LinkedIn’s fourth-quarter results prove one thing: The fantasy of limiting your social media activities to just a couple of platforms is just that—a fantasy.
On Feb. 9, LinkedIn announced that it had generated $167.7 million in fourth-quarter revenue, a 105% increase over the same quarter in 2010. It was the sixth consecutive quarter of greater than 100% year-over-year growth. Additionally, the company has pushed past the 150 million member mark. In November 2011, LinkedIn had 135 million members across over 200 countries.
With such a strong rate of growth, it’s important for communicators to do what they can to make the most of the platform. “LinkedIn is a fantastic way to connect with advocates of your brand. It's a great way to uncover member success stories and to keep those core evangelists engaged via LinkedIn Groups,” says Krista Canfield, senior manager of consumer PR at LinkedIn. In addition, she says the social network for professionals is also a great place to uncover business opportunities and new clients.
And communicators should be proactive, especially in how they build their own profiles on LinkedIn. “As a PR pro, I'd make sure that I add the LinkedIn Skills to my profile that are applicable to me, such as ‘crisis communications’ or ‘executive positioning.’ So when people are searching for experts that specialize in those things, your profile is coming up,” says Canfield.
Attend PR News’ Digital PR Summit on February 16 in San Francisco and learn more from communications experts like Krista Canfield.