Launching less than a year ago, LinkedIn was really late to the native video upload game.
At the time, I wrote, “Employers will now be able to post videos and get data that actually supports recruiting. Imagine a company promoting a job opportunity and then being able to check out their audience analytics in order build up a list of potential candidates, as well as retarget them.”
I also thought that adding native video would help LinkedIn increase the number of paying members, introduce video interviewing features, and use Microsoft’s AI resources to introduce something like facial recognition in hiring. “Thinking about what Microsoft could start doing with video activity, facial recognition, and deep learning starts to get a little mind boggling,” I wrote.
I don’t think anyone at YouTube or Facebook is losing sleep over LinkedIn’s foray into native video, but you should make LinkedIn part of your recruitment marketing strategy for one simple reason: Traffic. From my own experience, and anecdotal evidence from other marketers, LinkedIn is clearly giving video more weight in the news feed than things like photos and shared news articles from other sites like Politico or HuffPo.
And as long as LinkedIn gives priority exposure to video, its video offering will continue to gain mindshare and a bigger piece of marketing budgets from vendors and employer brand managers alike. News released today is more evidence that LinkedIn is full steam ahead on video.
“Since launching video last year we’ve seen strong momentum with video being shared 20 times more than other types of content, in addition to incredibly creative videos from members as they share their professional experiences and perspectives,” shared Imani C. Greene, public relations manager, talent solutions, at LinkedIn in an email.
Announced today, two new ways for employers to enhance recruitment videos include:
“We first launched filters for events in October at the Grace Hopper Celebration event, and the videos we saw inspired us to continue building other filters to make it fun and simple for you to share with your communities. We also heard from you that you wanted more filters for everyday uses,” said Peter Roybal, video product manager at LinkedIn, in a blog post. Videos are also embeddable and shareable.
Scoff if you want.
LinkedIn has taken its fair share of abuse about being a Facebook copycat for years, but LinkedIn is moving beyond its brand of being a people database and moving into the role of content creator. Recent hot water that Facebook has conveniently put itself into only helps LinkedIn’s position. Add the fact that a new generation of LinkedIn users embrace video like a fish in water, and you have an intriguing road ahead for the future of social media.
A recent CNBC Twitter poll of over 700 people revealed 51 percent of respondents will stop using Facebook because they are sharing so much personal data with outside companies. I doubt it’ll be that high, but even if the exit number is 10 percent, where are those people going to go? LinkedIn hopes it’s them, and if trust is a factor — and it is — then it’s in a solid position, and being the perfect mix of professional profile meets social media engagement is pretty clever.
