How the LinkedIn Algorithm Works
Richard van der Blom, trainer for Just Connecting, has just published a report which offers an inventory of the LinkedIn algorithm in 2022. This study, conducted for the 4th consecutive year, is based on the analysis of 10,000 posts published on the professional social network, requiring a process that lasted 4 months.
Among the general information to remember:
850 million users on LinkedIn in 2022 (compared to 774 million in 2021),
Only 5.2% of users publish on the platform (compared to 4.9% in 2021),
20% of Internet users interact on LinkedIn,
61% of users read publications without leaving comments or reacting to posts (compared to 64% in 2021),
74% of companies with more than 1,000 employees share content weekly (compared to 69% in 2021),
58% of Internet users connect to LinkedIn via their mobile: on average, mobile users perform sessions of 1.55 minutes, i.e. 13 minutes per month and consult 16 posts per visit (by scrolling),
42% of users connect to LinkedIn via their computer: a session lasts an average of 3.15 minutes, or 18 minutes per month, and they consult 9 posts per visit (by scrolling).
The best times and frequencies to post on LinkedIn
According to the report, the best times to post are:
Sunday: between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.,
Monday: between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.,
Tuesday: between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m.,
Wednesday: between 9 a.m. and 12 p.m.,
Thursday: between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m.,
Friday: between 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.,
Saturday: between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
In addition, it is important to take into account that the publication of content with less than 18 hours of difference can lead to cannibalization of posts. The report thus notes that 2 posts published in less than 6 p.m. reduces the reach by 15%, while the drop in reach is 30% in the case of 3 posts published in less than 6 p.m. So while posting multiple posts a day will certainly increase your overall reach, the reach per post will drop.
The relevance criteria of a post on LinkedIn
Engagement, a key element of post reach
The study notes that the LinkedIn algorithm analyzes the relevance of your publications through 3 phases:
Phase 1: measuring the engagement (clicks, likes, comments, shares, etc.) of a post 90 minutes after its publication,
Phase 2: 8 hours after publication, the growth of the post is based on the engagement observed during phase 1,
Phase 3: The growth of a post in the days following its publication is based on the engagement of phases 1 and 2.
Regarding engagement on LinkedIn, the ratios applied to each reaction are as follows:
A like is equivalent to 1 more view,
A click on See more is equivalent to 4 more views,
A share is equivalent to 7 more views,
One comment equals 12 more views.
Also note that when a post is shared within the first 4 hours after publication, it can gain up to 30% growth. This is not the case if you reshare your own post.
Actions that can influence the reach of a publication
Certain actions such as responding to comments received under a publication, preferably within 12 hours of its publication, as well as adding new information to your post in comments, up to 24 hours after its publication, can have a positive impact. for its growth. On the other hand, it is not recommended to edit your post within 10 minutes after its publication (under penalty of seeing the scope reduced, between 10% and up to 40%). Similarly, commenting on his post first is not recommended, reducing his reach by 20%. So be careful when pinning a comment under a post.
More generally, to compose an effective post on LinkedIn, the report encourages users to:
Use hashtags while limiting yourself to a maximum of 10 hashtags,
Use tags in your publications, tagging no more than 15 people or companies,
Opt for emojis to facilitate readability, up to 10 emojis and limited to 4 per line,
Post selfies (in personal posts) to achieve 3x more engagement and 2.5x more reach,
Create posts between 1,200 and 1,600 characters,
Set "Who can see my post" and "Who can comment on my post" to "Everyone",
Develop a personal hashtag.
The Impact of Creator Mode on LinkedIn Post Reach
According to the report, enabling creator mode can have a real impact on post reach. Thus, members of the social network who use it have access to advantages such as:
An average reach of 15 to 35% for their publications,
Their followers (or members who have activated the bell) can see their content in their feed directly after publishing a post. Without creator mode, this is limited to your connections only,
The number of followers increases more quickly than connections, depending on the frequency of publication: for 1 to 2 posts per week, we observe a growth of 3x more followers; for 3 to 4 posts per week, a growth of 5x more followers; more than 5 posts per week, an estimated growth of 8x more followers.
The different formats and their reach on LinkedIn
While a post including an image remains the most popular type of publication on LinkedIn, the study strives to show that other formats can be favored to gain reach. Among the formats that benefit from a greater reach than a post with a single image:
Posts with document: from 2.2 to 3.4x more reach,
Surveys: from 2.1 to 2.9x more reach,
Carousels: from 1.8 to 2.3x more range,
Text and multiple images: 1.2 to 1.6x more range.
On the other hand, (native) video posts are losing momentum on the platform. The report notes that the reach of video content fell by 15%, while engagement on this format shows a drop of 25%. To explain this significant drop, the study points to the reduction in the impact of Dwell time, i.e. the time spent on a publication, on its visibility. On the other hand, a 25% increase in the visibility of Video Ads is observed.
5 Recent LinkedIn Algorithm Changes You Should Know About
The report by Richard van der Blom shows LinkedIn algorithm changes since September 2022:
It is possible that 3 or 4 contents posted by the same account appear during the same session by users,
LinkedIn gives more reach to active content creators who benefit from a large base of followers, than to members who are new to the platform or who are less active,
99.9% of members on LinkedIn have experienced a loss of reach of their content of around 15% or a loss of engagement of around 10%. Conversely, content creators have seen an increase in post reach (by around 20-25%) and engagement (by around 15-20%),
Content creators, thanks to their communities, see their growth accelerate right after posting. Also, a large number of their followers have enabled bell notifications,
The time spent on a post by users (or Dwell time) has lost importance for the algorithm compared to last year. Short posts perform better and carousels lose reach. Engagement that occurred within the first 90 minutes of a post is still a deciding factor.