LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional networking platform, has begun expanding its news banner feature to more users. The feature, initially tested in limited markets, aims to keep professionals updated with timely news stories directly in their mobile feed.
With this expansion to users in the U.S., Canada, and India, LinkedIn is enhancing its efforts to offer relevant and curated professional news, making it easier for users to engage with current trends and developments within their industries.
This banner feature serves as a timely addition to the platform, promising to improve both user engagement and information sharing.
What Is the LinkedIn News Banner Feature?
The LinkedIn News Banner is a mobile-specific feature designed to present a rotating summary of the day’s top news stories directly at the top of your feed. These stories cover a wide array of professional topics, from business trends to breaking industry news.
The banner isn’t just a static element – it rotates between various stories throughout the day, ensuring that users are continuously informed with fresh content.
LinkedIn describes the feature as a tool to “discover and stay current on timely professional news stories and perspectives.” The goal is to help professionals engage with relevant topics without having to leave the platform or search extensively for information.
Creator Economy and Influencer Marketing Expert Lindsay Gamble gives us an example of how the news banner looks.
Curated Content and Personalization
One of the key aspects of the LinkedIn News Banner is the content curation. The stories featured in the banner are handpicked by LinkedIn’s editorial team, which is responsible for ensuring the stories are timely, accurate, and relevant to professionals. By curating these stories, LinkedIn ensures members are only presented with high-quality, insightful content.
- Stories come from reputable sources, including top publishers, journalists, and LinkedIn’s own editorial team. This helps ensure that users have access to trusted, professional news.
- The content is updated in real-time, with stories reflecting the last 24 hours of news. This ensures the information presented to users is fresh and up-to-date, allowing professionals to stay current with ongoing developments.
A LinkedIn representative explained,
“The News Banner is an easy way to discover, engage, and stay informed about key trends and discussions shaping your professional world.”
This approach helps LinkedIn reinforce its position as a go-to source for real-time professional updates.
Benefits for LinkedIn Users
The LinkedIn News Banner is designed with a range of user benefits in mind. It’s not just about providing news – it’s about providing actionable insights and facilitating deeper engagement with trending topics.
Here’s how users can benefit from this feature:
- Increased Engagement: By highlighting trending news directly within the app, LinkedIn gives users an easy way to engage with current discussions and share their perspectives.
- Career Advantage: Staying informed about the latest developments in one's industry is crucial for career growth. The news banner provides professionals with the timely updates needed to make informed decisions, contribute to conversations, and stay ahead in their field.
- Ease of Use: With the news banner appearing right at the top of the feed, users don’t need to actively search for news. The stories come to them, reducing the friction of information discovery.
Testing and Expansion of the Feature
LinkedIn first launched the News Banner in a limited test last year, but it is now being expanded to users in the U.S., Canada, and India. While this may seem like an unusual mix of countries, India stands out as a key market for LinkedIn.
The platform is experiencing rapid growth in India, with more than 130 million users, or roughly 13% of all LinkedIn traffic. While the U.S. leads the charge with an audience of over 230 million users, India’s fast-growing and technologically-expanding population makes it a prime testing ground for new features.
Moreover, with the reformation of other social media platforms like X (Twitter), LinkedIn sees an opportunity to fill the gap left by platforms losing traction among certain groups.
Looking toward the future, LinkedIn’s News Banner feature is part of the company’s broader strategy to become a go-to news hub for professionals. As other social platforms, like Twitter (now X), lose ground as trusted sources for breaking news, LinkedIn is positioning itself as a key player in the professional news space.
The feature also complements LinkedIn’s ongoing efforts to foster engagement among users and expand its use beyond just job hunting and networking. By offering curated, real-time news, LinkedIn strengthens its appeal as a platform that professionals can rely on for timely, high-quality content.
“We’re excited to be rolling out this new feature as part of our ongoing mission to bring more value to the LinkedIn community,”
– says Nirajita Banerjee, Sr. Managing Editor at LinkedIn India.
“We want to ensure that professionals everywhere have easy access to relevant news, and this feature is one of the many ways we are trying to meet that need.”
A New Era of Staying Informed on LinkedIn
As LinkedIn continues to refine and expand this feature, it’s clear that the platform is becoming not just a networking tool, but a central hub for staying informed about developments that matter most to today’s professionals.
