LinkedIn has become one of the most important social media platforms for professionals looking to build their personal brand and expand their networks. With over 722 million users worldwide, LinkedIn offers users the ability to connect with colleagues, find job opportunities, share content, and build their professional profiles.
One way that professionals can stand out on LinkedIn is by attaining “influencer” status. But what exactly makes someone an influencer on LinkedIn? Here we’ll explore the criteria LinkedIn uses to define influencers, as well as tips for becoming an influencer yourself.
LinkedIn’s Influencer Program
LinkedIn officially designates influencers through its LinkedIn Influencer Program. This program is an invite-only, elite group of thought leaders across various industries. According to LinkedIn, there are six main criteria used to select Influencers:
- You are in the top 1% professionally for your job title or area of expertise.
- You regularly share valuable professional insights with your network.
- You have a strong and authentic social media presence.
- You are respected by your professional community.
- You demonstrate leadership and expertise in your field.
- You are open to engaging with LinkedIn members who follow you.
The LinkedIn Influencer program launched in 2012 with just 150 professionals who were handpicked by LinkedIn’s team. Today, there are over 60,000 LinkedIn Influencers globally across a wide range of industries and focus areas.
Benefits of Being a LinkedIn Influencer
So why would someone want to become a LinkedIn Influencer? There are several key benefits:
- Increased visibility and authority: Being designated an Influencer gives you instant credibility and visibility in your industry.
- Larger reach: Influencers can publish long-form posts that reach all LinkedIn members, not just their direct connections.
- Metrics and insights: Influencers get access to analytics about the reach and performance of their content.
- Promotional support: LinkedIn provides marketing support to amplify an Influencer’s content to relevant audiences.
- Exclusive opportunities: Influencers may be invited to speak at or attend exclusive LinkedIn or partner events.
Essentially, becoming a LinkedIn Influencer allows professionals to build their personal brands and expand their spheres of influence in their industries.
How to Qualify for LinkedIn’s Influencer Program
So how can you qualify for LinkedIn’s exclusive Influencer Program? Here are some tips:
- Establish expertise: Become known as an expert in your field by sharing thoughtful content and engaging in discussions.
- Build an audience: Aim to have at least 10,000 followers or social media presences on LinkedIn and other channels.
- Be active: Post regularly on LinkedIn – valuable insights, trending topics, relevant news.
- Focus on quality: Emphasize quality over quantity. Share genuinely useful perspectives and analysis.
- Thought leadership content: Publish long-form posts, articles, videos, and presentations that display critical thinking.
- Network: Connect with existing LinkedIn Influencers and partner on content when possible.
Gaining the attention of LinkedIn’s team takes time. But by consistently offering value to your professional community, you can work your way towards becoming an official Influencer.
Other Ways to Be an Influencer on LinkedIn
While LinkedIn’s official Influencer status is exclusive, there are plenty of other ways professionals can establish themselves as thought leaders and influencers on the platform.
Here are some best practices for becoming an influencer on LinkedIn organically:
- Complete your profile: Fill out all sections 100% to establish credibility and authority.
- Expand your network: Connect with those in your industry, share posts, and engage with content.
- Share multimedia: Post articles, images, infographics, videos, and presentations.
- Comment on posts: Provide your insights and perspective to discussions in your network.
- Publish long-form content: Write posts with unique data, insights, and analysis.
- Use hashtags: Include relevant hashtags to extend your reach and connect with niches.
- Follow influencers: Draw inspiration from and connect with established influencers in your field.
The key is to provide consistent, thoughtful value that builds trust and credibility with your network over time. This will organically grow your personal brand and sphere of influence.
Measuring Your LinkedIn Influencer Status
Wondering if your LinkedIn strategy is effectively establishing you as an influencer? There are a few key metrics you can analyze:
- Followers: Are you accumulating followers, especially those outside your direct connections?
- Engagement: Do people actively like, comment on, and share your content?
- Content reach: How many people are your posts reaching? Check post analytics.
- Profile views: Is your profile being viewed more over time? This indicates growing interest.
- Mentions: Are you increasingly mentioned in content and conversations by others?
- Share of voice: Analyze what % of discussion volume within your niche is driven by your content.
Benchmarking and tracking these metrics over time can reveal whether your personal brand and influencer status is indeed growing on LinkedIn.
Influencer Content Best Practices
As discussed above, the content you publish plays a critical role in building your influencer status. Here are some best practices for influencer content on LinkedIn:
- Educate and inform: Share information, data, research, and analysis that your audience finds useful.
- Entertain: Combine education with humor, emotion, and storytelling.
- Inspire: Motivate and inspire your audience with uplifting perspectives.
- problem-solve: Provide practical tips, tactics, and strategies your audience can apply.
- Discuss trends: Analyze trends happening in your industry, niche, or role.
- Voice opinions: Offer your unique opinions and points of view on relevant topics.
- Make predictions: Establish foresight by making educated predictions about the future.
- Be visual: Use images, infographics, presentations, and videos to convey messages visually.
These best practices allow you to provide consistent value that engages your audience and attracts new followers over time.
Examples of Top LinkedIn Influencers
To understand what effective influencer content looks like, it’s helpful to examine some top LinkedIn Influencers across different industries:
Bill Gates
Bill Gates is one of LinkedIn’s original influencers back in 2012. He continues to regularly post thoughtful long-form articles on topics like climate change, global health, and technology. His posts receive thousands of likes and comments.
Bernard Marr
Bernard Marr is an internationally recognized futurist, keynote speaker, and business consultant focusing on data analytics and AI. His posts on LinkedIn provide predictions, insights, and trends on the future of technology and business.
Bruce Kasanoff
Bruce Kasanoff is a speaker, author, and ghostwriter who focuses on business, careers, and leadership. His popular LinkedIn posts feature bulleted tips and advice for professionals looking to get ahead.
Guy Kawasaki
As a Silicon Valley tech evangelist, Guy Kawasaki frequently writes LinkedIn posts offering advice to entrepreneurs on startup strategy. His posts are conversational and approachable.
Sallie Krawcheck
Sallie Krawcheck is the CEO of Ellevest as well as a former Wall Street executive. She uses her LinkedIn platform to advocate for women in business and share advice for professional women.
Studying how top influencers attract audiences and engagement can help guide you in crafting compelling content.
Conclusion
Becoming a LinkedIn influencer requires building a strong personal brand, sharing high-quality content, expanding your network, and providing consistent value to your community. While achieving the official LinkedIn Influencer status is exclusive, any professional can utilize LinkedIn’s platform to establish themselves as a thought leader in their industry.
With over 722 million users, LinkedIn provides invaluable opportunities to engage with peers, demonstrate expertise, and expand your sphere of influence as a professional. By following the best practices outlined here, you can grow an influential presence that takes your career to the next level.