How to communicate on LinkedIn

Why is communication important?

Communication is at the heart of any business, both internally and externally.

When a company communicates well, it not only sells more, but also builds trusting relationships and a solid long-term reputation.

To get chosen over others, it is not enough to simply convey information; you have to clearly explain what you do, how you do it, why you do it, and what you bring to the table or what sets you apart from the rest. With transparency, consistency, and authenticity, you will find it easier to attract and retain your audience.

In short, communication is key to gaining credibility, increasing visibility, exerting influence, building loyalty and impacting sales.

How did the arrival of social media influence communication?

The arrival of social media was a revolution. It changed the way we connect and communicate on a personal and professional level. What's more, its rise coincided with the emergence of smartphones (2006-2009) when everything went mobile.

Communication became instantaneous, open, free, global, accessible without intermediaries, easy, with immediate measurement of content success and, above all, conversational and participatory.

I remember that, at that time, I mainly used Twitter outside the company, both to post and to gather information, and Yammer internally to interact with my colleagues.

What do social media in general contribute to communication?

In general, they amplify the reach of communication for several reasons:

• Large number of users. According to the latest reports, more than 86% of Internet users in Spain (aged between 12 and 74) use social media, and globally, almost 60% of the world's population is connected to some social platform.
• High frequency of use. The average daily time spent on social media exceeds 2 hours globally.
• 24/7 availability.
• Reasons for use. Entertainment, interaction and information.
• Algorithms that prioritise relevant content, whether from large brands or small creators.

And LinkedIn in particular?

LinkedIn is the professional social network par excellence, especially for B2B companies, talent development and personal branding. According to reports from January 2025, there are more than one billion members in 200 countries, 14.7% of all people on Earth and 69 million companies.

It is very powerful for networking, attracting talent, looking for employment, generating leads and working on both personal and corporate brand positioning in the large company segment.

I have worked as a LinkedIn trainer and now in the design and launch of a brand ambassador project, and I think it is the perfect strategic tool because, in addition to the fact that the senior management of our large clients are present, only 15% of participants speak, which opens up many possibilities if we do it right.

What is the best communication strategy on LinkedIn?

Before thinking about what to post, we must make sure our profile is complete and understand how the algorithm works.

• A good photo, a background that conveys who you are and what you are interested in, an authentic, purposeful and well-written 'About' section, and your achievements highlighted with multimedia will make all the difference.
• Understanding how the algorithm works and working on your network of contacts is also essential. To understand the algorithm, you need to know your SSI (Social Selling Index) and work on the four variables: profile, networking, searches and interactions.

Once you have your digital cover letter ready, you can start your content strategy by answering these questions:

1. What is my goal for being on LinkedIn?
2. Who am I targeting?
3. What am I going to write about? Will I be a niche specialist or a generalist?
4. What tone will I use?
5. How often will I post? At what times?
6. What mix of formats will I use?

How should the strategy on this social network differ from others?

This network is purely professional and should showcase your experience, best practices, trends, reports, learnings, generate conversation on a topic, provide solutions, share ideas… anything that can connect you with your network.

Personal topics don't have much place here, although offering your opinion with a personal touch will help, because people buy from people.

On LinkedIn, recycling content and putting it in carousel, video or infographic format is very smart because for a message to sink in, it needs 3 to 7 impacts. And there is another rule that works, which is 4-1-1, where there should be 4 pieces of content relevant to your audience from other sources, 1 piece of original content created (reflection) and 1 piece from your brand or self-promotion.

How has communication on LinkedIn evolved over the years?

In its early days, it was a platform for job seekers and a digital diary where the important thing was to be there. Then, as with other networks, content became the focus with the news feed and the introduction of the recommend and comment buttons. After being acquired by Microsoft in 2016, its transformation accelerated to become the channel where communication and conversation are central to professional development. The focus is on creating and nurturing a community.

What type of communications generate the most views?

The goal of content is to stop the scroll and grab attention to maximise the number of views. Now one of the star formats is the carousel with slides or PDFs, as the algorithm rewards it and generates greater permanence, and short narrative videos with subtitles of less than a minute.

And which ones generate the most engagement?

For LinkedIn, posts that generate conversation are the ones that provide the most engagement and value. For example, personal reflections with questions, surveys, etc. In addition, each comment exposes your post to the commenter's network, creating a snowball effect that can multiply the number of views of this content by an average of 400 people.

A good photo, a background that conveys who you are, an 'About' section