LinkedIn Pulse plays an important role in content marketing strategies today. With over 800 million users on LinkedIn, Pulse provides a massive platform to distribute high-quality content and establish thought leadership. Here we’ll explore how brands can leverage LinkedIn Pulse for content marketing.
What is LinkedIn Pulse?
LinkedIn Pulse is a content publishing platform integrated directly into the LinkedIn social network. It allows users to publish long-form articles that appear in their followers’ feeds. Users can follow influencers, thought leaders, brands, and publishers directly through Pulse.
Pulse was originally developed by a startup called Pulse in 2010 as an app to discover news and content. LinkedIn acquired Pulse in 2013 and integrated it into their platform as a central content hub.
Pulse serves as both a distribution channel and a content discovery platform. Users can publish articles directly to their network of followers. At the same time, Pulse recommends relevant content based on user’s interests and profile data.
Why is LinkedIn Pulse important for content marketing?
There are several key advantages that make LinkedIn Pulse a valuable content marketing channel:
- Large professional audience – LinkedIn’s user base is primarily made up of working professionals, which makes it good for B2B content distribution.
- High engagement rates – Posts on LinkedIn drive more clicks, shares, and comments compared to other social platforms.
- SEO benefits – Posts are indexed by Google and can rank highly in search results.
- Company Pages integration – Articles are visible on Company Pages, expanding reach.
- Influencer connections – Followers read content from industry experts and thought leaders.
- Lead generation – Calls-to-action can drive visitors to company websites to convert.
In summary, LinkedIn Pulse offers access to a large engaged professional audience. It provides ways to organically reach and build connections with the right people. Integrated analytics help track content performance.
Types of content that perform well on LinkedIn Pulse
Certain types of content tend to resonate more and achieve better engagement on the Pulse platform. Here are some top performing content styles to consider:
Thought leadership articles
Posts that establish thought leadership and industry expertise tend to be widely shared on LinkedIn. This includes advice, analysis, insights, trends and predictions related to your field.
Behind-the-scenes company content
Give readers a peek inside your company, such as how products are made, employee spotlights, or office culture. Humanizing your brand builds trust and connection.
Listicles and how-tos
Articles structured as lists, roundups, or guides perform well as they are easy to scan and digest. Lists of tips, product roundups, and step-by-step guides make highly shareable content.
Case studies
Share specific examples of how customers have successfully used your products or services. Case studies lend credibility and help convert readers.
Data-rich content
Posts that provide data, research, statistics, and analytics around industry trends prove very insightful. Data helps back up your thought leadership.
Industry news and analysis
Commenting on recent news and providing analysis establishes you as an expert on current events. But avoid overt self-promotion.
Opinion and editorial
Sharing strong opinions on industry issues is an easy way to spark discussion and debate. Just back up opinions with logical arguments.
Infographics
Infographics that distill data and ideas into easy-to-digest visuals generate high engagement. They work especially well to showcase research.
Best practices for publishing on LinkedIn Pulse
Follow these best practices when publishing long-form content through LinkedIn Pulse for maximum impact:
- Optimize headlines – Use catchy headlines that will grab attention and summarize the core topic.
- Open strong – Lead with an interesting opener like a story, statistic, or question to draw readers in.
- Structure content – Use section headers and bullet points to break up walls of texts and improve scanability.
- Insert images – Relevant photos and visuals make posts more eye-catching and engaging.
- Promote calls-to-action – Include buttons to drive desired actions like downloads, inquiries, purchases.
- Link back to website – Links drive readers back to your site for further engagement.
- Use keywords – Incorporate relevant keywords to improve search visibility and SEO.
- Leverage hashtags – Hashtags help posts surface in trending topic searches.
It’s also important to promote your Pulse articles through other channels like email, social media, and paid ads. This amplifies the reach beyond just your current Pulse followers.
Tips for driving engagement on LinkedIn Pulse
Simply publishing posts is not enough – you need engagement from readers. Here are some proven tactics to boost engagement:
- Ask questions – Posing questions in your posts prompts readers to respond and comment.
- Run polls and surveys – Embed quick polls or surveys to encourage participation.
- Request shares – Explicitly ask readers to like and share your content if they find it useful.
- Reply to comments – Respond and engage with anyone who comments to keep dialogue going.
- Mention influencers – Reference or tag industry influencers to try and get their attention.
- Re-promote top posts – Continue promoting evergreen Pulse posts that have gained traction.
- Optimize timing – Track performance to determine optimal days and times to post.
- Share user-generated content – Repost great user photos/testimonials related to your brand.
The more you interact, the more readers will stay engaged over time. Active participation leads to viral content spread.
Benefits of LinkedIn Pulse for content marketing
In summary, here are the top benefits of leveraging LinkedIn Pulse as part of your content marketing strategy:
Build thought leadership
Position yourself as an industry expert by regularly publishing insightful posts on important topics.
Reach targeted professionals
Get your content seen by the most relevant audience – your target B2B customers already active on LinkedIn.
Increase brand awareness
Drive more people to know and engage with your brand by creating helpful, interesting content.
Drive website traffic
Attract targeted visitors back to your site through links and call-to-actions in Pulse posts.
Generate leads and sales
Nurture Pulse visitors into high-quality leads and customers by guiding them down the funnel.
Enhance SEO visibility
Boost search rankings both on LinkedIn and in Google by consistently creating keyword-rich content.
Monitor content analytics
Use Pulse’s integrated analytics to see real-time stats on post performance to refine efforts.
LinkedIn Pulse content marketing example
Here is a look at how Microsoft leverages LinkedIn Pulse for thought leadership content marketing:
Microsoft Pulse articles showcase expertise
Microsoft publishes a steady stream of articles highlighting their vision, products, and industry leadership. For example, this post titled “The future of productivity and Microsoft 365” shares innovative new workforce solutions:
Image: Example of a Microsoft Pulse article
Content covers news, trends, and insights
Microsoft uses Pulse to provide analysis on the latest news, tech trends, and business insights. This establishes their experts as thought leaders on cutting edge topics.
Posts attract high engagement
Microsoft’s Pulse content generates significant engagement, with average posts reaching thousands of likes, comments, and shares. This virality expands the reach and impact.
Content drives back to Microsoft sites
The Pulse articles contain links and CTAs bringing readers back to Microsoft’s website, products, and campaigns.
Conclusion
Publishing highly shareable content on LinkedIn Pulse should be a core part of any B2B content marketing strategy. The platform offers unmatched reach to engaged professionals and high visibility both on LinkedIn and in search engines. By consistently posting topics that resonate, brands can establish thought leadership, increase awareness, generate leads, and drive website traffic.
The most effective Pulse content leverages formats like thought leadership articles, behind-the-scenes stories, listicles, case studies, data-rich posts, and industry analysis. Following best practices for optimizing content and engagement can yield viral posts that reach and convert audiences. Brands that strategically tap into the power of LinkedIn’s content platform reap significant rewards.