What is LinkedIn business account?

A LinkedIn business account is a type of account on the LinkedIn social media platform that is specifically designed for businesses, brands, and organizations to establish their professional presence and connect with customers. LinkedIn business accounts have some key features that make them distinct from regular personal LinkedIn accounts.

Difference between personal and business accounts

The main differences between a personal LinkedIn account and a business account are:

• Business accounts can showcase information about a company, such as services, products, mission, values, and culture.
• Business accounts have access to additional features like Showcase Pages, Ad campaigns, Talent Solutions, and Lead Gen Forms.
• Business accounts allow multiple employees to manage content and engage with prospects under a single company profile.
• Business accounts provide detailed analytics on content and Company Page performance.
• Business accounts have the ability to publish long-form articles on LinkedIn through Publisher.
• Business accounts can contact any other member without needing to connect first.

In contrast, personal accounts are for individual networking and self-promotion. They lack many of the features tailored for brands and businesses.

Benefits of a LinkedIn business account

There are many benefits to creating a LinkedIn business account instead of just having employees use their personal accounts. Benefits include:

• Increased brand awareness – A business account is completely focused on promoting the brand, products/services, content, and job openings.
• Targeted lead generation – Business accounts can create gated content and customized Lead Gen Forms to capture prospects.
• Centralized management – Multiple authorized employees can collaborate and post as the brand itself, not just as individuals.
• Company Page analytics – Gain insights into followers, page views, content engagement, website referrals, and more.
• Special advertising options – Access self-service ads and advanced targeting capabilities to reach your ideal audience.
• Talent Solutions – Leverage tools to identify, recruit, and develop top talent for your organization.

Having a dedicated business profile on LinkedIn ensures branding consistency, control over your narrative, improved employee collaboration, and access to powerful business marketing features.

How to create a LinkedIn business account

Follow these steps to easily create a LinkedIn business account for your company:

1. Go to LinkedIn.com and click “Join now” (or Sign Up if on mobile).
2. Select “Create a Company Page” under the Business, Organization, or Institution section.
3. Fill out your business name, email address, password, and location.
4. Agree to LinkedIn’s User Agreement and Privacy Policy.
5. Choose to create your Company Page now or later.
6. Select your business size, industry, and number of employees.
7. Add your company logo, header image, description, website, and any other key details.
8. Publish your Company Page and start engaging!

It only takes a few minutes to create your business account and Company Page. You can always go back later and continue adding information, connecting with employees, and customizing the Page to match your brand identity.

Managing a LinkedIn business account

Once your business account is set up, you need to manage it effectively to grow your brand and generate leads. Here are some best practices:

• Claim a unique LinkedIn handle using your brand name for easy identification.
• Fully optimize your Company Page, including adding photos/videos, employee lists, and detailed descriptions.
• Engage regularly by posting company updates, employee highlights, and industry articles.
• Use LinkedIn analytics to gauge content performance and follower demographics.
• Participate in relevant LinkedIn Groups to connect with your target audience.
• Monitor notifications and reply to comments and messages in a timely manner.
• Leverage advertising products to sponsor content and reach more of your target audience.
• Integrate employment pages to attract and recruit top talent.

Additionally, give multiple employees access to post and respond from the Page to maintain activity. Make sure all content aligns with your overall brand messaging and personality.

LinkedIn business account settings

Within your LinkedIn business account, you have access to admin settings that provide further control over your Company Page. Key account settings include:

• Notifications – Manage notifications for messages, mentions, comments, and other account activity.
• Analytics – View detailed analytics on followers, content engagement, visitors, lead generation, and more.
• Advertising – Access self-service advertising portal to create and manage ad campaigns.
• Page customization – Edit all Page sections including overview, jobs, life tab, contact info, and Showcase Pages.
• Admin roles – Add or remove other employees as Page admins with permission to post and respond.
• Company tools – Enable integration with website chat, Talent Solutions, Lead Gen Forms, and other tools.

These admin controls allow you to customize your Page, engage with your audience, publish job listings, advertise to leads, and analyze results from one dashboard.

LinkedIn business account pricing

LinkedIn offers three tiers of business accounts with varying features and pricing:

The Basic plan is free and includes core business account features. Paid plans add capabilities like advanced analytics, advertising, recruiting tools, lead generation, and more.

Tips for optimizing your LinkedIn business account

Here are some top tips for getting the most value from your LinkedIn business account:

• Craft an eye-catching Company Page headline and banner that conveys your brand.
• Publish regular, engaging posts including articles, images, videos, and thought leadership content.
• Leverage LinkedIn’s Sponsored Content and Sponsored InMail for targeted advertising.
• Use Showcase Pages to highlight popular products, services, projects, content, or events.
• Participate actively in relevant industry groups and discussions.
• Encourage employees to link their profiles to your business account.
• Monitor messages and comments and always respond to followers.
• Use Analytics to identify high-performing content and your audience demographics.
• Integrate website, careers page, and Lead Gen Forms for better lead capture.

Staying active, posting valuable content, engaging your followers, and monitoring analytics will help you gain maximum benefit from your LinkedIn business presence.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you have both a personal and business account on LinkedIn?

Yes, you can absolutely have both a personal LinkedIn account and a separate business account on LinkedIn. Many professionals maintain a personal profile for networking and career management along with a business account for their company’s marketing and recruiting needs.

Can multiple employees use a LinkedIn business account?

Absolutely. A key benefit of a LinkedIn business account is that you can add several authorized employees as admins on your Company Page. This allows multiple team members to collaborate on content, engage with prospects, post jobs, and analyze results under a single company presence.

How do I add employees to my LinkedIn business account?

As an admin of your LinkedIn business account, you can add employees in a few steps:

1. Go to your Company Page and click “Add or change admins.”
2. Enter the name, email address or LinkedIn profile URL of the employee you want to add.
3. Choose whether to make them an Admin, Editor, or Analyst.
4. Click Send and they will get notified to accept the admin request.

Can I convert a personal LinkedIn account to a business account?

Unfortunately, there is no direct way to convert an existing personal LinkedIn account into a full business account. However, you can create a new business account and then link your personal profile to the Company Page. This allows you to manage both accounts while benefiting from the increased branding and lead generation capabilities of a proper business profile.

What’s the difference between a LinkedIn Company Page and Group?

A LinkedIn Company Page represents your actual business brand, products, services, jobs, content, and partners. A LinkedIn Group is meant for networking and discussions around a particular topic or industry, and is not tied to a specific company. Groups can be created by anyone while Company Pages represent real businesses.

Conclusion

A LinkedIn business account provides powerful marketing, recruiting, and branding capabilities tailored for companies and organizations. The key benefits include increased brand awareness, lead generation from gated content and forms, centralized team management, access to analytics, and the ability to advertise to your target audience. Creating a dedicated, optimized business profile and consistently engaging your followers allows brands to get maximum value from LinkedIn’s professional platform.