“My post got 50,000 impressions!”
Great, but did it actually drive any business results? I’ve seen viral LinkedIn posts that generated zero leads and “underperforming” updates that led to six-figure deals.
After managing LinkedIn strategies for dozens of executives and analyzing thousands of posts, I’ve learned that most people track vanity metrics while completely missing the signals that actually correlate with business impact.
Here’s what really matters—and what most LinkedIn analytics dashboards won’t show you:
Profile-to-connection conversion rate This is the percentage of people who view your profile and then send a connection request. This metric reveals whether your profile is compelling to the right audience. One CEO I worked with had 15,000+ profile views but a dismal 0.8% conversion rate. After restructuring his profile to speak directly to his target clients rather than listing achievements, this jumped to 4.7%—resulting in 600+ relevant new connections in a quarter.
Second-degree engagement LinkedIn’s algorithm loves when people engage with your content who aren’t directly connected to you. One counterintuitive tactic: tag less, not more. Posts where I’ve tagged no one but included insightful comments have consistently reached 3-4x more second-degree connections than “mention-heavy” posts. The algorithm sees organic discovery as more valuable than forced distribution.
CTA completion rate Track how many people actually take the specific action you request in your posts. In a recent experiment, I published two nearly identical posts about a workshop—one ended with “Thoughts?” and the other with “Comment ‘interested’ if you’d like the worksheet.” The generic version got more overall engagement, but the specific CTA post resulted in 34 direct messages and 17 workshop signups.
Content-to-conversation ratio This measures how often your posts turn into meaningful private conversations. I track this by adding a unique shortened link or specific phrase in posts, then counting how many messages reference it. My best-performing posts by this metric aren’t my most viral—they’re the ones that address specific pain points and signal my expertise in solving them.
The 72-hour re-engagement rate LinkedIn’s algorithm watches closely to see if people who engage with your content once return to engage again within 3 days. One strategy that’s increased this metric dramatically: using the “…” technique to indicate you’ll add more thoughts in the comments, then posting those additional insights 24 hours later. This brings first-round engagers back for more interaction, signaling quality content to the algorithm.
SSI score progression LinkedIn’s Social Selling Index (SSI) isn’t perfect, but tracking its movement over time provides insights about your overall strategy effectiveness. What many miss is disaggregating the four components—one executive I coached discovered her “engage with insights” score was dragging down her overall SSI. Focusing specifically on that aspect for 30 days improved her content reach by 43%.
Before you get lost in metrics, remember that LinkedIn is ultimately about relationships, not algorithms. The most important analytics are the ones that track whether you’re connecting with the right people and creating opportunities for meaningful conversation.
What LinkedIn metrics do you track beyond the basics? Have you found any counterintuitive correlations between certain activities and actual business results?