5 mistakes not to make on a LinkedIn company page

Posted by HRGO Recruitment on 25 Sep 2015

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Chances are, you’re one of the 364 million people who have a profile on the business networking site LinkedIn. But how’s your company page looking?

Get it right, and it can boost your brand’s visibility, help you engage with prospects and catapult you to the top of results when people search for products and services like yours.

Plus, with an increasing number of Gen Y and Gen Zs forming their impressions of your business on social media during recruitment, it’s more vital than ever to get your company page sorted - and not make these five mistakes...

MISTAKE #1: Leaving your company page unfinished

Interaction is everything on LinkedIn, and research shows that if your company page is incomplete, you may get as much as 40% less of it as a result.

Filling in the overview area underneath your header image is particularly key. There’s room to list essential information including your company’s specialities, your website, which industry you’re in and your address - so why wouldn’t you?

Team members who’ve listed your business as their workplace are easily clickable, so watch out for sloppy or incomplete profiles. Remember everyone on LinkedIn is representing your company.

MISTAKE #2: Using stock photos as a header image

Your header image is the first thing visitors see, and is the quickest way to put your business’ personality on display. It should really represent you, and add to your credibility.

Ditch stock photos for a professionally-designed high-quality header image that fits with your overall branding. Here are some ideas of what works well:

•        A strong, iconic image of the product or service you’re best known for
•        A quote graphic that sets your company apart
•        A collage of behind-the-scenes team photos
•        A graphic promoting a new product or service

Another design no-no includes using a business logo that’s the wrong size (or worse, blurry) and badly cropped - you have been warned!

MISTAKE #3: Not optimising for search

A company page that’s friendly yet authoritative is a great thing. But unless you’re sprinkling your paragraphs with words and phrases that describe your business, you’re missing out on visitors. 

This is key because people can use keywords to search for companies like yours within LinkedIn. Think how your business might be described by someone who’s searching, and use those relevant words in your sentences. Get it right, and your company page will one of the first results when future clients - or employees - search for similar businesses.

MISTAKE #4: Pushing out spammy updates

Self-serving promotion is out; useful, compelling and engaging content is in. Although everything you post on LinkedIn needs to reflect your company ethos, there’s no greater turn-off than relentlessly salesy updates.

It’s fine to share your latest press releases, company updates and other relevant news. But bear in mind how they’ll be read so always consider how what you post will specifically benefit readers.

Best practice is to intersperse your updates with content from other sources relevant to your industry. Sharing other people’s blog posts or updates - particularly if they’re clients or prospects - is a great way to keep you in mind, too.

MISTAKE #5: Allowing tumbleweed

You’re happy with the company page you’ve established. Now what? The only way to build a vibrant community around your business on LinkedIn is to update the page regularly and consistently.

The ideal is to post every weekday. According to LinkedIn themselves, updates that go out in the morning get more engagement. If anyone asks a question, or comments on one of your page’s updates, make sure you answer and thank them promptly.

One way to avoid tumbleweed? Get your employees on board. Encourage everyone on the team to watch out for updates, then like, comment and share them to their own networks.

Please do follow us on our HR GO LinkedIn company page. Don’t have a LinkedIn company page yet? See the official guide on how it’s done.