What does Linkedin look like in 2024?

LinkedIn, which predates Facebook, is now more than two decades old. While its total user base is about 30% of Facebook’s, it stands alone as the largest professional networking platform on the planet with users in more than 200 territories and countries.

While the platform has remained committed to its overarching purpose of remaining relevant to the broader user base, it has increasingly responded to changes in user demography. Originally the site focused on recruitment, HR and job seekers. Now it’s more tailored to professional development, career progression (from graduates to the C-suite) and content packaged for niche audiences (such as entrepreneurs and small business owners).

Recent demographic changes have also resulted in changes to the algorithm, new content formats (such as video, polls and carousel posts) and increased service options tailored to support career development, business growth, lead generation, personal branding and recruitment. While long-standing members have been frustrated by the updated algorithm, understanding how and why it was changed puts you in a better position to utilise it.

Demography and Geography

One of the most significant changes to LinkedIn in recent years has been the growth in Millennial users (25 to 34 year olds), which now total 87 million and make up 60% of LinkedIn users. Essentially, the decision-makers of the coming decades (and in some cases right now).

LinkedIn has also changed its definition of a ‘relevant’ user when it distributes content through its algorithm. Originally LinkedIn defined ‘relevant’ users as those who actively engage others with recent content however the algorithm no longer favours chronological ranking. This means your feed will feature more relevant, more popular content that’s a bit older rather than the most recent posts.?

While the largest national market is the United States (233 million), LinkedIn’s global users tend to be based in the Asia-Pacific (277 million) or Europe (257 million).

LinkedIn’s user base in Asia is concentrated in India, China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Singapore. Amongst the 26 languages provided by the platform are traditional and simplified Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Tagalog, Malay and Korean. The highest LinkedIn ad reach in the region is held by Singapore (over 72%) and Australia (68%). In Australia and New Zealand, LinkedIn also ranks in the top social media for traffic and advertising reach (for general population, rather than the business community).

India (99 million), Brazil (63 million) and China (60 million) follow the U.S. in the top country rankings. LinkedIn’s international sales offices are located in its strongest user markets: Australia, Canada, India, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

Content and User Behaviour

As the most-used social media platform of the Fortune 500, LinkedIn has progressively become an important B2B and B2C tool for a range of sectors.

Changes to the broader user base mean that today's average user is younger than it was ten years ago - a change which has altered content formats but not the most popular content types.

Personal and company pages continue to receive the most attention. In fact 40% of users engage with at least one page organically each week. So it's not surprising that pages which post weekly have 5 times more followers than those which post monthly and their overall following grows at a rate 7 times faster.

Yet only 2.7 million pages on LinkedIn are updated weekly. Company pages remain underutilised, particularly the production of original content that enhances B2B comms, branding, company reputation, industry engagement and media outreach. More savvy companies also utilise their pages to illustrate corporate culture and celebrate achievements, which supports recruitment and staff retention.

Updated algorithm

While ‘strictly business’ users have complained that LinkedIn is becoming more like Instagram, Twitter (X) and Facebook due to increased personal content, updates to the algorithm have actually been designed to distinguish between personal and professional audiences to improve content curation. Those using the platform to provide personal updates will find this content is shared predominantly with their immediate connections – making it easier for folks to tailor their content feed if they don’t like such content. While professional, sector-specific content from seasoned experts in their field tends to reach a broader industry-based audience.

One aspect of the algorithm which remains the same is its preference for content that reflects experience and expertise. If your profile, interests, keywords, engagement and articles/posts reflect consistent leadership and insight into your sector you will be rewarded for that with greater reach.

Traditionally, LinkedIn has favoured Thought Leadership content which is relevant to an existing Follower/Connections base. And it still does. The challenge for many business owners is to take what is often basic CEO profiling content and slowly adapt it to appeal to potential clients – while simultaneously building a new following of potential leads. For this reason, Company pages and Company followers have become even more important.

Tailoring your feed

There are a number of ways you can update your feed, to ensure the content you’re receiving is relevant and favours those you want to follow more closely.

It helps to review the accounts you’re following on a semi regular basis. You can access this list via your Profile Page, by selecting your Followers (at the top, in your Basic Info section) then clicking on the Following tab. You can then select to Unfollow specific personal accounts.

Alternatively, you can provide LinkedIn direct feedback on the content within your feed. You’ll see that in the top right corner, each post has a dropdown menu symbol (…) where you can select to unfollow an account or a specific post/topic (I don’t want to see this). You can also save a post (it gets filed in your Saved posts and articles), then access it later via the Resources option in your profile.

Actively engaging with (rather than just reading) content also helps to curate the content you see. Liking, commenting or sharing posts and articles helps LinkedIn understand the specific topics and accounts you want to see more of. It also ensures their suggestions are more relevant.

Your notifications can also be tailored by accessing the Notifications tab and selecting View Settings on the far left. These options break down how you hear about connections, posts, comments, messaging, group updates and news feed items.

What this means for you

Understanding what LinkedIn looks like in 2024 will increase your efficiency on the platform and help you overcome the challenges of algorithm updates.

The key issues I’ve seen business owners experience indicate a failure to:

• Determine a solid business and/or comms strategy to guide their LinkedIn activities

1. Name and list clear goals to be achieved within a specific timeframe (every business wants to "build their revenue" – but the successful ones drill down to address the specifics of their business model, industry and customer base)
2. Utilise data analytics to track your activities and understand where changes need to be made ?

• Utilise the power of authentic and consistent content

1. CEO profiling, personal branding and B2B comms should be cohesive rather than confusing
2. Develop unique content that communicates your purpose and maximises your brand differentiation (most businesses are sitting on mountains of insights but don’t know how to package or repurpose it into engaging content that targets their audience)

• Activate crucial tools such as Creator Mode and Company page

1. These are the spaces where it’s appropriate to provide CTA messaging and direct traffic back to a company website

• Maximise their timing

1. Pay attention to the time zones your key audience/s are based in
2. Save quality posts and insightful comments for mid week
3. Re-post and promote your content - don’t be shy about tagging a few people or using a few hashtags (don’t rely solely on the algorithm of a person’s content feed or notifications).

Sources: LinkedIn, Statista and SocialPilot.

Is this the year you lift your profile on LinkedIn?

Reach out to learn what's possible for your personal or business brand. I work with clients in person and remotely across multiple markets to determine, execute and track communications strategies relevant to their sector.

Katie Howe is a New Zealand-based international executive and owner of Jacaranda Communications . She has worked with clients throughout Asia, Australia and the United States in sectors such as clean technology, IT, bilateral trade, FMCG, property management, hospitality and government.