In a logical move, business social media player LinkedIn is planning its own version of Facebook's Instant Articles feature
The Instant Articles craze driven by Facebook, Snapchat and Google – designed to swiftly provide mobile users with more readable content from publishers – is about to be embraced by LinkedIn.
In what appears to be a logical move since LinkedIn’s 433m professional users are more naturally inclined towards long-form, immersive and shareable reads, the social network is understood to be holding “exploratory talks” with publishers.
According to BuzzFeed, citing sources with knowledge of the plans, LinkedIn is keen to ride the wave of change rather than get caught adrift.
‘Publishers remain a very important part of our content ecosystem and we are in regular conversations with them about new ways to work together’
Facebook has been driving its Instant Articles strategy for a year now and has partnered with large, successful online media brands including The New York Times, National Geographic, The Atlantic, The Guardian, BBC News, NBC, Buzzfeed, Spiegel Online and Bild.
The tool – denoted by a lightning bolt symbol beside posts in Facebook’s News Feed – lets publishers deliver fast, interactive articles while keeping control of their content and business models.
Fast-growing social platform Snapchat last year launched its Snapchat Discover tool for publishers and Google has its own quick-loading articles project called AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages).
Embracing the Instant Articles trend makes sense for LinkedIn because of the kind of content that is shared on the social network by professionals who crave knowledge but also want to appear knowledgeable before their peers and potential future employers.
“Publishers remain a very important part of our content ecosystem and we are in regular conversations with them about new ways to work together,” LinkedIn said on the matter.
“Our goal is to ensure we get the right content in front of the right member at the right time to deliver the best member experience possible.”
Social media image via Shutterstock
