You've done the hard work thinking of a topic, creating an article, and getting it checked and approved. But now it's time to get it published and one important question is left to answer.

Where should you post your content? LinkedIn vs the company blog.

LinkedIn's network offers maximum reach, putting your content directly in front of your connections. The company blog allows greater control and contributes to your firm's collective thought leadership.

The answer is that you should do a bit of both. Posting on your firm's site offers a load of benefits (that I've mentioned below) and then sharing that content as an update on LinkedIn gives your content reach.  LinkedIn is an excellent channel to drive your audience to your blog.

There are also a few important reasons to publish on your firm's blog;

1. The company blog is an easy first step for authors

Expert authors, particularly in professional services struggle to find the time and inclination to publish their insights online. By publishing their insights on the company blog you can control the workflow, eliminating the risk to your firm and removing any difficulty for the author.

We looked into the effect that publishing content had on professionals' use of LinkedIn at different companies. We looked at the behaviour before and after publishing content for dozens of Professionals at companies ranging from magic circle law firms to big four accountancies to boutique consultancies.

The data showed that once professionals had taken that easy first step of publishing content, they were 3x more likely to engage on LinkedIn. 

Having something to say meant professionals were orders of magnitude more active on the social platform. Perhaps most importantly though, having published their own expert insight meant that when they were active they were actively providing value to clients and prospects.

2. Content on the company blog amplifies and benefits from the company brand

When you publish to your firm's site, you're adding a stamp of credibility and authority to your content. Your piece contributes to the bank of knowledge for your firm and in turn, receives some of that authority in return. 

Clients and prospects are looking at your firm to see if you are subject matter leaders, showing what you know on the company website is a great way of positioning your firm as the obvious choice.

3. Content on the company blog is more likely to be seen and amplified by the wider team

If your firm has a BD, Marketing or account care function, your colleagues in those teams will be much more likely to know about and use content published on the firm website rather than a private social media account.

Shareable insights are a key weapon for developing relationships, particularly if you're deliberately creating insights for specific clients. Having your content published on the firm website is an easy way to ensure that your colleagues know about it and can share it with the clients and prospects that matter.

4. Publishing on the company blog makes it easier to judge and report on the effectiveness of thought leadership

LinkedIn offers a decent set of metrics for authors, showing you some basic numbers around post engagement. This data is limited to the author's account only. Senior leadership, marketing and business development cannot see the impact of your thought leadership if it is published on LinkedIn alone.

Within the company blog, it is a different story, from basic site analytics to a full-blown marketing automation suite, there are options for measuring the impact of thought leadership. This information needs to be accessible to authors, but having a high-level overview of the big picture is essential.

5. LinkedIn is not an evergreen platform

As a social network, LinkedIn is becoming more important for how people assess the firms they work with. But as buyers do more of their research online, they expect information to be presented easily in the places they expect to find it. 

You may have an archive of work on LinkedIn, but buyers will still look to your firm's website for that knowledge. LinkedIn is a source of insight on people, rather than industry issues. This may change in the future but for now remains true.