Any digital writer can tell you that one of the hardest parts about blogging is actually building an audience. Sure coming up with a topic and writing the blog and optimizing the content and adding a catchy title that also happens to include a highly searched keyword is time consuming, but your work on that post doesn't end when all of that has been done and you hit publish- it ends when you've gotten enough eyes on your article to generate interest, social activity, and (hopefully) leads.
This is something that most bloggers struggle with. Content that you consider to be your best ever written can go unread, unshared and be, well, unimportant, simply because it isn't reaching the right audience.
Enter: LinkedIn Pulse.
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About nine months ago, LinkedIn quietly introduced a platform that allowed their users to post blogs that were targeted towards people in their industry. Much like their social media site, Pulse allows you to share your content with people of all importance from your industry, which means your blog can reach your target demographic almost immediately upon publishing (which is what social media marketing is all about).
Despite the benefits of Pulse, it's still a widely underutilized platform. And understandably so: Between your website and your Facebook and your Twitter and your guest blogging and your Internet marketing, how much time are you left with to blog on yet another platform? If you're like most people, chances are that available time slim-to-none.
I think this is where most people are going wrong. While I do understand the importance of all the aforementioned time consumers, I believe Pulse isn't getting the priority it deserves. Yes there is something to be said for having an active Facebook page, but where are you going to get more valuable readers? A platform that is mostly used for uploading selfies, or one that is made to stimulate discussion on your industry's hot topics?
Most bloggers spend years building a following of engaged readers- People who are not only interested in that industry, but those who take the time to comment on the content and share it with others. LinkedIn Pulse, however, does most of that work for you. It categorizes your content and shares it with people it knows is going to resonate with.
If you're not yet using Pulse as a blogging platform, here are three reason I think you should start:
Your Content is Getting to People Who Matter
Like I've said, LinkedIn Pulse targets your content to those it's actually applicable to. While sharing your blog with only those who are in the industry in which it relates to does narrow your audience, that's almost a moot point as it's still getting to those who matter.
Pulse Articles are Rich in SEO Value
LinkedIn is a highly trafficked website. In fact, it's just one spot shy of being in the top 10 most trafficked websites on the Internet according to Alexa. That means Google is more likely to index this content than the content you put on your personal blog, and more likely to include your Pulse posts in Google search results.
It Takes Your LinkedIn Networking to the Next Level
LinkedIn is all about networking. Networking with the influencers of your industry, networking with employees of companies you want to work for, networking with anyone and everyone who can get you ahead in your career. It's the only platform that has a perfect mix of professional and social context, but it's easy to get overlooked on LinkedIn. Even if your profile is robust with experience, it's still another online resume, and reading through the resumes of each and every connection you make isn't on many people's to-do lists. Pulse, however, allows you to each those same people you want to network with in an entirely different way. Instead of saying, "Read my resume, it shows I know a lot about SEO," it says, "Read this article I've written showing my unique standpoint in linking structures and how Google views them." One tells your desired audience what you can do in a quiet way, and one shows them in a way that's much harder to ignore.
Deciding where you should concentrate your efforts online can be difficult, but when it comes to sharing content on a website who does most of the demographic targeting for you, it's an easy choice.
on
You are right, I am using Linkedin and I am loving it.
Thanks
on
I think you shared an effective guidelines for why you should be using linkedIn’s blogging platform responding social media comments.
I really appreciate your effort for giving such information to your community.This is great idea. I found many interesting tips. I think “Pulse Articles are Rich in SEO Value” part is really important.
Expecting more information related to this post. Appreciated !!
on
Thanks for your information, your blog will very useful to my digital marketing team. i share your links to my team.
on
Yet this was written on a real blog and this is what I found searching google 🙂
on
Thanks for this. I just started adding articles to Pulse and I’m interested to see where this goes.
on
I just want to tell you that I am very new to weblog and ablseutoly loved your blog site. Likely I’m planning to bookmark your blog post . You ablseutoly come with remarkable stories. Thanks a lot for sharing your website page.
on
Thanks Niki, I recently just started contributing to pulse and am very interested in monitoring these results myself. Quality and how informative this content is will play a major factor in how pulse is perceived. Like many of the other article directories of years past that once held SEO value quality and content value will be the key to their success or failure.
Cheers
on
I agree with you, Marios- Some content on Pulse does lack usefulness and length. Having a way to vote on the article in a similar fashion to Reddit posts would be a great way to give more exposure to articles worth reading. Maybe after a full year’s worth of use LinkedIn will revisit their strategy plan with Pulse and implement a system similar to what you’re suggesting!
on
For the most part I’m disappointed with what I read when I click on a LinkedIn Pulse article. Many articles are too short to provide any real insight or don’t live up to the promise in their titles. Maybe if there was some rating mechanism I could pick out what others have found useful. And yet based on the number of comments on the articles that I didn’t like it would seem that the do, as you wrote, get exposure.