LinkedIn updates company pages, businesses urged to get their accounts in order

Businesses are being urged to fix up their LinkedIn company pages after the social network announced a new design update this week, which social media experts explain is a good time to start marketing if businesses haven’t already done so.

The update comes as LinkedIn is taking a life of its own not only as a website for individuals, but also for businesses keen on marketing themselves in the B2B space.

Catriona Pollard, director of PR and social media firm CP Communications, says it’s a good time for businesses to jump in if they haven’t already done so.

“The features here are not dramatically different, but the design gives a lot more opportunity to create branded pages that are unique and will stand out to competitors.”

“I think the company changes have been a neglected feature of LinkedIn, and for B2B companies it provides so many opportunities to be able to get in front of and influence professionals and other businesses.”

LinkedIn announced the changes earlier this week. News and updates will take a more prominent role, and the actual design of the page is meant to make navigation easier.

Companies are also able to display a photo on their page, similar to the Facebook cover photo system, along with their logo. Activity streams have also been updated to actually make them useful.

Pollard says while the changes are now rolling out and not all companies will have access to them just yet, businesses should still become familiar with them.

She particularly points out the use of a cover photo, saying businesses should take care in the way they’re designing these pages.

But more importantly, the metrics have changed. Now businesses have the ability to look at the metrics on their status updates.

“So you can go in, and within 24 hours see what type of engagement you’ve had with your status update and look at impressions, clicks and so on.”

“Businesses should look at the actual real estate of the page now. The layout means followers have easy access to products and services. So if you haven’t updated that information on your page, then you should now.”

Pollard says while the changes may be minimal, businesses still need to have a presence in LinkedIn if they haven’t already.

“They can’t just forget about it. It’s becoming a lot more like the other social media sites – so now is absolutely the time to do something.”

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