Did you know that LinkedIn has 722 million members?
There is a ton of content posted every day, but what you should know is that video gets the most traction:
- Users are 20x more likely to reshare a video post (Hootsuite)
Before you blindly start sharing videos to your LinkedIn account, let’s get something straight:
THERE IS A RIGHT WAY AND A WRONG WAY TO SHARE VIDEO ON LINKEDIN
What’s the wrong way? A URL from anywhere else.
- Don’t go grabbing a link from YouTube to post on your feed.
- Don’t take a link from your website where the video is posted and copy that over.
- Be cautious about posting a video through any 3rd party tool to LinkedIn.
Why? Because LinkedIn doesn’t like it. If you want your video to autoplay, you have to play by LinkedIn’s rules. Here’s your cheat sheet:
STEP #1
Start a new post. You’re probably a post pro, but just in case, look at the top of your feed for that blank line that says” “Start a Post.” When you find it, click on the video button!
STEP #2
Look for the “Select video to share” and click on it. This will give you access to your files so you can choose the mp4 of your video. Hopefully you’ve already saved it to your computer. If not, do this before you start trying to post it!
STEP #3
Once you’ve selected your video, just hit the “Done” button and you’re almost ready to publish. This is your chance to write some compelling copy to go with your video.
A good rule of thumb is to start with a question or a surprising statistic. You’re trying to catch your audience’s attention. So use that, “What do you want to talk about?” prompt from LinkedIn and get creative:
STEP #4
You’re in the homestretch now. Last piece of advice before you publish is to make sure you add hashtags, but NEVER put a link in your post. The algorithm doesn’t like links in post copy because you are leading people off the site. So, if you want your viewers to follow a link, tell them to look for the link in the comments below.
Now you’re ready — just click “Post.”
STEP #5
Don’t forget, if you promised a link, you need to publish it! Once your video is live, make sure you go into your post comments and add the link:
STEP #6
One last trick to get more eyes on your video … make sure to use @ mentions. In this case, the video involves Idea Decanter Creative Director Sharon, so I’m giving her an @ mention in the comments. This means the post will automatically show up in her feed and have the chance to be seen by more people:
WATCH THE HOW-TO VIDEO
We know step-by-step instructions are great, but we really believe in the power of video. Here’s a 1-minute walk-through to help you put the steps above into action:
