With more than 740 million active users in 2020, LinkedIn has grown from a professional networking site to one of the top social media platforms.
By now, most of us have used LinkedIn to market our brands, be thought leaders in the postal industry, or look for our dream jobs.
As LinkedIn has evolved with the addition of new features like LinkedIn Stories, the user base has grown steadily. While the LinkedIn audience is still focused on career-minded professionals, the industries, interests, and demographics represented on the platform have grown much broader since its inception.
In addition to the growth in users of LinkedIn, the advertising opportunities have also been expanded, which has contributed to the fact that LinkedIn has become one of the most important channels for B2B marketing.
Today it is becoming clear that LinkedIn is not only intended for people in leadership positions in companies. With millions of corporate pages and individual members, there is a discussion, post, or professional network for almost anyone on this channel.
Despite LinkedIn’s growth and advertising opportunities, many marketers or brands fear that the platform is still too formal or corporate for their audience.
The truth is – LinkedIn could very well be one of your most underrated marketing channels.
If the growth of LinkedIn has caught your attention and you want to see if its audiences and ad offers are right for you, it is important to do some research before devoting more time and resources to this network.
To help you get started with your LinkedIn research, here are some key stats about the audience, growth, and the platform’s most common marketing tactics.
Knowing LinkedIn statistics in 2021
General LinkedIn statistics
- In the first quarter of 2021, LinkedIn revenue grew 23 percent year over year (LinkedIn)
- In 2020, LinkedIn had sales of $ 181 billion. (LinkedIn)
- LinkedIn has more than 740 million active users. (LinkedIn)
- In the third quarter of 2020, the amount of content shared on LinkedIn increased by 50 percent. (LinkedIn)
- Marketing Solutions grows 40 percent year over year in the fourth quarter of 2020. (LinkedIn)
- Almost 40 million people searched for jobs on LinkedIn every week in Q4 2020 (LinkedIn)
- In 2020, LinkedIn was voted the most trusted network. (Business insider)
source
- In the fourth quarter of 2020, professionals viewed twice as much LinkedIn learning content as in the previous year. (LinkedIn)
- LinkedIn live streams have increased 158% since February 2020. (LinkedIn)
LinkedIn demographics
- 57% of LinkedIn users worldwide are male. (Data report)
- While 44% of 25 to 30 year olds and 37% of 30 to 49 year olds state that they use LinkedIn. (Pew Research Center)
- 49% of internet users who earn more than $ 75,000 annually use LinkedIn, while only 26% of internet users in the $ 30,000 to $ 74,999 range use the platform. (Pew Research Center)
- 51% of Internet users with a college degree or higher use LinkedIn. (Pew Research Center)
- Four out of five LinkedIn members determine business decisions in their companies. (LinkedIn)
- 174 million US workers have LinkedIn profiles. (LinkedIn)
- 30% of LinkedIn users live in urban areas. (Hootsuite)
Marketing tactics and lead generation
- LinkedIn is the most popular platform for B2B marketers, followed by Twitter. (Content Marketing Institute)
- As of January 2020, LinkedIn Ads had reached 663.3 million users. (We are social)
- The data shows that the most interesting LinkedIn posts are published on Wednesdays between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m., Thursdays between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., and Fridays at 9:00 a.m. (Sprout Social).
- LinkedIn’s lead conversion rates are three times higher than other major ad platforms, including Google Ads. (LinkedIn)
- Around 15% of marketers create content for LinkedIn. (HubSpot)
- Only 10% of marketers say they invest in LinkedIn. (HubSpot)
- In a study of over 5,000 companies, HubSpot found that LinkedIn traffic had the highest visitor-to-lead conversion rate at 2.74%, almost three times or 277% higher than Twitter (0.69%) and Facebook (0.77%). . (HubSpot)
LinkedIn user statistics
- Every week, 40 million people search for jobs on LinkedIn. (LinkedIn)
- Three people are hired on LinkedIn every minute. (LinkedIn)
- There are more than 55 million companies listed on LinkedIn and there are 14 million open positions on the platform. (LinkedIn)
- For companies active on LinkedIn, 30% of their engagement comes from their own employees. Compared to other types of content, they are 14 times more likely to share their employer’s content on the platform. (LinkedIn)
LinkedIn advertising statistics
- LinkedIn ads accounted for more than a third of LinkedIn’s total revenue in the fourth quarter of 2020. (LinkedIn).
- Marketing Solutions grew by 50%. LinkedIn predicts the jump was caused by advertisers who chose the platform as a trusted method for generating warm leads. (LinkedIn)
- Hootsuite and We Are Social report that 727 million people can be reached through LinkedIn advertising. (Data report)
- Compared to the previous quarter in 2020, the reach of LinkedIn has increased by 3.5%. (Data report)
source
Mastering LinkedIn Marketing
Since LinkedIn has a slightly different audience than other major platforms like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, you should know if your customers are engaging there before investing time or resources in a campaign or promotion. When preparing your next social media strategy, be sure to keep in mind the statistics mentioned above, as well as emerging research on the platform and its target groups.
Editor’s note: This post was originally published in May 2020 and has been updated for completeness.