Top 7 LinkedIn Features You Should Use in 2020

Here you will find the top 7 LinkedIn features you should know in 2020. We introduce you to the new features of the platform and show you how you can use them to become more interactive and reach your followers with new content formats. Give your LinkedIn marketing a new look and learn more about your followers.

LinkedIn is the world’s largest business networking platform with over 706 million users. The number of members on the platform shows how relevant it is to businesses today. Companies can use LinkedIn to present themselves, build a network and share knowledge with established experts in the industry. 

Top 7 LinkedIn Features for 2020

Since 2016 a lot has changed on the surface of LinkedIn and new features await us. We have compiled the top 7 features that marketers should know and use for successful LinkedIn marketing in 2020.

1. Stories

In late September 2020, LinkedIn launched a brand-new feature that will give the network a whole new look: LinkedIn Stories. 2020 was a strong year for live content on social media, with Instagram live videos alone attracting 70% more views from February to March. Now LinkedIn users can create their own stories and watch short videos of other users and companies.

The preview shows how the story function looks like. It will first be available in the USA and Canada and is expected to be available worldwide in the upcoming weeks.

2. Live Streams

After social networks like Instagram and TikTok successfully attracted their users with video format, LinkedIn decided to join the trend. Even though the new live format is not yet available to all users, the number of streams has grown by 89% since March 2020. Especially in times of Corona a valuable feature to offer an alternative to cancelled events and to be in direct personal contact with users. In this respect LinkedIn-Live could not have come at a more appropriate time.

With this LinkedIn live stream KLM Royal Dutch Airlines shows how to use the new format successfully. The live stream received over 3 thousand reactions and over 2 thousand comments.

According to LinkedIn, live streams receive an average of 24 times more comments and 7 times more reactions than simple video posts. The format gives you the opportunity to interact more efficiently with users and increase engagement. You can also reach more followers, because they will be notified when you start a live stream.

3. Reactions

Up to now, LinkedIn did not look like a classic social media network. More and more people are using the platform to connect and get in touch with experts. Similar to Facebook, users can now interact to content with a wider range of reactions. Users now have a choice of the following actions:

You will notice that the reactions are specially designed for LinkedIn updates. For example, the applause response is perfect for welcoming new members, celebrating a company success or responding to a promotion.

Gymshark uses the new reactions to capture thoughts and feelings of users. The example clearly shows how diverse the new reactions can be used. They give postings on LinkedIn a new character. On the one hand, they make interacting with content faster and on the other hand they create a new way to share creative contributions with your followers.

4. Carousel Post  

The Carousel format is far from being an innovation in 2020. LinkedIn is now also introducing the format that is proven to be extremely popular on other platforms such as Instagram and Facebook. With the new post format, companies can now share dynamic posts in an interactive way.

5. Polls 

With the new poll function, LinkedIn wants to encourage its members to click. Whether you want to ask for a simple opinion or industry-specific expertise, the survey feature is the perfect way to do so. You can quickly gather opinions from users and experts. LinkedIn’s Senior Product Manager, Howie Fung, explains, “Asking your network for feedback — and providing it to others in return — is a great way to get relevant and informed input, while also sparking new conversations and discussions with your trusted connections.”

Here LinkedIn shows that even a simple survey can strike a chord with the followers. 3,830 votes were cast. The poll also triggers a conversation and incites the community to reflect.

6. Blogging

With the new blogging interface LinkedIn offers its users a new section to write articles. Users click on ‘Write Article’ to switch from the feed to a new interface for blog publishing.

You can use blogging on LinkedIn to generate targeted attention for your company and attract the interest of users with expert knowledge. 

7. Analytics

Users now receive more detailed data about how other users interact with shared content. This way, besides finding out who visits your profile and who likes your posts, you can also see which companies people work for and what positions they hold there. Furthermore, you now have access to organic stats of your posts, such as impressions, reactions, click-through rate and engagement. This information will help you understand how your content performs on LinkedIn and optimize your content strategy.

Conclusion

With the new features LinkedIn presents itself from a whole new side. The new functions offer you new possibilities to address your users and increase the awareness of your company. Use the features to activate your target group and make your brand more interesting. It remains to be seen whether features such as stories, carousels or surveys that work on other platforms will also appeal to LinkedIn users. Try out the new possibilities and use the extended analytics to evaluate your activities more efficiently. Get familiar with the new features, find out how you can reach your target audience even better and what content you should use to draw attention on LinkedIn.