Summer is coming to an end, and you are probably just getting started or going back to work soon. In this regard, you might have missed some of the LinkedIn updates that have been introduced over the last months. In this article, we present you with the newest options and features launched by LinkedIn.  

1. Follower analytics tool

Are you curious about who follows the Company Page that you are administering on LinkedIn? If you are managing a Company Page, and thus, is responsible for a part of your company’s presence on LinkedIn, then knowing who follows the page might be valuable knowledge to you. For a long time, it has not been possible to see who follows your Company Page, but only the total number of followers. However, this has now become available and might be beneficial for you if insights into your followers provide value for you in your work. These insights might, for instance, help you refine and improve your posts and engagement process. Nevertheless, use this tool with caution as it might be an invasion of privacy for some users to have their LinkedIn activity known, and maybe exploited, be others.  

The list of followers on your Company Page can be found by visiting the page, clicking on “Analytics” in the top menu, and then “Followers” in the drop-down menu. Here, the entire follower list is available, including which month and year every individual started following the Company Page. Downloading the list is not an option.

Do you need tailored help with your Company Page, strategy, or other LinkedIn activities? Learn more here.

2. #OPENTOWORK

Like many other companies, LinkedIn has also taken the initiative to help individuals during this very sad and unfortunate COVID-19 pandemic. In this regard, LinkedIn has introduced an “Open-to-work” frame for users who are or have recently become unemployed.

When you edit your personal profile, you have the option to “Add profile section”. By clicking on “Intro” in the drop-down menu, you find the option “Looking for a new job”. By adding the “Looking for a new job”-feature to your profile, a green frame will appear around your profile picture, letting others know, that you are open-to-work. When adding the feature, it is also possible to choose who can see that you are open to work. Thus, your job status becomes very clear and more visible.

3. New reaction option

For a while, LinkedIn has offered its users five different ways to react to a post: Like, celebrate, love, insightful, and curious. However, as a response to COVID-19, LinkedIn has added a sixth reaction option. Now, users have the opportunity to react with “Support” to posts and status updates as a different way to express themselves. Similarly, Facebook has introduced the option to respond with “Care” to posts and status updates.

Also read: 8 functions that you probably do not know exists on LinkedIn

4. New types of posts

Over the summer, LinkedIn has also added new post options. Now, you can create six new different types of posts: Add a job, celebrate an occasion, create a poll, offer help, find an expert, and share a profile.

  • Add a job: With this type of post, you can share with your network that you are looking to hire for the company. The post lets you fill out different requirements for the position, making it relatively easy to get an overview. For unknown reasons, this type of post is only available for some LinkedIn users. Hopefully, LinkedIn will provide the post option for everyone in the near future.
  • Celebrate an occasion: With this type of post, you can enhance an occasion and show your network that you have something to celebrate. Amongst the options, LinkedIn provides you with are “Welcome to the Team”, “Work Anniversary”, and “New Position”. This type of post typically includes a festive graphic illustration provided by yourself or LinkedIn.
  • Create a poll: This type of post enables you to ask the individuals in your network a question and, at the same time, provide them with fixed response options. A poll might be more engaging, fun, and easier for your network to take a stand on quickly. There are four steps when making this type of post:
    1. Ask a question
    2. Choose how many response options there should be available
    3. Choose the response options 
    4. Decide on the duration of the poll. 
  • Offer help: LinkedIn has also made it possible for you to offer your help and express this through a post. For example, this could be general help, referrals, coaching, volunteer work, etc. By choosing this type of post, the purpose of your post becomes clearer to your network. Having a clear purpose might have a positive effect on the engagement you receive on the post. 
  • Find an expert: Are you looking to find a person with specific skills or knowledge, then you can create a post specifically with this purpose. When creating a post with the aim to find an expert, you fill out the category in which you seek help, the location, and a description making the search more detailed.
  • Share a profile: Is there someone in your network who you find especially interesting? Someone, you want to draw attention to? Or someone you want to help? LinkedIn provides you with the opportunity to easily share a person in your network’s profile through a post.   

5. Name pronunciation

Do you have a name or surname that can be challenging for others to pronounce? And are you tired of people mispronouncing your name? LinkedIn has launched a new feature as a solution to this. LinkedIn has added a new audio option where you can easily make a short audio recording of your name that your profile visitors can listen to. You record the recording directly from the page where you edit your profile by clicking on “Add name pronunciation”. It is only possible to make the recording and save it from your mobile device. However, once the recording is saved on your mobile device, it appears on the computer as well.

The recording is limited to 10 seconds, and LinkedIn advises you to speak slowly and focus on clear pronunciation. Furthermore, LinkedIn encourages you to consider from which distance you hold the microphone to your mouth. A good idea can be to make a test recording to get an idea of which tone to speak with for the final recording.

When you are satisfied with your recording and have saved it, a small audio icon will appear next to your name on your profile page. Once profile visitors click on this, the recording will be played.  

Did you know about the functions mentioned above?

LinkedIn continually develops and improves its functions and user experience. It can thus be challenging to keep up with this and benefit from it. In this regard, I hope you found this article relevant and worthy of reflection.

In this regard, do you need tailored help with your strategy or other activities on LinkedIn? Learn more here.

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