LinkedIn is the rare instance of a social media platform with a very clear focus: you’re either there for your business or your career. It’s also one of the first social platforms people looking for a B2B partner go. And because B2B partnerships often take more than just providing card details and hitting Buy, it’s a goldmine of opportunity for building brand awareness – for those who know how to harness it.
The caveat with LinkedIn is that its content is very much driven by the individuals on it. Its audience is served content by the LinkedIn algorithm from their connections and people related to them, so if you’re coming in posting very serious and buttoned-up content, you’re limiting your reach. So if you’re a brand (only) posting very Serious™ content, you may be missing out on great engagement opportunities.
There’s no one better to ask about LinkedIn than LinkedIn users – they are usually eager to engage in discussions and share their opinions, which is why I turned to them for help.
I asked my followers what B2B companies are making the most of LinkedIn, and they delivered. So in this article, we'll explore seven ideas – inspired by the recommendations – that B2B companies can use to maximize their LinkedIn presence and inspire their marketing efforts.
Why LinkedIn is important for B2B companies
LinkedIn offers many opportunities to reach key decision-makers and influencers within their industry. By building a strong presence on the platform, businesses can:
- Establish credibility and trust by showcasing their expertise
- Drive engagement and make lead generation easier through valuable content and discussions
- Expand their network and forge meaningful business relationships
With over 1 billion users, LinkedIn is where most of your B2B leads spend their time. There’s no other social media platform that clearly signals what its users are there for. As such, it’s become an essential platform for B2B companies to connect with their target audience, establish thought leadership, and drive business growth.
With a comprehensive LinkedIn marketing strategy, you can tap into this valuable network and elevate your B2B marketing efforts.
7 ideas from B2B companies on LinkedIn to inspire your content
LinkedIn probably comes to mind first when you think of platforms leading thought leadership, and there are incentives beyond just growing a following that other platforms can’t promise.
However, this pro can become a con when thinking about the best type of content for LinkedIn, it can be tempting to stick to very formal/semi-formal content on your company page. However, that becomes boring after a while, — particularly because it’s likely what your your competitors are doing, too.
It’s not hard to be interesting on LinkedIn because of this – the difficult part comes when you wonder where to blur the lines of “professionalism.” The following tips (and the examples we found for each one) show that you don’t have to give up creativity to be professional.
1. Curate industry news, insights and trends
Girl Power Marketing has a very distinct visual language with bright purple pastels and unique fonts. Yet the vibrance of their visuals does not detract from the content – cleverly formatted news updates from the world of social media.
It’s not a stretch to say that Director, Annie-Mai Hodge, pioneered the distinct style of news curation when she started sharing updates over a year ago.
Position your company as a thought leader by sharing unique perspectives on the latest developments in your field. Use engaging visuals like infographics and charts to make complex data more digestible for your audience.
2. Showcase success stories
Venture capital firm YCombinator’s strategy of sharing their investees’ latest projects goes a long way to maintaining the trust that keeps startup founders applying for their programs.
Highlight how your product or service has helped clients achieve their goals. Or better yet, show off the results from your clients. Although they’re not quite a B2B company, email newsletter tool Beehiiv does this well with carousels spotlighting their users’ newsletters.
Use a mix of written case studies, video testimonials, and client interviews to provide social proof and demonstrate the value of your offering. By featuring real-world examples of your company's impact, you can build trust and credibility with potential customers.
3. Promote your company culture and values
To straddle the professionalism/creativity line effectively, you’ll need to take a more “human” approach to your content. An easy way to do this is to show the humans behind your business.
Give your audience a behind-the-scenes look at your team and office life. Share employee spotlights and stories that humanize your brand and showcase what makes your company unique. You can attract like-minded professionals and potential hires to your business by highlighting your company culture and values.
As a B2B/C company, Buffer always needs to balance engaging enough for our consumers and business-like enough for our agency partners. However, that doesn’t stop us from showing our creative side, especially thanks to Mitra Mehvar, our social media manager.
Posts on the Buffer LinkedIn account are one of three things: product, culture or content. Those are key pieces of our strategy that we tend to stick to – but we like to get creative with the formats we use to communicate them.
We communicate our ideas using a combination of images, carousels, videos, and text posts, and we’re always experimenting with LinkedIn and its content formats as individuals and as a brand.
4. Go live on LinkedIn
Live video is a powerful way to connect with your audience in real time and demonstrate your company's thought leadership. LinkedIn offers several features that allow users to live stream – whether through audio or video. Venture capital firm Carta frequently hosts live video sessions with their audience, with some of the most popular ones featuring conversations with industry experts.
The most interesting thing about LinkedIn events is that you don’t have to host the event on the platform – you can use it as another way to boost registration. It still serves the same purpose of sharing great content in an interesting way. Marketing agency We Are Social understands the power of LinkedIn for their live events.
5. Collaborate with industry influencers
LinkedIn isn’t exempt from the influencer/creator wave. In fact, between internal advocates and potential brand partners, LinkedIn is one of the lowest-barrier platforms to kickstart a paid creator career (with the right audience, of course).
Ad company Blindspot partnered with investor Andrew Yeung, who has over 30,000 followers on LinkedIn, along with other creators, to host an offline event. Both partners posted about the event on LinkedIn (and other social media), inviting their audiences to sign up, with Andrew’s presence as the major draw.
Partner with thought leaders in your space to create content like podcasts, webinars, guest blog posts, or co-branded research reports. You can expand your reach and credibility by leveraging their expertise and audience. Akta Vibes has built a significant audience for creator partnerships startup Passionfroot through a YouTube channel and podcast.
6. Harness internal advocates as influencers
Internal advocates can be a powerful addition to your LinkedIn content strategy. Internal advocacy can be powerful for both you and your employees. It lends credibility to have someone experienced in your industry sharing their knowledge. On the flip side, it gives them a personal brand boost from being featured on your company page.
If you’ve ever lurked on the Buffer LinkedIn page, you’ve likely seen me or Kirsti (Lang) talking through an article.
You might also have come across other Buffer employees in our LinkedIn content, like Senior Product Designer Alicja Suska, talking about YouTube thumbnails in this video.
We’ll often repost relevant content from Buffer employees to the LinkedIn page to boost it.
7. Repurpose content from other channels
One company that’s not afraid to repurpose content (even the stuff that might seem like the wrong fit for LinkedIn) is Semrush.
The marketing software company will often repost content from their short-form video platforms on LinkedIn, usually to a great reception. The humorous tone of their videos doesn’t take away from the relevance (and resonance) of the message, and this viral one from TikTok is a great example.
Make adapting blog posts, podcasts, or videos from your other marketing channels part of your B2B marketing strategy. Optimize the content for the platform by adding unique commentary or insights tailored to your LinkedIn followers.
Notion knew they had a hit with their solar eclipse post and made sure to repurpose it everywhere – including LinkedIn.
Embrace LinkedIn's professional yet engaging nature
While LinkedIn is a business-oriented platform, your marketing efforts still have room for creativity and personality. You can build meaningful connections with potential customers and partners by providing value to your audience and showcasing your brand's unique voice.
The common thread that makes the highlighted companies’ posts successful is authenticity. They all stay true to the brand voice they’ve established – and their audience engages with their content. With the right LinkedIn strategy, you can make it a powerful ally for growing your B2B business.
For more tips on using LinkedIn for business, check out this article.
