Why you should spend more time on LinkedIn
Be honest, have you written off LinkedIn before even making a profile? As a platform, I think you either love it or have absolutely no idea why we’d suggest that it was the place for you!
But it’s far more relevant than you might think. It’s not a creative platform, no. But that doesn’t make it anti-creativity. You won’t suddenly be booed out the door if you post a video of your creative process, or showcase your most recent project.
In terms of content, you can really post whatever you like, it’s just about understanding your audience.
Just to kick off the piece with some context, let’s look as some stats:
LinkedIn currently has over 722 million users
61% of LinkedIn’s users are between 25 and 34 years old
4 out of 5 people on LinkedIn “drive business decisions”
Source: Hootsuite
So here’s why (in my opinion) you should spend more time on LinkedIn:
Standing out
It’s estimated that 95 million posts are made PER DAY on Instagram. Compare that to the mere 2 million on Linkedin, you can see why it’s a lot easier to be seen. Content also has a much longer life-cycle, with posts often appearing on feeds weeks after they were originally posted.
Finding clients and commissions
LinkedIn is where you need to be if you want to get in front of those with commissioning power, brand partnership managers and business owners. Sure, they’ll be on Instagram too, but why compete with all the noise when there’s a purpose-built platform waiting for your creative talents!
Building client relationships
So you’ve created your profile, made your first connection and won a project - awesome! Obviously, this doesn’t happen overnight, but how can you make sure your hard networking graft doesn’t go to waste? Stay in touch! Maintaining regular business with a few select clients is 10x easier than continually pitching for one-off projects. So make sure you follow your client’s company page and also connect with the team personally.
By staying up to date with their latest projects or successes, you can show genuine interest in working together on an ongoing basis and potentially even anticipate their needs before they’ve reached out!
Finding a job
Asides from the obvious scrolling through the ‘Jobs’ feed, there are ways to go above and beyond to strengthen your hunt.
If you find a job posting that sounds like a fit the tools are at your fingertips to check out their company page and stalk the team. How many people work there? What’s the average age? Where are they based? And who might I be working with?
All of this knowledge is only going to bolster your chances of getting the job and the best place to find it? Right here on LinkedIn.
And of course, don’t forget to follow or ideally connect with the hiring manager and tailor your application to them.
Broaden your horizons
The LinkedIn algorithm works is a totally different way to Instagram, so you’re far more likely to stumble across some interesting and insightful content from outside your niche and also from a far wider audience!
A ‘live CV’
Unlike a website which most of us relentlessly procrastinate updating, your LinkedIn profile can act as a low-maintenance, up-to-date landing page for your professional presence on the internet.
Why’s that so important? Because recruiters, prospective clients and also media outlets like ourselves can get a really quick overview into you and your world without scrolling back to 2015 to find the bottom of your Instagram feed and see where it all started!
So give it a go. You might be pleasantly surprised. Need a hand setting up? We got you. Read: How To Get Started On LinkedIn
