Take a closer look at LinkedIn's new features

LinkedIn has been rolling out new features in the past few months, so I thought it was a good time to do a round-up and explain which ones are worth paying attention to, and which ones you can press the snooze button for now.

If you're not already active on LinkedIn, now is a great time to get involved. Whether you're a leader, subject matter expert, salesperson or in the talent and HR space, it's still the best way to connect with people virtually and stay front of mind.

As always with LinkedIn, new features are being rolled out slowly, so don't panic if you haven't got all these yet - they'll come in time.

So, onto the features...

Cover stories

If you see anyone's profile image has an orange ring (1) around it you'll know that they have a cover story video activated. You'll also see an animated preview - the so-called Harry Potter effect. Click on the + to upload a 30-second introduction about what you do or your key message - it's up to you!

• Pay attention? - Yes, this is worthwhile, as it's a more personal way of presenting yourself.
• Top tip - Record in portrait format, as that's what's shown when your audiences click through.

Pronouns

Lots of people have been adding pronouns (e.g. he/him) to their names for a while, but LinkedIn is rolling them out as a built-in feature (2) to all users. The advantage is that it works as a prompt for people to do it, while also removing the pronoun as part of your actual "name" makes it less clunky from a tagging point of view.

It's not something you can activate, as such, but just look out for the prompts when you get them on LinkedIn.

• Pay attention? - Yes, even though it's a personal choice whether you want to use them, it's a small, but welcome, new feature.
• Top tip - N/A

Learn more through Chris Mosier's article The Importance of Pronouns at Work and Mypronouns.org

Creator Mode

Creator Mode was launched in March, but has been introduced slowly in the past couple of months. Essentially, it's a way of showing your profile and content in a way that's more likely to attract followers, rather than new connections.

According to LinkedIn, "creators are members who regularly share content with their professional community to demonstrate their expertise, ignite conversations about ideas and experiences, and build communities around common interests."

Think of Creator Mode as LinkedIn's answer to YouTube or Instagram creator programmes. When it's activated your profile will display your topics more prominently (3), people will be more likely to follow you, and when you do LinkedIn Live, it'll display video in your cover image.

• Pay attention? - By all means give it a try, especially if you're active already and want to build a follower base up. But for most people, I reckon regular mode is just fine.
• Top tip - Make sure you post regularly and use your top hashtags consistently.

Learn more on LinkedIn creators homepage or the original LinkedIn article from Margaret Rose Taormina

Longer posts + articles on pages

LinkedIn's two text formats are posts (up to 1,300 characters, with the ability to add an image) and articles (100k characters, with multiple pictures, embedded content and more). I've always liked this distinction, as posts are good for quick reactions or personal storytelling, while articles give the opportunity for a deeper dive into a topic.

While the 'views' are measured differently (for posts, it's an 'impression', and for articles, you need to click through), I've noticed that article reads have been falling for a while. I don't know if this is people being less keen on reading or writing them, or LinkedIn throttling back on them (comment below if you have an opinion!).

LinkedIn is now extending the character limit on posts to 3,000 (around 500 words), giving authors the space to effectively write short articles. Meanwhile, page managers can now write and publish articles on the organisation's brand page, rather than being solely from individuals. For me this is recognition that comms teams are often responsible for article writing anyway, giving them a bit more control over the content.

• Pay attention? - Yes, it'll be interesting to see how people use the extra post space and what effect that has on views and engagement. For brand pages, it's another welcome addition on what has been a weak area for LinkedIn.
• Top tip - Experiment with different post lengths and format, and continue with articles for yourself and your company - but make them count.

Video meetings

Here's a feature that's been around for over six months, which I've only just noticed: video meetings. Essentially, it enables you to set up a video meeting using Zoom, Teams or BlueJeans. These can either be scheduled or run instantly.

• Pay attention? - Yes, if you're using LinkedIn direct messages as a primary way of communicating (e.g. if you're in a sales role), then this keeps everything in one place.
• Top tip - Try creating a video meeting for group chats you might be part of.

Boosting posts with ads

LinkedIn doesn't have the best reputation for its paid ad offering. Its ad platform, Campaign Manager, is a bit awkward to use and targeting isn't as sophisticated as Facebook. LinkedIn is addressing some of these issues by offering a quicker way of pushing content into people's feeds by giving posts a paid "boost".

• Pay attention? - It depends. If you have a product launch of time-sensitive content it's a quick way of getting it into people's feeds. But it's pretty basic and it may be better to focus on Campaign Manager for more sophisticated campaign management.
• Top tip - Think about your objective before boosting - ie "brand awareness", "video views", "engagement" or "website visits".

Learn more about paid Boosts on LinkedIn Marketing Solutions.

Events Ads

I've always thought events were an under-utilised feature in LinkedIn - maybe people prefer sticking to Eventbrite (let me know what you think in the comments below) or simple Zoom webinars. Or perhaps it's about the promotion on LinkedIn that's a bit clunky and ineffective? If you're in the latter camp, then Event Ads may solve at least one of your problems.

• Pay attention? - Yes, if you're an existing events user and want to drive volume attendee numbers or get outside your usual network bubble.
• Top tip - This isn't one I've tried yet, so take a look at the Events Ad guide on LinkedIn Marketing Solutions, which has got a getting started guide, playbook and links to more about LinkedIn Live.

In summary...

I'm really pleased to see Microsoft continue to invest in the LinkedIn platform, and while you might not need all these updates, it's proof that it's constantly under development and evolving over time.

My overall advice, however, is not to worry too much about keeping up with absolutely everything. As long as...

• your profile reflects who you are;
• you're connected to the right people;
• you're having lots of conversations; and
• you are putting out some content (don't worry about the format!)

... LinkedIn will give you back your time investment in spades.