Often, when thinking of social media influencers TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube are the first platforms to come to mind. LinkedIn, however, is a quiet contender that many of us should consider more when creating a digital media plan.
Did you know the professional social networking platform has actually been around longer than Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and Instagram? And it’s more relevant now than ever. It houses more than 600 million professional profiles, which means there’s an infinitesimal pool of networking opportunities, and most importantly, an abundance of eyes for your content.
We spoke with LinkedIn’s Community Segments Lead, Jame Jackson, and LinkedIn influencer/Job recruiter Jalonni Weaver (who has more than 142k followers) to discuss how the platform has become a content creator playground.
Unlike other platforms, I didn’t find a direct monetization opportunity for LinkedIn creators who specifically create content on that platform. How do they make money?
Jame Jackson: I like to tell people the way LinkedIn helps others make money is a little different than other social platforms. Whereas you might find on other platforms there are these one-off initiatives or quick moments to really get people behind their products and tools. We really want to introduce people to all of the things that we have at LinkedIn because we do believe that creating good quality content and sharing from a place of knowledge naturally attracts economic opportunities. For instance, you might have a LinkedIn creator who shares in their weekly newsletter (that LinkedIn provides a free tool for) how they are building their business, and our algorithm boosts it leading to brand deals and collaborations. Jalonni can definitely speak to this more as she’s leveraged the insights she’s learned at her day job in recruitment into an online platform and cultivated relationships with sponsors.
LinkedIn is also a platform where the numbers I don’t really fixate on the numbers as much as you might think on other platforms. Whereas people are saying you need 50,000, 100,000, a million followers or whatever to be successful at LinkedIn. It’s not that at all. I have seen people be able to generate six figures plus off of three and 5000 followers. It’s really about getting the niches.
Jalonni Weaver: I can definitely piggyback on that—LinkedIn actually encourages creators to post authentic content to stay above the fray of fostering inorganic engagement. It’s all about the content. What do people want to hear? For instance, I’m a recruiter. I care about mental health and I talk about things that aren’t really talked about on professional platforms and bringing light to those things.
How does LinkedIn incentivize those high-traffic driving users to continue to share their stories and platform some of those thought leadership pieces they post?
Jame Jackson: I think a lot of this comes down to teaching people the long term strategy of content creation. Personally, I think that a lot of people, especially after 2020, when we were all home, a lot of people started to pick up their phone and record content, and all of a sudden they became creators of some sort. Now, I always like to tell people, go a step further. You’re not just a creator, you are a thought leader. You are an expert, you are an industry expert, and you have something that someone else wants to know.
One of the ways we support our creators is through our tool Creator Mode, which anyone can cut on in their settings. This allows access to your analytics and performance metrics that can be used in a media kit. Use that when you pitch yourself to other people. The numbers don’t lie. You also have access to all of the different tools we have, whether it’s LinkedIn Live, newsletters, audio events, and so much more. Now you have this beautiful portfolio of stuff that you can go out to the world or people can find you.
Although LinkedIn is still a largely positive social media platform compared to others that have become synonymous with toxicity, it can still be daunting sharing yourself on such a large stage. Is there any advice for those who aspire to create content and ultimately become a LinkedIn influencer?
Jalonni Weaver: Just start. For people that are thinking about being creators, just begin. If you have 500 followers or 5000 followers, that doesn’t mean that you’re out of your league. People who are on that platform are already in a particular mindset they’re yearning for the real.
For instance, I know there are so many people right now that have been laid off and share their job search journey. And it’s crazy to see how many people can relate to that and are looking to just network, or draw some inspiration from another person’s story. So I would just say, do it. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there. LinkedIn is a welcoming place and it’s also a huge launching pad for great opportunities.