Let’s cut to the chase: LinkedIn is following social trends – hard core. The platform is evolving more to an engaging, interactive, content-driven site that resonates with all types of users. These changes provide B2B companies fresh opportunities to refine strategies, connect with audiences, and drive results in new ways.
Here’s what you need to know about LinkedIn for marketing in 2025 and beyond, and how these changes should impact next year’s strategy:
1. Hashtags may be phased out – quality over quantity
LinkedIn is slowly moving away from hashtags as a means of broadening reach, and instead shifting the focus to a Social SEO approach. Originally, hashtags helped categorize content on social media, making it easier to find posts related to specific topics. However, due to LinkedIn’s explosive user growth, hashtags are now less effective at cutting through the noise.
Instead, LinkedIn now emphasizes using relevant keywords and industry-specific phrases directly within your content to increase the discoverability of your posts, without relying on hashtags. This approach, known as Social SEO, considers factors like keywords, bio descriptions, followers, and captions. It aligns well with LinkedIn’s algorithm improvements, which prioritize niche content that resonates with your audience. This promotes genuine interactions such as comments and shares over passive likes.
For example, in the medtech space, a post on diagnostic tools could include keywords like “medical imaging advancements” rather than simply tagging #medtech. This shift means your audience finds you based on relevance, making it easier to connect with users who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer.
2. Vertical Videos
As mobile usage continues to dominate, vertical videos have become increasingly popular for content consumption. By introducing vertical videos, LinkedIn is following trends popularized by platforms like TikTok and Instagram, making content more visually engaging for on-the-go audiences. This shift opens new opportunities for B2B companies, broadening LinkedIn’s reach beyond the computer screen to a more mobile experience.
Unlike video carousels, vertical videos are a single piece of content optimized for a seamless, uninterrupted viewing experience. This format not only meets your audience where they spend the most time — scrolling through content on their phones — but also makes it easier for companies to repurpose content from platforms like TikTok and Instagram. With vertical videos, you can share content across multiple platforms without having to reformat for LinkedIn, creating a cohesive, consistent user experience.
By leveraging vertical videos, you can effectively showcase your insights and expertise on LinkedIn in a format that is increasingly preferred by today’s mobile-first consumers.
3. In-Feed Video Carousels for Interactive Storytelling.
While vertical videos allow for a focused, single-message experience, LinkedIn’s in-feed video carousels offer an opportunity to take your storytelling further. These carousels display a dynamic, side-scrolling collection of video clips right in your feed. The algorithm behind them carefully selects videos based on your actions, professional interests, engagement patterns, and network connections. For B2B companies, video carousels can be particularly effective for showcasing product features, educational content, or sharing customer success stories.
Best practices for B2B Video Carousels:
- Keep each video 15-20 seconds to maximize viewer retention
- Include captions to make content accessible and easy to engage with, even without sound. In fact, 75% of people often leave their phones on mute while watching videos due to default settings, meaning captions are essential for delivering your message effectively.
When you tap on any of the clips within the carousel, you’re moved into a full-screen experience, mimicking the vertical video format popularized by TikTok. This format allows you to deliver what would otherwise be complex information into a visually appealing and understandable piece of content, making it easier to connect with potential customers.
4. Company Messaging System for Direct Engagement
LinkedIn introduced Page Messaging in March, allowing LinkedIn page followers to message companies directly. This feature, accessible through a “Message” button on your LinkedIn company page, creates a new line of communication for organizations to nurture leads, answer inquiries, and build relationships directly with potential customers.
This new feature is especially key for SMBs on LinkedIn, because it allows potential customers or clients to connect with your company without even having to leave the LinkedIn platform. It enhances customer service and provides timely responses to catch those leads.
5. Top Voice Badges leaving LinkedIn
LinkedIn’s decided to remove Top Voice badges and this was to emphasize collective engagement and brand presence rather than praising individual achievement. By moving away from highlighting individuals “Top Voices”, LinkedIn aims to encourage users to think beyond personal achievements and to contribute more to community-focused discussions. For social media managers who may have encouraged their organization’s leaders to be active on LinkedIn to earn these badges, this shift is significant.
One limitation of the Top Voice system was that it didn’t always validate the quality or accuracy of contributions; individuals could earn the badge by frequently responding to questions, and not necessarily verifying their credibility. Now with LinkedIn moving away from these individual badges, B2B companies have an opportunity to showcase collective expertise.
Drive B2B Success with a Refined LinkedIn Strategy
94% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn as a content distribution channel, making it the #1 place to distribute content. In addition to that, more than half of all social traffic to B2B sites comes from LinkedIn. This makes it the ideal space to establish your brand as an industry leader, build trust, and generate high-quality leads.
If you are looking for a LinkedIn strategy that prioritizes growth, steady content flow, and boosts overall engagement, reach out to us! We can help you refine your strategy to deliver definitive results, positioning your brand for success.