Sharing company posts on LinkedIn can provide many benefits for both employees and employers. LinkedIn has become one of the most important platforms for establishing a professional online presence and networking with other professionals. As a result, sharing company posts on LinkedIn can help increase brand awareness, reach new audiences, drive website traffic, improve SEO, showcase company culture, and boost employee engagement.
What are the benefits of sharing company posts on LinkedIn?
There are several key reasons why employees should share company posts on LinkedIn:
Increased brand awareness
When employees share company posts, it exposes the brand to new audiences outside of the company’s existing followers. Employees have their own professional networks and connections, so when they share a company post, it gets seen by all of their connections who may not yet be aware of the brand. This leads to expanded reach and awareness.
Reaches new audiences
Similarly, when employees share content to their own profiles, they help the content reach audiences that the company may not be able to reach on its own. Employee networks are networks the brand likely doesn’t have access to, so it’s an opportunity to get the content in front of new eyes.
Drives website traffic
Many company posts include links back to the website, so when shared by employees it can drive inbound traffic to the site. This helps boost SEO and generate new leads and sales.
Improves SEO
The more shares and engagement company posts receive, the better it is for SEO. LinkedIn shares and engagement are signals to LinkedIn’s algorithm so it boosts the reach and positioning of the content in search.
Showcases company culture
When employees share company content, it shows they are engaged with the company and want to promote the brand. This provides a window into the company culture.
Boosts employee engagement
Proactively encouraging employees to share company posts gives them a sense of ownership and involvement in the success of the brand. This leads to higher engagement and satisfaction.
What types of posts should employees share?
Employees should share posts that align with their personal brand and networks. Recommended types of posts to share include:
Industry news and trends
Sharing articles and posts related to the company’s industry allows employees to position themselves as thought leaders.
Company news announcements
New product launches, office openings, awards, etc. are great news items that make employees proud to share updates.
Content from company leaders and executives
Thought leadership content from executives, especially the CEO, lends credibility.
Company culture content
Photos, videos, and updates that provide an inside look at the company culture make employees happy to share.
Job openings
Employees should share open job postings to help attract new talent.
How often should employees share company posts?
Employees should share company posts selectively and avoid oversharing or forcing it. A good benchmark is 1-2 company related posts per week. This ensures a steady stream of branded content without overwhelming connections.
Here are some best practices for frequency:
Share new and timely content
New product launches, news announcements, etc. are great for immediate sharing. Capitalize on momentum.
Mix with other content
Balance company shares with industry and personal content to avoid looking overly promotional.
Share consistently over time
1-2 shares per week is ideal for an ongoing cadence versus shared sporadically.
Avoid too much duplicate content
If multiple employees share the same post, connections will disengage. Make sure content is staggered.
Track click-through rates
Monitor CTRs on shared posts. If they start to decline, reduce frequency.
When should employees share company content?
The best times to share company content are when target audiences are most active on LinkedIn:
Tuesday – Thursday
Mid-week days see higher engagement, especially Tuesday and Wednesday.
8:00 am – 10:00 am
Early mornings before people start their workdays is a prime sharing window.
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Lunch hours are an engaged time as people browse LinkedIn casually.
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
After work hours tend to have increased traffic from professionals checking LinkedIn.
Here is a table summarizing the optimal times for employees to share company posts:
| Day of Week | Best Time |
|---|---|
| Tuesday | 8-10 am |
| Wednesday | 8-10 am |
| Tuesday-Thursday | 12-1 pm |
| Tuesday-Thursday | 5-6 pm |
How can companies encourage sharing of LinkedIn posts?
To maximize employees sharing company posts on LinkedIn, brands should:
Educate on the benefits
Provide training on how sharing helps the brand as well as their own professional brand.
Set goals and track metrics
Define objectives for social sharing and track performance with tools like Google Analytics.
Recognize top advocates
Identify and reward employees who share content most effectively.
Make it easy to share
Add share buttons to all online content and emails to facilitate one click sharing.
Use sharing prompts
When launching campaigns, include verbiage that explicitly asks employees to share posts.
Gamify sharing
Incentivize sharing through contests or leaderboards tapping into competitive spirit.
Integrate into onboarding
Train new hires from day one on the company’s social sharing strategy.
Provide sample posts
Give employees sample text they can include when sharing to make it easy.
Foster social advocacy
Cultivate a culture that encourages employees at all levels to share content.
What mistakes should be avoided?
There are some common mistakes brands make that negatively impact results of employee sharing programs:
Forced sharing
Employees should share authentically instead of being forced to post certain content a certain number of times.
Too much promotion
Avoid making every employee post promotional. Mix in industry content to avoid turning off connections.
Lack of guidance
Give employees direction on the best types of content to share and optimal posting times.
Irrelevant content
Make sure content aligns with each employee’s unique connections and areas of expertise.
Lack of tracking
Use analytics to assess the performance of shared posts. Review metrics regularly.
Unclear objectives
Have well-defined KPIs for the program so employees understand success measures.
No coordination
Coordinate sharing schedules to prevent bombarding people with duplicate posts.
No follow up
Follow up with employees to gather feedback on how to improve the sharing initiative.
No incentive
Provide rewards and recognition to motivate employees to achieve sharing goals.
neglecting personal networks
Encourage shares that engage employees’ personal connections, not just company followers.
Key Takeaways
– Sharing company posts expands reach and awareness for brands
– Employees should share selectively 1-2 times per week during peak times
– Content should provide value and align with employee expertise
– Companies need to educate, set goals, recognize, and incentivize sharing
– Avoid forced sharing, irrelevant content, and lack of coordination
Conclusion
Sharing company posts on LinkedIn is a highly effective tactic when done strategically. It leads to increased brand awareness, website traffic, improved SEO, talent attraction, and higher employee engagement. However, brands must educate employees, encourage authentic and valuable sharing, avoid over-promotion, and leverage analytics to assess performance. With the right strategy, employee advocacy on LinkedIn can become a significant driver of business success.