LinkedIn has become a major source of leads and customers in the B2B world. It is a great social network for companies to connect with potential customers and offer insights into what the company does and what it has to offer.
In November 2013, LinkedIn added a new feature that will enhance your company's ability to leverage the platform even better: Showcase Pages. These dedicated pages allow you to highlight different parts of your company or brand. It allows interested customers to view a particular aspect of your business and to select updates on that particular showcase.
Each company can create up to 10 Showcase Pages for free. You can post information from your main page to the Showcase Page or add content only to that page. You have the option of watching each Showcase Page's performance through LinkedIn's analytics.
How can you use LinkedIn's new Showcase Pages?
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Focus on one brand. Many companies own two or more brands. For example, a clothing company may have Brand X for adults and Brand Y for kids. Offering a Showcase Page for each brand is a great way to reach people only interested in one of your brands.
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Focus on one buyer persona. Do you serve more than one target audience? For example, if your company offers products that are appealing to executives and others that are appealing to IT staff, you can create Showcase Pages dedicated to each buyer persona.
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Focus on one market. An employment agency may offer talent in distinct markets like IT, accounting, or administration. You can create a Showcase Page that highlights what your company offers to a particular market.
How many Showcase Pages should you have?
That will depend on your company, its products/services, and your diversity of buyers. Many times, simple is better. If you don't have multiple brands, carry products in completely different categories, or have several buyer personas to cover, staying with a simple company page is the best option.
Also, if you start adding Showcase Pages, you will need to do routine updates to the Pages along with all the other social media marketing tasks you have. You need to judge whether that is a smart use of your time. You need to weigh the pros and cons of these pages.
Showcase Pages are a great way for companies to fine-tune their message to distinct audiences on LinkedIn. However, it is not something a company should adopt without a distinct purpose in mind.
Questions and Final Thoughts
Have you found LinkedIn to be a successful marketing tool for your business or organization? Has a customer or client found you through LinkedIn?
