Stakeholder Objectives

• Discover users’ overall professional / business goals and how LinkedIn
  Fit into those goals
• Find out how LinkedIn key life cycle features help achieve their key activities.
• Determine current views on LI Premium
• Find out how users use the key life cycle features.
  in lifecycle marketing

Methodology and Timeline

The research focused on usage and experiences across three user segments (Career Builders, Career Keepers & Small Business Owners

Speck Design’s Insights & Strategy team conducted a series of focus groups, 1-on-1 interviews & telephone interviews. The range of participants was recruited internally by LinkedIn, across three key segments:

• 7 Career Builders/People Planners (small & enterprise)
• 10 Career Keepers (small & enterprise)
• 13 Small businesses (8 with 2-10 employees & 5 sole proprietors)

In-person interviews were conducted in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Analysis and Synthesis Overview

Speck's research team interviewed and analyzed LinkedIn Premium users from three segments to discover the key activities and their reactions to LinkedIn premium features. The findings were used to reveal the benefits, perceived benefits, issues, or perceived issues users from each category got from LinkedIn premium. The findings were then synthesized into potential marketing messages for each cohort.

Interview Responses

Career Builder

“For me, it’s more about growing my network, tapping people I don’t know, vs. maintaining it. To maintain, I typically use regular email because it’s easier to reach them that way.” 

Career Keeper

“Once you have a job, LI is most helpful for connecting with anyone in roles like mine who want to share what it takes, what they’ve learned, in order to make us all better. Grows your list of colleagues.” 

Small Business

“Getting new clients is the #1 goal; that’s my bottom line. Also important to ongoing land customers and just continue to grow as a company.”

Key Discoveries

Career Builder

Professional goals revolve around building sales & advancing career

• Looking to increase market presence, grow business, build up a loyal customer base, nurture relationships, and stay top of mind
• Want to increase relevance, be seen as subject experts, engage leaders & influencers in the industry, help set leadership vision/ direction
• CB respondents often work in marketing, consulting, management, sales

LI is heavily used & vital to biz dev success

• Opened & accessed daily- integral to routine
• Perceived as their most effective networking tool- Easy to use, encompassing, robust

Career Keeper

Business goals revolve around growing professionally

• Doing their jobs more effectively, getting better at what they do by growing expertise, climbing the professional ladder, establishing a steady/ predictable clientele, balancing life/work

CK respondents were less focused on direct sales

• More passive, uncomfortable with selling,
  not part of their job

LI is typically used more sporadically.

• Often just 1-2x/week; not always integral to daily business, not always habit.

Small Business

SMBs are all about growth; networking is vital.

• Virtually all are wearing multiple hats in running their business
• Always looking to increase effectiveness and efficiency in their day to day
• The driving goal is to grow their business via increased sales
• All about their network, both nurturing it & growing it
• Focused on increasing their market presence & business name in the community
• Ultimately want long-term client relationships where they become clients’ “go-to.” 

Recommendations

Career Builder

Position as a critical tool in generating business opportunities and leads

• Premium is a vital resource for growing their network
• An effective resource for researching to help target more effective sales efforts and outreach
• Vehicle for becoming subject experts & thought leaders in their industry
• Easy way to stay top of mind with the network by messaging them, connecting people, and commenting/sharing/publishing
• Emphasize expanding & seeking referrals from the network, as well as nurturing the network

Career Keeper

With CKs, highlight opportunities for professional growth & nurturing their network.

• Premium is a vital resource for researching people to access expertise on topics, grow professionally, and be prepared for meetings.
• Makes it easy to stay top of mind with your network by messaging them, connecting people, and commenting/sharing/publishing
• Emphasize nurturing network vs. expanding & seeking referrals

Small Business

Premium can help SMBs generate business opportunities and leads

• Critical research tool for companies & contacts  
• For vetting, meeting prep, tailoring more effective outreach messaging
• LI gives unlimited opportunity to expand their network in finding people & connecting with them
• Via InMail and referrals in messaging
• Offers broad opportunity to nurture existing network for future sales
• Can keep top of mind via connecting connections and commenting/sharing/publishing
• Helps foster relationships that could convert connections into clients

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