Ad Tech, What Government Workers are Reading, and More Insights from the Latest LinkedIn Content Insights Quarterly

In this quarter’s edition of the LinkedIn Content Insights Quarterly, which examines the kind of content members were engaging with in the first quarter of 2019 on the LinkedIn platform, we focused on two areas:

1. Content that attracted the attention of Government workers on LinkedIn, that is, members who work in government roles around the globe.  
2. The top content members engaged with on the topic of Advertising Technology, also known as ad tech.

And, as always in the Content Insights Quarterly, we also share the top topics and content that LinkedIn’s more than 630 million members engaged with over the last quarter. Read on for insights into how you and your company can better understand how LinkedIn members are engaging with content on the platform – and how you can use that to help drive your business forward.  

Audience of the Quarter: Government Workers

There are more than 11 million Government workers on LinkedIn. These members work in a range of government sectors and roles including elected officials, first responders and military personnel.

Top Topics for Government Workers

This audience is more likely than other LinkedIn members to engage with content that is directly related to government services. In particular, this audience is interested in content around public service, defense, and justice. 

Lessons for Marketers: LinkedIn isn’t only B2B, it’s B2G, too

LinkedIn isn’t strictly for business. Although the site has a reputation as a great environment for B2B marketing, the number of government workers and the presence on the platform of topics they’re interested in implies that LinkedIn may also be a strong forum for B2G — business to government — marketing.

Top Articles Engaging Government Workers

In the first quarter, government workers were interested in a few common themes. Transitioning out of the military was the most common theme, with five articles, including a story about security companies looking to hire military veterans and exploring career opportunities outside of the military. (LinkedIn is active in supporting veterans find new careers; we offer veterans a free one-year Premium Careers subscription, which includes access to LinkedIn Learning). Diversity was also a hot topic with three articles in the top 10 examining, among other angles, women in combat.

Interestingly, no articles about the federal government shutdown, which lasted from December 2018 to January 2019, broke into the top 10. [Note, however, that the Shutdown did break into the top 10 of fastest-growing topics on LinkedIn, as you can see below].  

Top 10 Articles Engaged with by Government Workers

1. 1st Brigade Combat Team Soldiers Receive Awards for Valor — By Staff Sergeant Michael Reinsch
2. Transitioning Servicemembers Cheat Sheet
3. Former Bears Cornerback Charles Tillman Is Now an FBI Agent — By Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune
4. Loss of Status in the Military Transition —  By Joe Paschall, Sr.
5. As a Woman Serving Alongside Green Berets, I Had No Problem Keeping Up. It Wasn’t Enough — By Jackie Munn, The New York Times
6. Meet the First-Ever All-Female Flyover Team — Today.com
7. 11 Elite Security Companies That Want to Hire Vets Now — Sean Mclain Brown, Miltary.com
8. 10 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About the Pentagon — By Claudette Ruolo, Defense.gov
9. Colorado Native Becomes First Woman to Lead Largest Command in U.S. Army — By Sam Tabachnik, The Denver Post
10. Talk about Being Accomplished: Asian-American Only 34 Years Old yet a Navy SEAL, Doctor and Astronaut — SOFX

Lessons for Marketers

One thing marketers should keep in mind is that government workers, especially those in the military, are often looking for their next play. Soldiers, Marines and Sailors can be talent in waiting for the private sector. Another thing for marketers to consider: Diversity in gender may be more prevalent in the public sector (as well as in a range of other industries) than you think, and your messaging should acknowledge this fact.  

Topic of the Quarter: Ad Tech

This quarter we explored the top content on LinkedIn on the hot topic of Advertising Technology. The top content LinkedIn members engaged with showed a maturing sector as corporate giants either partnered or engaged in M&A to bolster their ad tech bonafides. Additionally, the top 5 articles on ad tech also included a look at women in tech and their assessment of diversity in the sector; this post was published in March for International Women’s Day. And finally, there was a post on creativity, which is still critical even in the tech world; in fact, the best creative and technology work hand in hand.

Top 5 Articles on Ad Tech

1. Verizon Media and Microsoft Ink Global Native Advertising Deal — By Ronan Shields, Adweek
2. International Women's Day 2019: What It Is to Be A Woman in Tech — By Lindsay Rowntree, ExchangeWire
3. As Targeting Becomes Old Hat, Ad Tech Turns To Creative — James Hercher, AdExchanger,
4. Inside the Ad Tech Firm Disney will Get in its Fox Acquisition — Jeanine Poggi, AdAge
5. With AT&T Breathing Down Its Neck, Comcast Looks To Acquire Ad Tech — Ryan Joe, AdExchanger

Lessons for Marketers

Ad Tech remains a complex topic and competitive industry. The landscape will continue to change with merger and acquisition activity. Ad technology will also continue to expand, as the AdExchanger article about ad tech moving to include creative. Marketers ignore ad tech at their peril.

Hot Topics on LinkedIn

This quarter's fastest growing topics on LinkedIn reflected the range of major events and holidays that took place in the first quarter of 2019. Some highlights included:

• The Super Bowl: Coverage from both the sports perspective as well as the advertising angle.
• Professionals are people, too, so award ceremonies, Valentine's Day, April Fools Day and Prom are a big deal.  
• CES is a huge annual event in January, so it is not surprising it appeared in the top growth topics.
• The head of the flight attendants' union called for demonstrations at the country's airports if there's another government shutdown — and warned that her members might have to stop working.  
• The government shutdown, which lasted from was hard to miss and there plenty of coverage about it  

Lessons for Marketers

These popular posts highlight the fact that professionals, just like everyone else, are intrigued by current events. Increasingly, they are using LinkedIn as a forum to discuss the implications of trends in popular culture as well as in business. LinkedIn is the proverbial water cooler for professionals.  

Top Topics on LinkedIn

Below are the top topics on LinkedIn in the last quarter. Management is, was, and continues to be the top topic. As a professional network, LinkedIn aims to remain a valuable platform for advice and insights on careers. Personal growth is also a strong topic on LinkedIn as professionals work to prepare themselves for an uncertain future.  

Lessons for Marketers

The “management” topic regularly holds down the top spot on this list. Management is hard; finding good managers is even harder. Professionals are constantly looking for advice on how to do both better. This list also reveals that the trend of personal branding hasn’t abated, with top topics such as “career advancement” and “personal development” indicating that self-improvement is top of mind for professionals.   

Top Articles on LinkedIn

Below are the top articles on LinkedIn in the last quarter. As usual, there is a diverse mixture of topics and themes. One key trend to emerge last quarter is around what top companies are doing. Several top articles touch on this point. Professionals are often seeking models and templates for how to improve their own businesses.

Top 10 Articles Engaging LinkedIn Members

1. Elon Musk Sent an Email to Employees at 1:20 in the Morning, and It Just May Signal the End of Tesla — By Justin Bariso, Inc.  
2. Woman Turns Down Job In The Most Badass Way After Being Bullied During Interview — By Cassandra Stone, ScaryMommy
3. Amazon Almost Killed Best Buy. Then, Best Buy Did Something Completely Brilliant — By Justin Bariso, Inc.
4. Stop Asking 'How Are You?' Harvard Researchers Say This is How Successful People Make Small Talk — Gary Burnison, CNBC
5. This Australian Company Gives Employees 12 Weeks of “Life Leave” Every Year —  By Eben Diskin, Matador Network
6. Google Spent Years on a Secret New Plan to Attack a $140 Billion Industry. It All Starts Tomorrow — By Bill Murphy Jr., Inc.
7. Netflix Just Bought One of the Biggest Movies in the World — Andy Meek, BGR
8. The 20 Internet Giants That Rule the Web — Nick Routley, Visual Capitalist
9. 13 Things Ridiculously Successful People Do Every Day — By Dr. Travis Bradberry
10. A Woman who Studied 600 Millionaires Discovered Where You Choose to Live Has 2 Effects on Your Ability to Build Wealth — Hillary Hoffower, Business Insider

Lessons for Marketers

An overarching theme in these articles is business culture. Professionals are interested in the culture of spectacularly successful companies. Other posts about the value of employees are also attracting interest in these days of low unemployment when it’s imperative to hire and retain great talent.

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