Microsoft has published its latest performance numbers, which also incorporate LinkedIn data.
And guess what? LinkedIn saw “record engagement” once again in the period.
As you can see in this overview, LinkedIn revenue rose 10% in the most recent quarter, with solid performance across all business units, while LinkedIn sessions increased 13% with “record engagement”.
Which LinkedIn always reports. It’s difficult to fathom how exactly the platform achieves “record” levels of engagement every single reporting period, as it has, apparently, since 2018.
But that’s what LinkedIn has reported, so…
In terms of users, LinkedIn says that it currently has over a billion “members” worldwide.
Though it’s important to note that “members” and “users” are not the same thing, and LinkedIn doesn’t report active user numbers. Which is a little misleading, because I can guarantee you that LinkedIn does not have a billion active users.
Estimates suggest that around 40% of LinkedIn’s users are active, going by EU user counts reported in line with the DSA. Which suggests that LinkedIn probably has around 400 million monthly actives right now, which is a good number, but clearly not something that LinkedIn wants to promote.
I mean, a billion sounds better than 400 million, right?
In terms of usage trends, LinkedIn has also reported that 1.5 million pieces of content are shared every minute in the app, with video being the fastest-growing content type. LinkedIn reports that video uploads are up 34% year-over-year, and it’s now looking to lean into this with features like its full-screen video feed.
Does that mean that you should be looking to share more video on LinkedIn?
I mean, LinkedIn’s looking to put more focus on video content, so it makes sense to align with that where you can. It could be worth an experiment, at the least.
Also interesting: LinkedIn Premium sign ups have increased 51% this fiscal year.
Why?
At a guess, I would say that the addition of Premium Company Pages, which provide more ways for businesses to showcase themselves in the app, has been a big driver of take-up.
Premium Company Pages also get access to AI writing assistant features, which is another element that LinkedIn’s been pushing, as it looks to tap into the AI wave, with the help of Microsoft.
I’m not convinced that AI messaging and post writing tools are a benefit, but there does seem to be some interest in using AI to enhance people’s LinkedIn presence.
So, in summary, LinkedIn is seemingly doing well, without a lot of specifics around what the headline statements really mean. But we do know that video is popular, and that more LinkedIn users are leaning into video content, while AI is seemingly another driver of interest.
