How to Use LinkedIn Business Pages for Your Small Business

It was bound to happen: LinkedIn has developed from what was just a job board for business professionals, to a full-fledged alternative to Facebook and Google pages. Users are actively sharing content and resources, making ‘connections” which are turning out to be very useful in their business. LinkedIn now possesses more than 3 million company pages and some 225 million members, making it the internets’ top business professional network.

How small business can benefit from LinkedIn

As the platform grows, there are lots of ways to use a business page on LinkedIn. Let’s see which can make sense for you.

• LinkedIn profiles and optimization - Optimizing your company page with brand specific keywords and content is vital for both your profile page as well as any targeted pages, where you can display your wares. The LinkedIn audience is quite sophisticated from a business standpoint, and your company profile is one place where you need to display your strengths. Also, keep in mind profiles will show up in organic Google search, so it’s an online business card also.
• LinkedIn search is growing - Because these posts on LinkedIn can and will appear both in a LinkedIn search along with Google, you’ll wish to be consistent with any keywords you intend to rank for. New ways LinkedIn is enhancing search is through the capability for LinkedIn admins to post as your brand, instead of as a single person. Other new tools include recent acquisition SlideShare, LinkedIn Influencers and Sponsored Updates, proving LinkedIn’s newfound commitment to search.
• Create great content - Without a doubt one of the better ways you can benefit from the LinkedIn platform is by creating and sharing fantastic content. Taking advantage of not just your home page content, but also the tabs for products and careers is an excellent opportunity to show your best content. Make liberal use of video as well.
• Link to your other social media channels - Currently just a third of the top 100 LinkedIn company pages link to their social profiles from LinkedIn. This is an absolute must, as it will improve your Google rankings at the same time.

LinkedIn is not just a glorified job board these days. It’s a full-fledged and active social network with a business flavor. Start taking advantage of LinkedIn company pages today!