Having both a personal and company LinkedIn presence can be beneficial, but it’s important to keep them separate. Here are some quick tips to maintain that separation:
Use separate LinkedIn accounts
The easiest way to separate a personal and company presence is by creating separate LinkedIn accounts. Your personal account should be under your own name and used to build connections and further your own career. Your company account should be a LinkedIn page that represents your business and is used for company branding and marketing.
Customize your profiles
Each profile should have a distinct customized URL (for example: www.linkedin.com/in/yourname and www.linkedin.com/company/yourbusiness). Personalize each profile description, background photo, contact info and content to match the appropriate account.
Be clear in your position titles
On your personal profile, list your position at the company as your official job title (for example: Marketing Manager at ABC Company). On the company page, list your title as representing the company (for example: John Smith, ABC Company).
Separate your connections
On your personal profile, connect with colleagues, classmates, friends and professional contacts. On your company page, follow and connect with partners, clients, industry professionals and target audiences.
Post relevant updates
Share personal career updates, interests and articles on your individual profile. Post company news, initiatives, content and stories on your company profile.
Monitor your activity
Occasionally review both of your LinkedIn feeds and settings. Make sure content and connections remain relevant to each account.
Conclusion
Maintaining separation between your personal and company presence on LinkedIn simply takes some extra care and effort. With a few best practices, you can strategically use both profiles to advance your career and business goals.
Here is a table summarizing the key differences between personal and company LinkedIn accounts:
| Personal LinkedIn | Company LinkedIn |
|---|---|
| Profile in your own name | Company/brand page |
| Connect with individual professionals | Follow target audiences |
| Share personal career details | Post company news and initiatives |
| Advance your own career | Market the business |
Here are some additional tips for keeping your personal and company LinkedIn presence separate:
Be transparent in your bio
Clearly state on both profiles that you represent both yourself and your company. This reduces confusion for viewers.
Use different profile photos
Use a professional headshot on your personal account and the company logo or banners on your company page.
Customize your URLs
As mentioned previously, setting unique customized URLs for each profile makes it clear which is personal or company.
Be mindful of recommendations
Ask for personal endorsements and recommendations on your individual profile only. Company recommendations should be on the company page.
Promote the company page
On your personal profile, you can list and link to your company page in the experience and accomplishments sections.
Link to your personal profile
On your company page, you can link to your personal profile in your employee bio section or About page.
Use company hashtags
Use branded hashtags and keywords on company posts, but not on your personal profile.
Engage as the company
When commenting or interacting as your company, make that clear by using your company name rather than your own.
Separating your LinkedIn accounts does take some extra time and effort. But maintaining this distinction can really benefit both your personal brand and your company’s marketing. With focus on posting relevant content and connections for each account, you can build an engaged following for both profiles.
Here are some final pros and cons of having separate personal and company LinkedIn pages:
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
|
Overall, most pros seem to outweigh the cons if you strategically optimize both profiles. Just be sure to intentionally separate the two presences for the best results. With a personal brand and company brand working together but independently, you can boost both career and business relationships on LinkedIn.
