Is LinkedIn the new creator battleground?

Creators are looking for new ways to engage and grow their audiences, which includes testing new platforms such as LinkedIn. 

And the most popular sites creators turn to are the big three – Instagram, YouTube and TikTok, according to Linktree’s 2023 Creator Report.

These platforms only make up 25% of total links created on Linktree, since it began at the start of 2022.  

Linktree is a freemium social media tool that allows influencers to create a personalised page that houses specific links they want to share with their audience. 

People often view LinkedIn as merely a job finding platform, but really it’s a content creator’s playground with so much opportunity, Linktree’s CMO, Monica Austin, told AdNews. 

“It's not just for networking, but somewhere creators can establish themselves as a thought leader or expert in a particular field, post a lot of content and reach a wide yet targeted audience,” she said. 

“We continue to see LinkedIn growing on Linktree with the number of LinkedIn links increasing by more than 40% YoY.” 

The report outlined that links to LinkedIn have increased by 42% as creators expand to engaged the audiences in new ways.  

Austin attributes this growth to the ever-changing rules and algorithms of the large platforms. 

“We know creators are expanding their audiences beyond their core or "favoured” platform, and we are seeing a lot of creators jumping in on LinkedIn, investing time and energy in growing an audience on the platform,” she said. 

In terms of diverse content being shared, Austin noted that in past year alone, Linktree users have posted more than 100 million links to 7.5 million different websites.  

“Which shows just how much diverse content is being generated,” she said. 

LinkedIn isn’t the only platform that’s booming for creators. The Linktree report also stated that since the rise of QR codes following the pandemic, monthly QR code clicks have nearly tripled, meaning more and more creators are merging real life with their digital life. 

Austin said that while many thought the use of QR codes would decrease after the pandemic, it looks like creators have latched onto them and their cross platform benefits.  

“We’re seeing QR codes allow for greater integration between a creator's real and digital life and in a way helping them have a truly interconnected brand identity,” she said. 

On social media, catering to the algorithm can lead to “content collapse", according to the report.  

Its findings revealed that ¾ of creators want to diversify what they create, but feel pressure to keep making what is rewarded by the algorithm.  

While it can seem like a good idea to cater to the algorithm in hopes of content being seen and appearing in “for you” pages, it will only end in fatigue, notes Austin. 

“Not only will the creator feel stuck, but their audience will most likely be tired of seeing the same content again and again. This is the content collapse,” she said. 

Following and creating content solely for the algorithm will only rob creators of their identity in the long run, she said, and they’ll struggle to foster an authentic and engaged audience.  

“To avoid the content collapse, creators need to remain true to themselves and also their audiences. They need to remember what got them started on their creator journey in the first place and be brave enough to go against the algorithm,” said Austin. 

Austin believes that there has never been a more pivotal time for creators to own their audiences.  

“As they face constant changes in the social media landscape and have so much other content to compete with, it’s important creators have a seamless way to migrate, maintain and grow their cross-platform audience,” she said. 

“This is what Linktree was created for, an agnostic platform that helps creators unify their entire digital footprint in one place.”