What makes brands influential on LinkedIn

LinkedIn yesterday announced the 2015 ranking of the most influential brands on LinkedIn, which uses the platform’s Content Marketing Score to calculate which brands generate most influence through the content they share. Apart from a global ranking (see infographic below), LinkedIn also released country specific lists which analyses all content based on activities on the LinkedIn platform that includes Company Page updates, employee shares, sponsored updates, activities in Groups and Influence and employee posts through the LinkedIn Publishing Platform.

In the UK,  Ernst and Young took up the top spot, followed by Hays and BP. Media companies such as The Economist and Financial Times also made it to the top 10, along with others such as McKinsey & Company, Michael Page, Unilever, Standard Chartered and GSK. 

It is clear from the ranking that it is not just the content that these brands create but the manner in which this content is curated, planned and shared using internal resources as well as the power of influencers, that has contributed in making their content strategy a winning one. 

So what are these brands doing differently? LinkedIn lists the key practices that are common to the companies on the lists.

• 99% of the top global brands have employees sharing their content to their networks
• 97% of the top global brands have employee posts contributing to their content efforts
• 99% of top brands regularly share updates on their Company Page
• 73% of top brands are utilizing Sponsored Updates
• All of these top brands post an average of 12.6 updates per week

Breaking up these stats, LinkedIn explains: ‘Basically these brands are utilizing a mix of reach, frequency, and engagement to influence their score. They are encouraging their employees to share and post content on LinkedIn, thus allowing them to act like influencers and boost the reach and engagement. Additionally, they are posting frequently and in a timely manner in a way that is relevant to their audiences.’

The 10 Most Influential GLOBAL Brands on LinkedIn [INFOGRAPHIC] from LinkedIn Marketing Solutions