LinkedIn is rolling out new-look company pages aimed at being more visually powerful so leading companies can better use the website as a marketing tool.
Only a few large companies have access to the new page layout currently, but LinkedIn will roll it out across all two million companies that use the site in the coming months. The update will change the layout of the site.
Overview page
The company overview page will look more like a business website, withLinkedIn allowing companies to better personalise their pages.
Companies will be able to upload a cover image, similar to a banner across the top of the page, which will help to make the pages look more enticing.
When choosing a cover image, ensure it is professional and represents your company well. It doesn’t necessarily have to be your company logo.
Your company summary, which was previously at the top of the page, will be located at the bottom. This places more importance on the cover image, as it is the first thing people will see.
You will also notice the tabs at the top of your overview page (such as careers, services and follower insights) are gone. They are being moved to the right-hand side of the page.
Company updates
While previously you could pick who to target your company updates to, not many users knew about this feature, or used it. LinkedIn is making it more accessible.
When posting a company update, click on ‘targeted audience’ and you can choose to share only with a targeted audience, or all your followers. Your audience can be specified by company size, industry, function, seniority or geographic area.
This feature could be useful if you have several different target groups. You can personalise a message to them, increasing your click rate and engagement.
For example if you had a product only available to people living in New South Wales, you could choose to send the update only to your followers from that state.
Career pages
You will still have to pay a subscription fee to use the career page. If you choose to do this you can make the most of it by uploading a cover image, list job opportunities available and show a list of current employees and testimonials from them about what it is like to work at your company.
This feature is more useful for large companies which are regularly looking for new employees, rather than smaller businesses that may not have the budget or the job opportunities available to populate this area properly.
Products and services page
This hasn’t changed much, however there is now a sidebar located on the right-hand side which highlights the names, job titles, companies and profile images of LinkedIn users in the visitor’s network who have recommended a product or service on the company page.
Mobile App
LinkedIn’s mobile app now allows you to search for companies; previously you were only able to search for people.
This is great news for companies with customers or clients who spend most of their time on a mobile or tablet.
Overall the new-look company pages will have a cleaner, more attractive layout which will allow you to better market your company on LinkedIn to its 100-million-plus members.
Catriona Pollard is the founder and director of CP Communications and the author of From Unknown To Expert.
