brand and agenda as a social media marketing coach.

Search for relevant and helpful articles to share with your followers.

Graphic: Diksha Burnwal

screenshot of Diksha Burnwal LinkedIn Post

Graphics make for incredibly sharable material, like this branded bit of content that Diksha Burnwal posts. LinkedIn may be a more serious platform, but there's always a place for funny job-related memes.

The response that Burnwal gets also says something about the international character of both their audience and the LinkedIn community. The quotation comes from a popular Indian comedian. It translates as "What should I do? Quit my job?"

As the responses show, some commenters know the meme. Others don't, which works well with Burnwal's message — that social media managers do a lot more than just post pictures and hope for the best.

Infographic: Amy Volas

screenshot of Amy Volas infographic post

Amy Volas proves that infographics don't have to be complicated to be effective. A visually appealing list serves well for content that draws readers in and gets them engaged.

This particular list showcases Volas's brand, which is all about simple, authentic connection. Too many bells and whistles would detract from the message and audiences would lose interest.

One potential problem with infographics is that they can be too long and overflow the small space you have to post. With infographics, this is easily fixed. Simply clip the top frame of the infographic to post and link to the full item. The same business strategy applies to long-form content.

Announcement: Meltwater

screenshot of announcement post on LinkedIn

Got news? Share it on LinkedIn.

LinkedIn is the perfect place to trumpet your successes and announce business developments. Meltwater lets its audience know about its newest product update with a little text and an on-target graphic.

Native Video: Nestlé

screenshot of native video content on LinkedIn

On Veterans Day, Nestlé spotlighted one of its employees who is also an active service member. The post was less than a minute long and subtitled, which makes it play well in the feed.

In one post, Nestlé:

  • Celebrates its employee community
  • Acknowledges the national holiday
  • Associates itself with the qualities it celebrates: courage, dedication, and service
  • Humanizes its brand with a relatable face
  • Delivers a short, polished piece of infotainment

Any of the above actions would make an okay post, Two would make a good one. Nestlé hits five, maximizing the potential of this native video.

Live Video: Assorted

screenshot of live video post on LinkedIn

Live video is one of LinkedIn's newer options, and you currently have to apply for eligibility. If you’re accepted, it’s great for connecting with your audience — according to the platform, live videos get more than 20 times the engagement of an average post.

The immediacy of live video can foster a sense of connection that is hard to create through simple posts. It's a great medium for:

  • Product demonstrations
  • Conferences and lectures
  • Interviews
  • Celebrations
  • Webinars
  • Behind-the-scenes tours

Think about your schedule. Do any of your upcoming events lend themselves to live streaming? If possible, take advantage of this feature to connect with audiences.

Text Only LinkedIn Post

Sometimes less is more — a thoughtful question, a quick list, your favorite book, and an inspiring quotation are all quick things you can share that provide value and get people interested.

Not every post has to be perfectly polished and produced. As long as you create fresh and authentic content, you can mix things up to see what works for your readers.

Top 10 List: Justin Welsh

Screenshot of LinkedIn List Post from Justin Welsh

Welsh positions this post perfectly to give his audience value. It's not just some list of his top 10 tips — it's a top-10 list that he claims distills 10 years' worth of wisdom.

Welsh also calls attention to a career milestone and highlights his experience in a way that feels casual and authentic.

Question: Michaud Garneau

screenshot of question LinkedIn Post from Michaud Garneau

A post doesn’t always have to tell readers something — other times, you can learn from your audience and get conversations rolling.

Ask your audience a question and engage with their responses. If you want to make engagement as hassle-free as possible, you can even include a poll, allowing your audience members to click on their answers.

Getting Started with Your LinkedIn Post

What are you waiting for? The truth is that an amazing content marketing strategy involves some trial and error. You’ll discover that some types of posts get more traction than others or that you have a knack for certain forms or styles.

But creating different types of content is the perfect way to get creative and explore what you enjoy posting, and what others like to engage with.

Building an engaged audience takes time. Get started by choosing a style of post that resonates with you and begin growing your connections and network today.

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