Written by ContentPowered.com
Ever since Twitter decided to break ties with LinkedIn, there has been a steady increase in the amount of synching between LinkedIn and other social media pages. Facebook is a very powerful marketing strategy tool, and growing businesses have found that multiple posting is made much more simple through the use of certain apps. Although Facebook is generally considered a more informal type of social media platform, the potential impact it can have on a growing, diversifying business cannot be understated.
A single post to LinkedIn can appear simultaneously on a company’s Facebook page. This can be a real time saver for those who wish to concentrate their efforts on managing their business rather than reposting news, information, and promotional messages over and over again. The main thing to keep in mind is the structuring of posts. Some material may attract attention on one social media site but can appear rather uninteresting to the audience that frequents another.
Before Deciding To Synch Media Sites
A business can attract quite a bit of attention through the spreading of information by virtual word-of-mouth. This is obviously seen in the amount of so-called “Like” traffic on Facebook. If a consumer favors a product or service, he or she is inclined to post accordingly by giving the page a thumbs-up. This information is now visible to his or her friends. However, the display may contain a photo as well as a short description written by the original party.
If the information seen by other viewers is compelling, a new marketing avenue has just been opened up. If, on the other hand, the information contains links that do not direct the observer to relevant pages containing similar information, the effect can be quite negative.
It is therefore important for business owners and entrepreneurs to decide whether LinkedIn posts will go over well with a Facebook audience. LinkedIn profiles are very professional in appearance, and the variety of landing pages the site manager can build can be quite specific in terms of products or services offered, how the business operates, and where linked blog pages can be found.
Running a blog on LinkedIn is a specialized task, the idea being to keep everything relevant to the profile information. If the page deals mainly with a line of products offered by the company, the blog posts will probably be quite specific in terms of how they relate to one or more of the products and how they can be beneficial. So the obvious question is one of content appeal. A snippet announcing a tutorial about a particular product and how it can be beneficial might be very nicely phrased, but will a Facebook audience even pay attention?
Therefore, if a business wishes to increase exposure by posting simultaneously to LinkedIn and Facebook, the main effort should be on creating a Facebook page that looks pretty much like the LinkedIn profile. An audience tends to feel much more at ease if they see something that is familiar. If the pages look quite different, a sense of confusion can ripple through the online audience.
Solutions For Successful Linking
As of early 2014, Facebook has nearly 25 percent of all Internet page views. This is a whopping number, one that cannot be ignored by a growing business. A huge consumer base is out there ready to like or dislike what a blogger has to say or to give feedback on what a product can do to help someone.
However, as mentioned early, if followers see the exact same content on both LinkedIn and Facebook, they are likely to get bored in a hurry. Businesses need to decide exactly which content will look pleasing to a Facebook audience and synch-post only that content. Although synching is a true time saver, it cannot be thought of as simply an automated service that is allowed to kick in for each and every post.
Specialized apps have been created that allow a seamless synching of posts between LinkedIn and Facebook. Hootsuite is one of the more popularly used apps for media post synching because of its ease of use. It and many other similar apps are free for basic users. The app can be downloaded or the user can go to the website and create the synch platform manually.
These apps create a simple page that has the appropriate synch buttons readily visible. The user can synch between any number of landing pages on LinkedIn and the company’s Facebook page. Hootsuite and other similar programs are excellent when it comes to synching posts on three or more different media networks.
It is important to remember the difference between auto-synching and content sharing. Synching means the exact same message is sent to all networks from a single post. Sharing is a reposting mechanism that allows the user to show his or her friends and colleagues that a certain post is interesting. Comments are added if desired, and the original post is now visible to a specific audience on another network.
Synching is a very effective way to get a short message out to a targeted audience. For example, if a company is promoting a new product with a special price discount, it would probably be a good idea to post this kind of announcement simultaneously to LinkedIn and Facebook. On the other hand, sharing content is probably best left in the hands of the company’s LinkedIn or Facebook followers. If a company manufactures and sells environmentally friendly bedding products for babies and toddlers, the LinkedIn page may contain a blog that focuses on infant care in general. Some of the followers will want to share this content with their own friends. This is a good marketing strategy so long as the blog is not synched with Facebook. Most who see this article on Facebook will find it somewhat boring, having little to do with sheets, pillows, and blankets.
Some of the social media dashboards are free to use if a basic service is chosen. The user can create or link several different social profiles and there is a limited number of RSS feeds. For a small monthly fee, users can upgrade to a more comprehensive package that includes team collaboration features. This allows a second party to contribute to the synch-sharing of material.
Keep Focused On Creating Worthwhile Content
Synching is therefore a short-term solution for sharing material that may prove interesting to a targeted audience. It is not a substitute for content sharing. The focus should therefore be on the creating of unique, eye-catching content that engages the viewer.
Synching between LinkedIn and Facebook is not a do-or-do-not application. Users can choose when to turn this feature on or off. If the procedure is completed manually using the software’s online site, only certain messages, blogs, or announcements will be sent simultaneously to other networks. Again, it is a matter of which content the company deems suitable for each media network.
Getting started in the synching game between LinkedIn and Facebook is a bit of a challenge, as most of the effort will be on deciding which content is appropriate for both networks. The idea is to save time while still maintaining a close, engaging relationship between company and followers.
Jen K.
says:Not a back work-around, Kenny! Thank you