200 million people are creators and make their living as creators. Now >> I got my first internship as a student on LinkedIn. I got my first brand deal as a creator via LinkedIn. It has become like this one platform that has given me so much. Why should someone really be focusing on video on LinkedIn? >> Over 70% of B2B buyers now are millennial or Gen Z and they grew up on social networks and they eat video for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Have you seen those LinkedIn posts where people say that, "Hey, I just got laid off. Here's what I learned about life because of this event that happened to me." >> Yeah. Yeah. >> I always think people smell things that are inauthentic. And the things that are the most effective connect with people both intellectually and emotionally. That's authenticity. >> How can I be more discovered on LinkedIn based on what I write on my bio in my headline? >> If you just write finance manager, that's not very discoverable. Hi everyone, I'm Ishan and today we are talking about the most important professional networking platform, the platform that I started creating content on and that is LinkedIn. And with me today I have Jessica Jensen who's also the chief marketing officer at LinkedIn. Jessica, how are you doing there? >> I am so great thanks. It's so great to meet you and spend time with you. Thank you for being a LinkedIn champion and amazing creator. >> Thank you for coming to India. How is Bangalore treating you? >> Oh my gosh. So I've been to India before but this is my first time in Bengaluru. So I'm just having an exciting educational marvelous time and the energy here uh is astonishing. I learned a great term juggard >> jagard >> which is you know as you know but I'm going to take this bottle this concept up and take it back to the US. Uh the ability to you know push against constraints find a way around a problem and uh do something meaningful. And I just think that spirit is so vibrant here. >> Is one thing you'll find everywhere around here. >> But tell me more about your experience at LinkedIn as the chief marketing officer and what all have you been working on? >> Sure. I've been at LinkedIn for 10 months. Uh and it is just a a marvelous marvelous platform and company. Uh and the people that work at LinkedIn are salt of the earth and brilliant and also funny. And I love working with funny smart people. uh LinkedIn is as you know largest professional network in the world and we are really I think well known by a lot of people for finding jobs or maybe you know running ads but as the head of marketing I'm trying to really build our brand um and the understanding of workers and businesses of what the full value LinkedIn provides is and can be. So we've created a a unified message which is that LinkedIn is the network that works for you, works for your career, your small business, your enterprise, your government, your economy. Uh and so we're trying to help people understand that LinkedIn is an enabler to your growth, your learning, your development, and you can grow your business through sales and ads and hiring as well. >> That is so true because I got my first internship as a student on LinkedIn. I got my first brand deal as a creator via LinkedIn. I started doing AI workshops with companies and governments. I gave a talk at the government of of Dubai recently and that happened because of LinkedIn like they reached out to me on LinkedIn and so it has become like this one platform that >> has given me so much >> by just putting myself out there and and we'll talk more about that in some time but where do you envision LinkedIn going in the future? You know, we already serve 1.3 billion people, which is a huge responsibility and an honor. Uh, we want to be the center of your work life and your ability to learn new school skills and you know, we offer a number of courses or explore new careers and you know, as you know, the nature of careers is changing enormously. 200 million people are creators and make their living as creators now. and people have side hustles and do gigs and contract work and start a business. So, we're really thinking about work much more broadly than a job in a company. Um, so, you know, we we need to be the place that people come to learn and explore new opportunity and we're going to continue to invest there. Then for businesses, we are integrating AI into all of our products and we've launched a new AI hiring suite. Uh we have a new um set of AI tools in the sales development space through sales navigator. So ensuring that we are at the cutting edge of AI technology to enable businesses to grow and expand their audiences um through LinkedIn. We will continue to be pouring gas on that for years to come. >> Amazing. Now, let's take a step back. Someone who's watching this video, maybe they are starting out their career ending with college and they want to start creating content and getting that visibility on LinkedIn as a platform. >> How can a 20 or 23 year old start creating content on LinkedIn and differentiate themselves from everyone else around? Because you open the LinkedIn feed and you see one image after the other, people sharing their life stories. How should I differentiate myself? I love that question uh because people need to think about differentiation a lot more. Uh there are a lot of people who go out and kind of say the same thing a lot of the time and it's number one it's not interesting number two it's not effective for them. So what is your unique perspective or experience? Have you founded a small business? Are you passionate about a certain nonprofit? Are you doing research in an industry that maybe people are not as familiar with? So really thinking about what is your personal experience and perspective and something that is unique and that people are looking for that maybe they don't even know they're looking for. Then of course video is critical. Video is growing like a weed on our platform. Uh it is video is the currency of so many young people now and even people in my age zone. So, learning how to do video effectively on LinkedIn, which means short, sweet with a great hook at the beginning, valuable content and a POV that is unique and a call to action asking people to share their experience, make a comment, do something to drive the engagement with your content, uh, and show your value. Um, so you are very very effective at this. So should people should go watch you and learn from you. And it's a skill you build over time. You know, it's also about experimentation. >> I have worked for many years to find my voice and my point of view and my style. I tend to be maybe a little bit more funny and silly than the average 50year-old woman. Um, but that's, you know, that's how I bring my zest and grow an audience. And there are many, many different flavors and styles that can be effective. Interesting. There's also there's there's one part of LinkedIn where people are sharing their stories. There's another part of LinkedIn in which people are trying to sell as much as possible. >> Sure. >> How can people identify and draw the line in the middle between authenticity and being salesy? >> Uh I mean I think salesy rarely works. So uh you know some obviously you need to sell things at scale and you need to convey information about your product or service and it's it's you know proof points and value. Um but I think that the best brands and the best sellers are ones that think about the emotional resonance of their message with their audience. Not just I'm selling this SAS product that does X and Y, but what are your buyers fears, passions, desires, needs, and how are you gearing your message to them? Speak like a human, not a robot. Uh, a lot of B2B selling is very boring. So, bring some bring some zest, bring a new perspective, take some risks. Um, but I I think I think I always, you know, I always think people smell things that are inauthentic. >> And the things that are the most effective connect with people both intellectually and emotionally, and that's authenticity. >> On a lighter note, have you seen those LinkedIn posts where people say that, "Hey, I just got laid off. Here's what I learned about life because of this event that happened to me." >> Yeah. Yeah. I I mean, some of those are really insightful and powerful. Um and some of them are you know a little trit um but I think it's important for people to share their professional experience which can at times feel you know like failure or like a bump in the road but then people also share content about rising above that and how did they build a network to get through that or >> learn new skills through LinkedIn or do a complete career or industry change. So I think people who share share those authentic experiences of rediscovery >> are very powerful. >> You talk about discovery right now, right? So if someone wants to be discovered on LinkedIn >> and they want to optimize for that through their profile, through what they create, what do you think is the best thing to go forward? >> How can I be more discovered on LinkedIn? >> Yeah. >> Based on what I write on my bio, in my headline and my >> Oh, at that level um I I think being clear and descriptive but also interesting, right? I mean if you just write finance manager you know that's not very discoverable it's accurate but what is your unique interest or skills so I think uniqueness and specificity is important um and adding you know your your experiences and being detailed in your experiences but then really the power of the network is so important right who are you connecting with who are you following when you do posts, are you responding to and engaging with the comments? So, we really value in the algorithm not only who you know, who you're connected to, and what you post, but then are you actively engaging with other people's comment com content and your own content >> and meaningful engagement, not just insightful commenting for reach, >> nice post, right? Or commenting for reach. Don't don't start me for that. Don't start me on that one. Um, but yeah, I mean, you need to be a thoughtful contributor to the community and then you will reap the benefits of that. >> So, let's say if a business wants to start creating content on LinkedIn, >> there's often a problem in which they create a brand page and they create content from that. However, that really gets enough traction and they end up looking at the the personal branding of the founder to deliver that story. >> What do you think is the right approach for that? If a business wants to market on LinkedIn, what should they do? >> I think both matter, right? And some people on LinkedIn are seeking companies or industries and so the brand presence of your business through your page and what you have said there and what you post there really does matter. Now also people like people and so a lot of founders or business leaders find that they're able to build a personal brand and you know this very very well because they speak as themselves. They speak authentically. They speak they share their own experiences and that is both important for them as a leader and professional but definitely helps their company and their brand. So I think you know both really matter and and you need to do you need to do both but in slightly different ways. >> How do you think a brand can balance both influencer marketing and storytelling on LinkedIn? You know there's a lot of companies who do a lot of brand campaigns. I personally have worked with lot of lots of them and then they only rely on that. Is that the right approach or should they be looking at some other way to >> promote themselves? >> I think it's an excellent question and it's something we do at LinkedIn as well. I think that you need to do both. I'm sorry that the answer is both frequently here, but your brand and the messages that you put forward and the content that you put forward are kind of the official repository of value and you control what you say about your brand and it is your most important messages and proof point that really matters. You also need to release your brand into the wild with creators and allow them to tell your story through their lens. >> And that can be, you know, there are certain brands that that's very intimidating to and feels very uncomfortable. But I think the most effective brands know who they are, know what they say and what they mean. and that if you have a million customers, their experience with you is varied and real. And so if you enable creators to tell their story, they're going to capture nuances and insights that you hadn't thought of. >> And so when I see what creators say about LinkedIn, it's inspiring and different in some cases and shines a different light on our brand that's super valuable. M >> and Jessica, why should someone really be focusing on video on LinkedIn? >> Ah, it's a good one. I would say three main reasons. Number one, video is incredibly engaging and people love to watch it. And we've seen video consumption grow quarter over quarter at a double-digit rate. So, people crave it. Number two, people trust LinkedIn and they feel great trust in the content that they see and consume there. And so you know that real people with insights are sharing through video in a trusted network space. And number three, if you're in the B2B realm and trying to sell things, over 70% of B2B buyers now are millennial or Gen Z and they grew up on social networks and they eat video for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, right? So you need to speak to those buyers in the currency that they consume which is more often than not video. >> What types of videos work best on LinkedIn? >> Yeah. Well, I think so. I think Atlassian does great work. I think Service Now does great work. Uh Zoho, >> what are they doing exactly in those videos? >> Well, I think that they are bringing a unique perspective on a set of business issues or needs um and being innovative. They're using celebrities in very clever ways in some cases, not all. They're uh they're injecting humor. >> Again, like so much B2B work is so boring. >> And so the best brands are injecting zest, flare, humor, differentiation. I think Salesforce does some really good work. I think uh I think Adobe does some really good work. So knowing your brand and and using using LinkedIn as a canvas for your brand storytelling, video works really well. >> And what marketing tools does LinkedIn offer for businesses? Say if if I want to grow my business. Yeah. >> What what are the exact new tools that that that have come up? Well, I mean, so it depends on I think if you're a small business versus a large enterprise, slightly different, but I mean, we have I if you are looking for a targeted buyer audience in the B2B world, LinkedIn is without doubt the best place. So, our targeting, our ability to capture the right people at the right levels in the right industries buying the things that you're selling like worldclass. >> We have invested a lot in our video product. It's made a lot of progress. We are investing in a creator marketplace so that we can help advertisers identify and work with the right creators. We have a program called brand link which allows uh advertisers to pair with either news video content or creator content and amplify their brand in partnership with those creator brands. >> Oh wow. >> We have an amazing events ads offering. So in-person events are back in action big time now. People are stoked to go out and get together. And we're seeing that companies that use our events ads platform see a 30% lift in engagement with their in-person events so you can target the right people. You can share content and extend the life of that content. You can follow up after you do a live event. Um you can host events on LinkedIn. So, we have a really wide variety of offerings um from, you know, top offunnel brand awareness with with video all the way through demand gen. Um so, it's a pretty full meal deal in the in the advertising world for B2B. >> There's one underrated feature on LinkedIn which I think most people don't know about and that's the view my services button. >> Yes. >> So, LinkedIn is not just for jobs but also for freelancers and contractors and I get those disco requests every single day. That's awesome that you >> tell me more about that and why is it important? >> Yeah. Well, I think that again we're we're reconceptualizing the world of work. You know, the full-time march of the penguins through the career ladder that's dying. >> And so people are offering, you know, part-time services, consulting services, create I'll be a creator for your brand. And so us asking acting as a service marketplace for workers and companies. You've you've hit on something very important and a growing trend in the world of work. >> Any specific insights you have about LinkedIn in India particularly what have you observed? >> Absolutely. Well, India is our second largest market. We have 167 million members. We're growing 20%. This is one of the obviously one of the most dynamic exciting economies and groups of humans in the world. Um we are all in on India. I uh I'm meeting with customers, members doing events. So I'm learning so much. I would say that we have a great deal of trust in the market. People know and trust the LinkedIn brand and the platform. We have authentic real people uh and people know that. And then I think you know we are growing as a uh a marketing vehicle for Indian companies. We are supporting small businesses. We're obviously very important in the hiring and recruiting market. >> Um and then you know we we need to support workers in India uh more of them and more deeply to learn new skills, imagine new futures, craft new career paths. So the this market is so exciting and dynamic and determined to win. Um so it just gives me enormous energy to be here. >> One last message that you'd like to give to people who are still watching this video and and they want to go out and start creating on LinkedIn. Yeah. >> What would that be? >> Uh I think it goes back to what you said even at the beginning. >> What is what is your unique point of view, your perspective? What do you know? What story do you have to tell that is not being told? >> That is what will cut through and you learning how to tell that story crisply and effectively mainly on video in a compelling and exciting way. Not you know face the camera I am pitching my product to you. I am a business robot right but be a real person and have a point of view. Um that's that's what re you know LinkedIn is a collection of human beings. >> Yeah. You know, the my most viral LinkedIn post is me sharing my journey of going from a 2019 someone who's just entering college with like $50,000 of debt converted to rupees and then coming out in 2023 when I dropped out of college, going all in with content, moving to Bangalore, starting my company and that entire message write up was super emotional and it got like 50,000 likes and that was insane, >> right? because you're telling your personal story. It's rich. It's detailed. It's emotionally nuanced. You're believable. I can People would eat it up. >> Yep. Yep. That's the way to go. >> Yeah, that's the way to go. >> Amazing. Thank you so much, Jessica. >> Oh, it's a delight. So fun to talk to you. Thank you. >> And we'll look forward to visiting the office in Linger and meeting you more. >> We'll have some fun here in Bangalore. >> Yep. All right. Thank you. >> Thank you.