First it was Snapchat. Then Instagram released their Stories feature, followed by Facebook.
Now, LinkedIn has hopped aboard, with their new LinkedIn Stories feature.
Available only on the LinkedIn app, stories let brands reach their professional connections with 20 second videos. These videos are only available for 24 hours (just like Instagram) before they disappear.
By releasing this feature, LinkedIn is angling to leverage FOMO (fear of missing out) and keep its users logging in more often — or risk missing some great content. It also gives brands an opportunity to share less curated, more “in-the-moment” content, which many consumers really connect to.
If you’re considering adding LinkedIn stories to your marketing strategy, here’s what you need to know.
How to Post
The first thing you’ll notice when you open the LinkedIn app is that their Stories look remarkably similar to Instagram stories. So if you know how to post on Instagram, you’ll be ready to go on LinkedIn.
Stories live at the top of the screen in individual circles. Your circle will be on the far left, and say “Your Story” underneath. Just tap that circle, and then you can either record a story or select one from your photos or videos.
In the top right corner, you’ll find icons for adding stickers or text. The app doesn’t have many customization features yet, like polls or music. But expect more functionality in the future.
When you have your story set up how you like it, hit Share Story in the bottom right. Your first connections will now be able to see your Story on the mobile app for the next 24 hours.
It doesn’t appear that you can create Stories from posts in your LinkedIn feed, the way you can with your Instagram posts. Maybe that feature will come with a future upgrade?
After your Stories go live, you can access some analytics to see how they’ve performed. One great benefit — when you scroll through the people who have watched your Stories, there will be a little icon allowing you to send them a message. So if you’d like to reach out and follow up with people who have been watching your Stories, it’s easy to do.
What to Post
Feel free to be personable and approachable in Stories, but remember that LinkedIn is a professional networking site. So try to keep your posts “on theme.” Stories about what you’re having for dinner are probably not the best content for this platform!
Instead, try some of these ideas.
Behind-the-scenes content
Show us around your offices or factory. Let us peek inside the lunchroom. Things that seem mundane to you may interest your professional connections in a different field!
Staff introductions
Introduce us to the team! Putting faces to your brand can help your connections to feel more…well..connected!
Stories are meant to be impromptu, so you don’t need to worry about fancy production values. You can ask the teammate to share something fun about themselves, or explain what they do at the company.
Professional tips
What can you share with your audience that they might find helpful?
Social media marketers may offer tips on how you can get better engagement. Copywriters could give advice on creating buyer personas. An experienced CEO could share stories and lessons that he or she has learned through their career.
Stories should be entertaining, but they should also add value. What would your audience benefit from?
Highlights from conferences or work events
While most events are virtual right now due to COVID-19, eventually we’ll meet up in person again. And this type of event is perfect fodder for LinkedIn Stories!
Record a clip from the keynote speaker’s presentation, or share key takeaways and fun moments from summits and networking events.
Sneak peaks
Got something new in the pipeline? Share it in your Stories! Build some buzz and excitement for your upcoming release.
Don’t forget the captions!
Just like any other video content, it’s always a good idea to include captions with your LinkedIn stories. Social media users only have the sound on 15% of the time when they watch Facebook videos, compared to 60% for Instagram.
What does that mean for LinkedIn? Hard to say, but we can certainly assume that a large portion of your viewers will have the sound off. Make sure they’re still getting the benefit of your content by adding captions. You can use a site like Kapwing to add captions quickly and easily.
Include a Call to Action
What’s the objective of your Stories?
Views for views’ sake don’t do you much good. Instead, try to get your viewers to take an action.
Do you want them to visit your website? Sign up for your email list? You can’t link directly to your website from a story on LinkedIn, but you can encourage viewers to visit your profile or your latest post. Get them one step closer to a conversion by telling them exactly what to do.
Why Use LinkedIn Stories?
Since the feature is so new, there isn’t much data on engagement yet. But based on the enormous success of Stories on both Instagram and Facebook, we can expect this feature to do well.
Jump on it now to become an early adopter and start getting more engagement and visits to your profile!