The LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Yearbook

A look back- 2014, The Year at LinkedIn

A look forward- The Marketing Industry in 2015

Conclusion

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The LinkedIn Marketing Solutions Yearbook

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The Marketing Industry in 2015

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Trend 1: Values based marketing will become the norm

More than ever, a company’s brand is as much about the people they employ, the culture they create and the values they believe in, as it is about their ads or even their products.

As a result, consumers increasingly make buying decisions on a wider range of factors and supply chain transparency, corporate social responsibility, employee satisfaction, diversity in the workplace and the longer-term company vision all play a role. This means marketers now need to work alongside all these divisions to develop and convey a more rounded story, in a landscape where social media has put the balance of power firmly in the hands of consumers, enabling them to force the hand of companies that don’t meet their ever-increasing expectations.

The Marketing Industry in 2015

Josh Graff, Senior Director, LinkedIn Marketing Solutions EMEA, on the key trends that will dominate the marketing landscape this year – and how they’ve informed our development over the past 12 months

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Trend 2: As the business world speeds up, decision-making slows down

Companies worldwide are taking advantage of technology to connect teams and foster collaboration across different functions and geographies. There are dozens of well-documented benefits to this, however one of the looming pitfalls is the complexity and speed of decision-making in large multi-nationals.

Marketers need to be locally agile, so that they can adopt new disruptive technologies which will capture the attention of their customers without waiting on a 6-month internal approval process. If they fail this agility test, they’ll be left behind and lose share-of-voice to the likes of Uber, Dropbox, Airbnb, Kymeta, Warby Parker and other nimble challenger brands.

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Trend 3: The talent gap will widen

This time last year we said 2014 would see more and more brands and media agencies bringing editorial skills into their organisations to compete in the content marketing space. A quick look shows that Whole Foods, Uber and Debenhams all have open roles for editorial positions on LinkedIn. Not surprisingly, many of these positions are being filled by experienced journalists who understand what consumers actually want to read.

Recruitment will remain a key battleground in 2015, with agencies and brands fighting to retain top talent, in what has become a covert war with media owners and start-ups. The most desired marketing skills in 2015? Data scientists and experts in marketing automation, with the greatest challenge for companies being the right balance of skills across all levels of seniority to avoid a ‘skills gap’, where younger talent holds all the data expertise but lacks business acumen, and commercially savvy leaders remain unsure about data.

A platform at the heart of business and branding

LinkedIn is positioned at the heart of these key trends: a natural platform for values-based mar-keting as we sit at the intersection of employees, employers and consumers, an essential tool for B2B marketers looking to negotiate an increasingly complex buying journey,and the foundation of an effective employer brand. In this review of 2014, we pick out some of the innovations of the last 12 months that are helping marketers to master this fast-changing landscape and highlight some brands that are already reaping the benefits.

Josh GraffLinkedIn Marketing Solutions Director EMEA

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2014 The Year at LinkedIn

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January

Where the affluent come to think about money

From the UK to the UAE, our research confirmed LinkedIn as the place where high net worth individuals seek out guidance on financial decisions – when they’re making buying decisions for a business, and when they’re looking at options for their own money. In the UK, 71% of high net worth people visit LinkedIn almost every day.

The secret to turning heads on Slideshare

We served up some inspiration for marketers looking to make more of Slideshare, with a selection of the most impactful content on the platform.

HSBC makes Global Connections on LinkedIn

HSBC’s Global Connections campaign leveraged the full power of LinkedIn to bring business leaders together with original insights. Sponsored Updates delivered expert content to a precisely targeted audience. Custom Groups embodied the concept of leaders exchanging ideas, and paved the way for hugely successful offline events.

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February

LinkedIn for Sophisticated Marketers

We kicked off 2014 with the launch of The Sophisticated Marketers Guide to LinkedIn, a one-stop shop with everything marketers need to get maximum value from our platform.

Capgemini becomes daily reading for decision-makers

With 130,000 LinkedIn followers, 1.8 million shares and 368,000 viral impressions in just six months, Capgemini proved the value of content at the heart of B2B strategies. Its innovative Content Loop microsite, developed with LinkedIn and promoted through Sponsored Updates, tailored business stories to the profile of each reader.

LinkedIn Number 1 for content marketing effectiveness

Research from the Content Marketing Institute confirmed LinkedIn as the dominant publishing platform for B2B marketers. LinkedIn was also the clear number 1 when it came to marketers’ confidence in how effective their content was on different channels: 66% agreed that our platform delivered for them.

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March

Content Marketing Score and Trending Content arrive

LinkedIn’s Content Marketing Score maps the impact and influence of your content on LinkedIn, with clear guidance for greater return on investment. Trending Content helps you hit the hot-button issues that will get your audiences clicking. Together, they’re ready to rescue content marketers seeking more robust ROI

The Mindset Divide: Spotlight on Content

Did you know that professionals spend 60% more time consuming professional content at home than they do at work? Our in-depth report revealed groundbreaking truths about the role such content plays in people’s lives. It was standing room only when we presented the results at a packed-out Ad Week Europe seminar.

Sponsored InMail goes mobile

One of LinkedIn’s most powerful and popular channels can now reach members across all devices, thanks to flexible formatting and an experience optimised for iPhone, Android and the mobile web.

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April

Ad Week Europe: The Graphic Novel

DrawnIn, our unique visual coverage of Ad Week Europe, captured subjects as diverse as lipstick on pigs, vigilante consumers and Tom Cruise. And as we predicted beforehand, few words cropped up quite so often as ‘content’.

The 5 things a winning content strategy needs

From the right skills, to mind-reading powers and a robust approach to ROI – we set out the 5 characteristics of successful content in an increasingly competitive landscape.

LinkedIn scoops Gold at Festival of Media

Our high-flying, API-driven campaign for Etihad was among the big winners at the Global Festival of Media. Mapped Out, which invited Etihad passengers to set up meetings in different destinations, landed the Gold award for Best Digitally Integrated Campaign.

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May

Helping brands do more with Sponsored Updates

The roll-out of our Sponsored Updates Partner Programme empowered brands to maximise the ROI of their updates, by working with our certified partners for best-in-class campaign management and strategy.

Greater control over Company Page content

The launch of personalised page feeds and language preference targeting equipped marketers with all of the tools they need to deliver personalised, locally relevant content through their Company and Showcase Pages.

LinkedIn joins top brands’ 100 Club

LinkedIn smashed its way into BrandZ’s Index listing the 100 most valuable global brands, landing at number 78 and overtaking big names like Intel, Pepsi and KFC in the process.

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June

How social is driving Europe’s economic recovery

Research published by LinkedIn and Join the Dots demonstrated how Europe’s fastest-growing businesses are those giving a central role to social media in all aspects of their operations.

Sharing our vision of a transparent economy

LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner took to the Croisette at the Cannes International Advertising Festival, sharing LinkedIn’s vision of the Economic Graph: a digital map of the global economy that connects talent with opportunity at scale. As Rob Norman of Group M put it at one WPP session: “LinkedIn is describing the world’s entire economic value.”

Europe’s most influential content brands revealed

From the Financial Times to L’Oréal and from Red Bull to Ernst & Young, we used Content Marketing Score to identify the brands generating the greatest awareness and engagement through the content they share on LinkedIn.

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July

The power to publish direct to the LinkedIn feed

With the launch of Direct Sponsored Content we gave brands the capability to publish direct to the LinkedIn feed of precisely targeted audiences, without the need to post updates on a Company Page first. The result? Far greater flexibility when it comes to targeting, tailoring and testing your content.

Professional Content Report shows revolution in media habits

The 2014 Professional Content Consumption Report demonstrated how LinkedIn members spend more of their time consuming professional content than they do news and entertainment. It also identified the key characteristics of the LinkedIn audience leading the professional content revolution.

New era for B2B marketing as LinkedIn acquires Bizo

Our acquisition of Bizo, announced on July 22, combines the world’s largest professional network with the leader in business audience marketing; and the world’s leading B2B content platform with uniquely powerful targeting and nurturing solutions. Our vision is to build full-funnel marketing that reaches and engages at every stage of the B2B buyer’s journey.

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August

1 in 10 LinkedIn members seeking the right MBA

New research revealed that 1 in 10 LinkedIn members are actively planning to take an MBA course in the near future – and 58% of these potential students will research their choice of course on LinkedIn. Our blog post announcing the findings revealed how MBA providers can capture their attention.

UAE’s most influential content brands revealed

Travel led the way in our ranking of the UAE’s most influential content brands, measured by their Content Marketing Score on LinkedIn. Etihad took top spot with fellow airline Emirates and the hotel group Jumeirah close behind.

LinkedIn is UK members’ primary source of business content

Our Audience 360 research revealed our UK members’ most frequently used source of business content: not The Economist, FT, Guardian or Twitter. Instead, 55% get their news and insight through LinkedIn.

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September

TechConnect 2014

Innovators and marketers gathered in Silicon Valley on September 23 for LinkedIn’s TechConnect 2014, which was streamed live to audiences across EMEA.

Using LinkedIn Sponsored Updates to Achieve Thought Leadership Goals

Our eBook guide explored how marketers can use Sponsored Updates to deliver the right thought-leadership content, to the right audience, at the right time, with key insights for linking such content to business goals.

Nurturing the IT Committee Lead

55% of IT Buying Committee members admitted lying on data capture forms in our report on Nurturing the IT Committee Lead. It was just one of the key findings that are helping to guide a more effective approach to lead nurturing for Tech marketers.

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October

LinkedIn goes ‘Behind the Content’

We love to hear about the stories behind classic movies, legendary albums and great novels – so why should branded content be any different? We teamed up with Hubspot to reveal the secrets behind remarkable marketing campaigns.

Emirates hits new heights on followers

The announcement that Emirates had passed 250,000 followers on LinkedIn didn’t just make it the most followed travel brand on our platform; it also demonstrated what’s possible when a company seamlessly integrates talent, corporate and consumer brands through a single channel. Emirates has both established itself as an employer of choice and effectively targeted the 1 in 5 LinkedIn members taking eight business flights or more each year.

CMI explores 5 ways to get more from LinkedIn

In a post for the Content Marketing Institute, Ann Gynn shared her top tips for maximising the value of LinkedIn for brands.

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November

A new mission for Tech Marketers: Save the CIO

In his keynote address at Tech Connect London, Computer Weekly Editor in Chief Bryan Glick lifted the lid on the internal pressures piling up on Chief Information Officers – and revealed how Tech marketers’ future success depends on relieving them.

Do you know what your B2B brand is?

Where is the next generation of great B2B brands? That’s the question we asked in a challenging blog post that argued for the importance of building awareness, credibility and trust.

The UK’s 10 most engaged marketers revealed

Marketers from Coca-Cola, Post Office, Adobe and Unilever rubbed shoulders with their peers from Starcom MediaVest and XChanging in our ranking of the 10 most engaged marketers on LinkedIn. Our 10 standout marketers are all advocating effectively for their brands whilst building a powerful brand of their own.

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December

Most engaged talent brand professionals revealed

For the first time, we unveiled our ranking of the most engaged employer brand professionals on our platform, ranking members on metrics such as the number of LinkedIn groups they joined and their recent activity in posting comments and participating in discussions.

Our marketing blog’s biggest hits

We marked the year-end with a round-up of the most popular posts on our EMEA Marketing Solutions blog, revisiting the pieces that got marketers reading and sharing in 2014. Top posts included our feature on professional content transforming media consumption, and our declaration of the 5 things a winning content strategy must have.

An audience of 1.2 million for the Shell story

Shell surged past the 1-million follower mark on LinkedIn, after putting our platform at the heart of its strategy for telling “one Shell story”, and leveraging Company Updates and tailored LinkedIn Groups to do so. “We needed to bring the different elements of our business to life for a diverse, wide-ranging audience, and we needed to do so in a unified, cohesive way that could make it clear what our brand stands for,” said Don Bulmer of Shell Social Media and Innovation. “LinkedIn has provided a very effective platform for this.”

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Conclusion2014 was a great year for LinkedIn, not only because of the advances we made during the last 12 months - but because of the vast potential those developments provide for the year ahead. We look forward to sharing these with you as we aim to continue to reinvent the role of professional social media for both consumer and B2B marketing.

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Visit emea.marketing.linkedin.com for all of our 2014 articles and more

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