Today I am giving a workshop to the marketing department on using LinkedIn. In case you have not noticed, LinkedIn has been making some changes, dripping out enhancements to existing features and adding support materials to ensure that you’re taking advantage of those features.

Notable Updates for Users

Mention Companies & People in Updates:

LinkedIn has added the feature that I have always known as tagging to their status updates. Now you can cross-reference and link to individuals or companies. When you begin typing you may see this appear. Choose to accept the tab by clicking the person or company that appears from the list. You can also initiate tagging by adding an “@” symbol before the company or person. Note this feature is for individual status updates not for company page updates.

Photos, Videos, PowerPoints:

Depending upon your position or past projects, showing your work can be a real added value for your profile. LinkedIn has added this feature for users to enhance their profiles. As we know from recent Google+ and Facebook updates, visuals are driving connection factors. Now you can add your work to the social network that focuses on business-to-business. Currently, these tools are limited to professional level accounts.

Updates to Mobile App:

In my opinion, this was bound to happen and I am happy to see these updates. Mobile usage on LinkedIn has grown and I understand it; checking profiles before you go into a meeting or reading status updates on a train ride to the office is convenient and saves time at the office. Revamping the mobile LinkedIn app was needed, especially with the amount of content on the site. Check out this video from LinkedIn for more information on the mobile app updates.

Notable Updates for Companies

Company Page Features:

The LinkedIn Company profile has been around for a while, but over the past six months there have been major changes. The newest change is the addition of a featured update. When you add status updates to your company page you will now be able to feature it by clicking “Feature this update” under your post. This is helpful if you have something notable you want to promote again.

Page & Follower Insights:

It’s no surprise that I love looking at data and my favorite feature of pages is probably the breakdown of information. Page and follower insights show you the number of followers by: seniority, industry, function, region, company size and employee. You can also see when you have had a growth in new followers. This is a great metric for companies who are bidding on work or who have sales people meeting with potential clients.

Need help developing a presence on LinkedIn or creating a social policy for your firm? Contact us and let us help guide you through the process.