One thing you can be sure about in the world of social media is that change is inevitable – and it happens A LOT! More recently LinkedIn Data has changed!
Sometimes the changes seem to be for change’s sake, but LinkedIn’s recent analytics makeover is one of the best yet. Its new and improved Post Impressions data has got me very excited!
Keep reading to discover more about LinkedIn analytics and what they mean, to find out how to get analytics on LinkedIn, and learn how to monitor your return on investment by making sure you’re attracting your ideal audience.
Why LinkedIn
Before I crack on with the details, I just want to say that if you are in a B2B (business to business) market you really should be on LinkedIn.
According to Social Pilot, 89% of marketers rely on LinkedIn for lead generation with 80% of B2B business leads come from LinkedIn.
Don’t miss out of the LinkedIn marketing opportunities!
LinkedIn Data and Analytics
It’s really easy to find the analytics on LinkedIn. Here’s how to get data on LinkedIn:
- Go to your profile
- Scroll down slightly to see the analytics panel
- Here you’ll see three headings: Profile Views, Post Impressions and Search Appearances
Here’s my LinkedIn analytics panel to show you what to look out for:
Found them? Great. Make it a habit to look at them regularly to constantly review how well – or how badly – your profile and posts are performing on LinkedIn. You’ll be able to accurately work out whether you are being seen by your target audience and if they’re low in numbers it’s definitely time to reconsider your strategy (Don’t worry I can train you how just get in touch).
Don’t worry, this part of your profile is private to you. No one else will be able to see them.
What LinkedIn analytics mean
1. LinkedIn Profile views
From the main panel, you can see in an instant how many people have viewed your LinkedIn profile in the past 90 days (241 for me).
Simply click on ‘profile views’ (the words in bold in the panel) to see more information. Here you’ll find the last 5 people that clicked on and viewed your profile if you’re on the free version of LinkedIn. You can also see where some of these viewers work and how they found you.
This is what you’ll see (apart from the data will be yours not mine!):
Check to see if these are the kind of organisations that you want to attract on LinkedIn and that you are being found through the LinkedIn searches.
1. LinkedIn Post impressions
This has recently changed for the better, it used to be LinkedIn “Post Views” and would only calculate the number of views for your most recent post, whether is was one day ago or 6 months ago! Pretty useless data if you were posting regularly in LinkedIn.
Now it’s changed to “Post Impressions” with a lot more useful LinkedIn data. On your LinkedIn profile you can now see how many times your posts have been put in peoples newsfeeds in the last 7 days (mine is 2136). This is not how many people have had the opportunity to see your LinkedIn posts, as some people may have had more than one of your posts land in their newsfeed.
Click through and you’ll find that there’s a lot of flexibility in the way that you can drill down to find the most exciting LinkedIn data – well, I think it is anyway!
This is what you’re looking for:
Using the green button at the top of this page you can see how many people have seen your LinkedIn posts in the past 7 days, past 14 days, past 28 days, past 90 days or even in the past 365 days. Simply select the range you want.
Using the second green button (shown in the image) you can choose between LinkedIn post impressions and engagements. You should be aiming to get a lot of engagement (likes, comments, shares) as it’s this activity that helps your posts reach more people on LinkedIn.
- See where the spikes are (both up and down).
- Find the LinkedIn posts that the spikes have identified from the date. This will tell you which kind of posts are clearly resonating with people and those that are falling flat.
Below the graph, you will see the Top Engagement Demographics analytics. Here you can use the drop-down box to view:
- Job titles of the people who are viewing and engaging with your posts.
- Their location.
- The industry that they’re in.
- The level of seniority within their business.
- The size of the company they work for.
- And the name of the company – really useful!
Again, check to see if these are the people you want to do business with, if not your profile is reaching the wrong people and you need my help!
3. LinkedIn Search appearances
Here you can see how many times your profile has come up in someone’s LinkedIn search.
Click through to see the dates of the results and how many people your profile was put in front of. It will look similar to this:
Here you can see the keywords that these people used to discover you. And when you scroll down further, you will also see the companies where your viewers work and their job titles.
- Check that these keywords mirror who you are, what you do and what you want to be found for.
- Check that the top companies that have found you are the type you want to work with.
- Check that the job titles of the people who have found you are your target audience and the decision-makers.
What to do if the LinkedIn results aren’t what you want
If ever you’ve wondered what LinkedIn analytics mean and you’ve now realised the data isn’t showing what you’d expect or want it to then it’s time for action! Particularly if any of these bullet points ring true:
- The people who find you in LinkedIn searches are way off your target audience.
- The people who see your LinkedIn posts and interact with them, are not the people you want to attract.
- The location of the people is not right.
- The job titles aren’t people who have the power to make decisions.
- The size of the company is too small/too large and doesn’t match your goals.
- The sector that you’re attracting on LinkedIn isn’t one that you want to work in.
- Your LinkedIn posts aren’t getting the reach they deserve.
There are a few reasons why this can happen. The main reason is that your profile isn’t optimized for searches and the content you are putting out isn’t right.
It’s time for a complete review of your LinkedIn strategy!
LinkedIn online workshop coming up soon
If your LinkedIn analytics are letting you down then I can train you up how to transform your approach so that you are attracting the right businesses and being put in front of potential customers on LinkedIn. I’ll be training and guiding you through all the valuable LinkedIn tools and features that can really elevate your profile and help you develop a content strategy to increase the reach of your posts.
After the workshop, you’ll have a completely transformed LinkedIn profile that attracts your target audience and gets those business inquiries rolling in.
The LinkedIn online workshop starts on 28th June and runs over four consecutive days. For just an hour a day – plus a spot of homework – you’ll be growing your business in no time.
To view the popular jargon-free workshop’s full itinerary and to book your space head to my website now. It’s limited to just 10 people and only £180pp so don’t delay. Head to the website.
To see the other social media workshops that are coming up check out my Workshop page.
Bye for now,
Becs
