Designing and implementing a whole content strategy can be overwhelming. It gets even more so when you have so many choices of content. Should you push videos? Maybe focus on photos? Write lots of articles?
In this guide, we will cover what to post on LinkedIn in general, what specific types of content you can post, and what types of LinkedIn posts are available to you. We will also examine how much you should post on LinkedIn, and why you should care about all of that anyway.
What to post on LinkedIn
It really depends on the purpose you want to achieve on the platform. What you post on LinkedIn depends on your content strategy. Your content strategy depends on your marketing goals. Take a moment to review what you are working towards and the best way to get there.
Are you building a brand identity for a new business? Are you promoting a business that is already well-established, but hasn’t had much of a presence on LinkedIn before? Are you developing your own professional online identity, your own personal brand?
What is your industry? Do you specialize in a particular niche? Who is your target audience? How much do you know about them? The answers to these questions will form a roadmap for your marketing journey. Tailor your content strategy to those signposts.
For instance, if you are in the entertainment industry, you can utilize amusing, light-hearted content. If you establish your presence in the medical field, you will do better with a more serious air. If you’re an academic, you must walk the line between educational and engaging. And so on.
Each of these approaches is better suited to different content types and post formats. Videos are dynamic and excellent for engagement and entertainment. Articles are elaborate, authoritative, and excellent for industry education. Posts and photos are a nice balance between the two.
Types of content to post on LinkedIn
LinkedIn has a variety of content types for you to choose from. Each is great for different purposes and has different effects on your target audience. You can select one or more of the following types of content to post on LinkedIn:
- Text posts
- Images
- Single image posts
- Multiple-image gallery posts
- Documents
- Native videos
- Live videos
- Polls
- Stories
- Events
- Celebrations
Types of LinkedIn posts
LinkedIn posts are what you make with your chosen content. It’s the context in which you present your photos, text, etc. If the content is your paint, the post is the picture you paint with it. The impressions people get from your painting translate into the brand reputation, engagement rates, and your success or failure on LinkedIn.
The types of LinkedIn posts you can make essentially boil down to four categories: human stories, general encouragement, debates, and fact checks. Let’s take a closer look at each of them.
Human stories are the post types that make you relatable to your audience. They are especially important for big brands and company pages. People like to know that the businesses they see online are made up of fellow people. Use storytelling posts to share your human perspective and come across as warmer and more connected to your customer base.
Good examples of story-type posts include:
- Before and afters
- Success stories (both business and personal)
- The business supporting its members
- In times of crisis
- In their personal development
- Overcoming adversity
- In-depth answers to audience questions
General encouragement is the most prevalent type of LinkedIn posts. Basically, go ahead and share some good vibes. You can do that via motivational blurbs, inspiring quotes, relevant images, feel-good videos, etc.
It’s a highly flexible post category. This makes it a great filler for your content calendar when you don’t have anything “traditionally valuable” to post. Your audience will appreciate a boost in morale, especially if you tailor it to their own struggles.
Keep an eye on what your followers post and share. Try to offer some positive insight or, if you really can’t think of a good contribution, empathize. Use this to foster good human connections. Just be careful of superficial optimism: your audience will detect it very quickly and you could possibly receive some backlash for being out of touch.
Debates are the best type of LinkedIn post for driving engagement. People love opinion wars on the internet. Of course, you want that to be a civil exchange of arguments among professionals, not a flurry of rage in your comments section. Be careful with the debate prompt you provide.
There are basically two directions you can go with these kinds of posts. First, you can offer your own opinion and challenge people to respond. Do they agree with your perspective? Why or why not? Second, you can ask a question and let people share their own opinions. In that case, responders usually challenge each other and naturally generate an argument.
In either case, you need to respond and participate. Try to facilitate a conversation that adds value to the subject. If the comments get too heated, you will also need to moderate the debate. You and your audience must be on the same page regarding how far the argument can go.
Communicate a clear idea of what are acceptable “hot takes” and “hard pills to swallow” versus what crosses the line into disrespectful or hateful. It is always a good idea to review LinkedIn’s policies on hate speech and the overall community guidelines. This is especially important if you plan to ask for opinions on some controversial topic.
Fact-checking posts are your personal MythBusters. These types of LinkedIn posts are your chance to showcase your expertise. Use them to provide in-depth knowledge and dispel misconceptions about your niche or industry. Cite credible sources whenever you can.
Your audience will appreciate you saving them the time and effort it would take them to do independent research. At the same time, you establish yourself as an expert in the subject, a helpful presence on LinkedIn, and a trustworthy member of the industry.
How much to post on LinkedIn
The simple answer is: as much as you need to. The more complex answer is: as much as you can reasonably sustain without sacrificing quality.
The specific amount of content you post and the frequency at which you share it will depend on a number of factors. These include your target audience, their pattern of using LinkedIn, your industry and niche, and your individual marketing strategy.
Remember that LinkedIn values consistency most of all. You don’t need to post often, but you do need to post well. In other words, focus on quality over quantity. Over time you will gain better insight into what works best, what your target audience relates to, and what they interact with the most.
It is perfectly alright to have a content schedule of only once per week or so, especially early on. Just keep it consistent and share something that adds value. After a month or two, review what you did up till then and what results you got. Adapt your content and have another go. Rinse and repeat.
With consistent monitoring and improvement, you can stay relevant in your audience’s feeds. Then you can gradually increase the quantity and rate of your posts. Even then, keep it at a level that you can reasonably manage day to day. If your posting schedule becomes erratic, people will lose interest and you will lose engagement.
Why does any of this matter?
It’s important to know the types of content to post on LinkedIn and how best to utilize them because it directly affects your authority on the platform. You want to grab people’s attention, so you have to select the best form of content for conveying your message.
You want to keep the attention you grabbed, so you need a regular and reliable posting schedule. You want to prevent people from losing interest, so you have to maintain quality and keep posting at a manageable pace. All of this serves to build awareness of your brand.
Posting the right types of content at the right times establishes your presence on LinkedIn. It promotes you as an expert in your field and someone who has valuable insights. LinkedIn’s algorithm recognizes that and rewards you with greater reach.
To sum up, you have a wide variety of choices for what to post on LinkedIn. There are ten types of content, including images, videos, text forms, and various event markers. You can use these to make four basic post categories, each great for specific purposes. You can check facts and bust myths, share stories, encourage your audience, and start debates on various topics.
Consider what you want to achieve on LinkedIn. Choose the content type that’s best suited to your purpose and build a consistent posting schedule. Review your approach regularly to stay in touch with your target audience and ensure maximum reach in the long term.
