GlowMetrics September Newsletter

A business’s social media presence is a vital part of its marketing strategy – with LinkedIn now an expected part of the mix. Though, most businesses are not making full use of their LinkedIn Business page, with a number of new and older features not being used. In this blog, we will explore some of the more useful features and easy fixes to help improve your business’ LinkedIn page.?

1. Add Organic Lead Generation Form to the Business Page

You probably know about paid LinkedIn lead generation forms already, though organic lead generation forms are an underused feature on LinkedIn. Organic Lead Generation Form is a free feature that can be included on the main page of a business’s LinkedIn page, displaying just below the ‘About’ section.?

2. Implementing the LinkedIn Newsletter Feature

One of the newer tools on LinkedIn is the Newsletter feature. LinkedIn’s newsletter feature allows users to subscribe to a company’s LinkedIn published newsletter with LinkedIn then alerting the user when a newsletter is published. This feature is a useful method to communicate with engaged users over LinkedIn by reusing regular email marketing/email newsletters.?

For more information on how to publish your business’s newsletter over LinkedIn, read Anna’s blog post?‘Introducing The New Newsletter Publishing Option On LinkedIn’.?

3. Invite Users to Follow with 250 Invites Credits

Each business page is gifted 250 invite credits per month as part of the LinkedIn business page. The invite credits allow you or other admins of the business page to invite their connections to follow your business page. Sadly, you can only send an invite to someone connected to your personal LinkedIn profile.?

4. Post Regularly for your Audience (4-1-1 rule & 70-20-10 rule)

Similar to a website, your LinkedIn business page should be active and regularly updated, though, it can be difficult to know how many posts should be published each day and what kind of posts your business should be sharing. Explained below are two well-known guidelines for post quality:?

?The 4-1-1 rule suggests that out of every six posts, four posts should be pieces of curated content (from external sources), one post should be original content, and the remaining post should be a self-serving/promotional post.?

The 70-20-10 rule suggests that 70% of the posted content should be proven to support brand building or attract visitors. While, 20% of content should be premier content ‘which may be more costly or risky but has a bigger potential new audience’, and the remaining 10% of content should be more experimental.?

There are many variations of the 4-1-1 rule & the 70-20-10 rule out there, though sticking to an agreed structure of quality posts will help increase your engagement across LinkedIn over time.?

Post quantity is a more interesting question. A quick Google Search will inform you that you should post from a few times a day to once every fortnight. At GlowMetrics, we try to post daily across all social media, though sometimes that doesn’t happen while at times we can post more than once – so we suggest aiming to post once a day when possible.

5. Track links to your website (UTMs)?

Whether the function of your LinkedIn business page is to drive traffic to your site or to build brand awareness across LinkedIn, all links leading to your website should be tracked. Tracking links allows a better view of what traffic is coming from LinkedIn, and what content on your LinkedIn page is driving traffic. Therefore, creating more insight into what content could drive traffic and engagement in the future.?

The best way to do this is with Urchin Tracking Module codes (UTMs). UTMs can be created and added to the URLs of links on posts and your business page. Traffic from tracked links is picked up and measured using your site’s linked Google Analytics account (if you have one set up).?

If you haven’t created a UTM before or struggle with creating UTMs, Google Developer Tools have a good?UTM builder, which makes the process really simple.?

6. Engage with LinkedIn users outside your business profile as your business

It is best practice to engage with all interactions on your business posts though you can also engage outward as a business on LinkedIn. Similar to how you can React, Comment and Share from your personal LinkedIn profile, you can React, Comment and Share as your business across your feed.

While previously this was more difficult to do, LinkedIn now has an added option to select what profile/business page you wish to engage through.?

7. Compete the Business Page Set-up

LinkedIn walks you through all the recommended steps with the initial set-up of your business page. While this can seem a little over the top, the suggested set-up is very useful in the long term – with LinkedIn stating that ‘Pages with complete information get 30% more weekly views‘.?

LinkedIn Product Page is a feature that should be considered as part of your business’s complete page setup. LinkedIn Product Pages allows you to include your products on your business LinkedIn page creating the opportunity for further sales/leads. While the feature also gives product users the opportunity to share their experiences and be recognized for their expertise, and for buyers to make confident decisions about products in a trusted environment. Check out the?LinkedIn Product Pages FAQ?for more information

8. Target an audience with your business page posts

When you post on LinkedIn as your business page, you have the option to post to anyone or to a specific audience with the post targeting tool. By selecting the small curved box (titled ‘Anyone’) under your business name in the ‘Create a post’ function box, you can select between the options: Anyone (On or Off LinkedIn) or Targeted Audience. The Target Audience option then lets you narrow down the target audience using the following dimensions: Language, Region, Job Function, Location, University, Company Size, Seniority and Industry. To post a targeted update, you must target a minimum of 300 Page followers.?Check out the?Post Targeted Updates on Your LinkedIn Page?for more information.

9. View your business profile as a member

The simplest on the list but potentially the most useful is the ‘View as Member’ option on the admin view of the company page. Located at the top right-hand side of the page, the View as Member option lets you view your business page as a connected member.??

With this option, you can see what users see when they first enter the business page, which you can then compare to competitors’ pages and check page health.?

Google has just released an update to their algorithm, which could be one of the most significant updates since Panda back in 2011, with many SEOs predicting that the Helpful Content Update could be a game-changer in the world of search engine optimisation.

What is the Helpful Content Update?

In August 2022 Google announced that they would be rolling out a new update to their algorithm which they named the “Helpful Content Update”. Many experts in SEO have seen begun to speculate that this is Google’s latest attempt to ensure that relevant, accurate content that is written for users (and not search engines) is being rewarded in SERPs (Google’s search results). As stated in Google’s Search Central blog, the goal of this update is to “ensure people see more original, helpful content written by people, for people, in search results.”

The reasons for this are not exactly clear however there is some speculation that the?growth of Tiktok as a search engine for Gen Z?may be something to do with it. Tiktok allows users to find the answer to their questions in an efficient manner and has seen a rise in activity around “how to” videos, recipe ideas, and news – in a format that is shorter and more to the point than similar platforms such as YouTube. Although at this stage it’s important to note that misinformation is an ongoing issue on Tiktok and an area that Google is keen to eradicate on their result pages.?

Do Users Still Like Google Search Results?

Despite the undeniable rise of Tiktok, Google is still the number 1 search engine in the world. Search is still Google’s primary product and is still so widely used that ‘Google’ has become a dictionary-approved verb. However, over recent years there has been increasing level of dissatisfaction with the user experience in Google’s results, with issues such as?answers being buried deep within articles, relentless selling across SERPs, and the dreaded listicles frustrating users as they find an answer to their query – making them click “Next” after every sentence or slide. An article went viral on Reddit earlier this year with the striking headline?“Google Search is Dying”?and even more established new publishers joined in too with The Atlantic publishing an article with the tag line?“Google Search isn’t what it used to be”?in which they described their frustration at Google’s move towards keyword intent and not keyword matching (a problem many Google Ads advetisers are already very familiar with).?

For example, we’ve all tried to look for a recipe on Google and click through to an overly long blog describing the writer’s holidays to Tuscany and family history and anything else they can think of, we scroll down endlessly (and then some more) to finally get to the content we want….the recipe. This is not the experience on Tiktok where users can find recipe videos ranging from 30 secs to 3 minutes (though often not that long) where the focus is purely on the food and not on the creator. Is the Helpful Content Update Google’s attempt to fix these problems? We hope so.

A People First Update?

According to Google, this is a?“people first” that aims to ensure that writers understand that content should be written to satisfy users and meet their needs – and not try to game the algorithm for better organic visibility and ranking.?Although Google is continuing to encourage sites to continue to utilise best-practice, established SEO techniques, they have provided some helpful points to help writers determine whether they are actually taking a people-first approach to content. Therefore, content should:

? Be useful and helpful to the intended audience

? Should 1st hand and reputable expertise and knowledge

? Be able to educate readers to the extent that they have achieved their goal

? Give readers a satisfying user experience

For more information visit the excellent?Google Search Central blog?for the latest on this update and a comprehensive guide to all of Google’s algorithm updates in the past.?

Are These Different From Existing Guidelines?

According to Google, any content on websites it has determined to have unhelpful, low-quality, or spammy content is now less likely to perform well in Google Search. This means that even though you might have a lot of high-quality content on your website, some low-value articles could impact the entire site’s organic performance and result in lower rankings (and therefore less organic traffic). At the same time, websites with a lot of low-value content will likely be significantly impacted in terms of orders, even if they have followed established SEO techniques. It seems that this updating is leaning heavily into the old SEO adage and even in 2022 Content is, in fact, still king – it’s just this time it really does need to be the best quality content you can produce.?

Therefore, it’s important to evaluate your existing content and remove unhelpful and unsatisfying content that may be on your site as it seems like one bad apple, can indeed spoil the bunch.

What You Can Do About The Helpful Content Update?

This change is here to stay and we will no double find that Google will continue to fine-tune its algorithm over time to keep the most high-quality content at the top of SERPs and to reward websites that provide users with valuable content. Therefore, now is the time to assess the quality of the content on your site objectively. We recommend completing a content audit to replace spammy content with high-quality content that educates users and answers their queries effectively and efficiently. You should also think about different kinds of content you can put across your site, we suggest leveraging content such as blogs and case studies in addition to product/service-focused pages. Finally, conduct a thorough competitor analysis to see what your competitors are doing well (or not at all), and make sure you are covering those bases on your site by addressing any content gaps they may have.

However, having your site packed with helpful content isn’t enough without creating a logical structure so that both users (and bots) can make their way to that content. Therefore solid navigation and an internal link plan are essential. Within individual pieces of content make sure you use different headers and sub-header to help users quickly find the content they need to answer their query. Finally, don’t forget to back up what you are saying to improve your E-A-T score. Add author bios, clear display certifications of accreditations, link to your sources, and use reliable data.

Check out GlowMetrics’?SEO services?to see how we can help you build and sustain organic growth visit or check out some of our?case studies?to read success stories from our clients.

Google Analytics is a powerful tool and knowing how to use it can be very useful! The Google Analytics Individual Qualification, or GAIQ, demonstrates expertise in Google Analytics. To earn this certification, you must pass the GAIQ exam. This can seem a little daunting but do not worry, by following these tips you will be certified in no time.

What To Expect From The Exam

You can access the GAIQ exam through Google Skillshop and it is free to take. You have 90 minutes to answer 70 multiple choice or true/false questions, and you will need at minimum 56 correct answers to achieve the 80% and above required to pass. Once you have passed, your certification will remain valid for 12 months.

Preparing For The Exam

Take Advantage of the Study Material

Once you have registered, you can access the exam study guide with links to the Google Analytics Academy courses “Google Analytics for Beginners” and “Advanced Google Analytics”. Both courses have four units with an assessment at the end. They are comprised of video lessons, guided tours, and activities.

Going through these lessons is the most effective way to familiarise yourself with the topics that will be on the exam and your scores on the assessments will give you an idea of which sections you need to brush up on. If you want to feel even more prepared, you can read the articles provided in the ‘read further’ section of each unit or explore some of the other courses that Google Analytics Academy offers.

Space Out Your Preparation

The courses recommended by the study guide allow you to complete them at your own pace so give yourself time to review the material properly. Try to cover one unit at a time and make notes to help you digest the information. It can be hard to motivate yourself to study so try to block out study sessions on your calendar and hold yourself accountable.

Get Some Hands-On Experience

The questions on the GAIQ exam are a mix of theory based and practical questions which check your understanding of features available in Google Analytics. The best way to prepare for these questions is to get some hands on experience testing features and reports on a real Google Analytics account.

If you do not have a company Google Analytics account, you can gain access to the Google Merchandise Store demo account via the Analytics Academy courses. The Google Analytics YouTube channel also has several videos of walkthroughs of the interface.

During The Exam

Avoid Interruptions

When you feel ready to take the exam make sure you block out 90 minutes in a quiet place. Try to ensure you have no interruptions because once you have started the exam you cannot pause it.

Use Resources

You may find it useful to have your Google Analytics account open in a second browser tab while you’re taking the exam. If you get stuck on a question you can try to get the information directly from the interface.

Don’t Panic

The most important tip is to not panic! You have plenty of time to answer all the questions, even if you take a little longer on some of the more difficult questions, don’t rush. Remember that you cannot skip a question and come back to it or make changes to questions you’ve already answered so read every question carefully.

Good luck!

If you found this useful and would like to know more about Google Ads, SEO, Google Analytics and more check out the?GlowMetrics Digital Marketing?and the?Glowmetrics Digital Analytics?blogs. Or if you would rather get GlowMetrics updates?Sign Up for our Newsletter!