Should I Get LinkedIn Premium?

“Is LinkedIn Premium worth it?”

“Should I pay for LinkedIn?”

I’m often asked these questions during my LinkedIn Workshops and at events I speak at.

My answer?

If you’re not maximising the free version of LinkedIn, then NO, it’s NOT worth paying for LinkedIn Premium.

What Extras Do You Get with LinkedIn Premium?

Jobseekers, recruiters, and sales professionals often use LinkedIn Premium accounts to their advantage, but what’s the appeal?

• Insights – See people who have viewed your Profile, who, if contacted correctly, could be your next employer, partner or client. Do this without giving up your privacy.
• Expanded Profile Search – See more than the standard 100 results when you use LinkedIn Search. Instead, be greeted with 300 useful results.
• Better Search Filters – If you subscribe to the highest plan for each Premium account type, you can use filters such as searching for possible Connections within your groups, filter people in search results based on their years of job experience or their job function or on whether they are new to LinkedIn or not.
• Job Search – Get pointed in the right direction of job vacancies that your qualified and suitable for based on your skills, past experience, salary requirements, and education.
• Learn and Upskill – Enjoy access to more varied on-demand courses from LinkedIn Learning.
• InMail – Benefit from LinkedIn’s InMail, which, according to LinkedIn Premium, is 2.6x more effective than emails alone, to communicate with hiring managers and express your interest in jobs.

For more information on the different features and benefits that LinkedIn Premium offers click here.

What are the Different LinkedIn Premium Accounts and How Much Do They Cost?

• Premium Career – to help you get hired and ahead in your career – from £24.98 per month.
• Sales Navigator – generate leads and develop your client base – from £49.99 per month.
• Recruiter Lite – find the best new talent in the job search market – from £79.99 per month.
• Premium Business – to empower you to expand your business with detailed business insights – from £39.99 per month.

For more information on what features each paid-for LinkedIn account offers click here. Each of the different types of paid-for accounts gives you the opportunity to try a free trial for a month so you can assess if the account type will be of use to you.

So, How Do I know I’m Maximising the Free Version of LinkedIn?

You’ll know if you’re using your Basic free account to its full potential if you do all of the below:

The above list is the sort of thing you might consider sharing on LinkedIn. These types of content creation can be done in the form of images, posts, videos, and documents. I’d recommend mixing and matching your format as it keeps your audience interested in your content. Marketer and Graphic Designer, Pamela Schuler, recently shared with me that she keeps her social media content fresh by following the 80/20 rule, that is, making sure 80% of her content is informational and the remaining 20% is about her and selling her services.

Don’t forget to add hashtags to your posts (three at the most) and tag people whom you wish to mention in the body of the text. Don’t be guilty of spamming people by tagging them unnecessarily.

Also, as well as creating your own content, don’t neglect to engage with other people’s content.

Lastly, remember this is not about you! Be sparing with self-promotional content. And at all times be the authentic you.

‘Give’ at least ten times more than you ‘take’ and you won’t go far wrong!