LinkedIn Cover Image Best Practices

Think of your LinkedIn company page cover image as a billboard. It’s the most obvious item on your company page and likely the FIRST thing any visitor sees on your page. Sadly, many companies are still using tired old stock images with a logo (or even worse, the LinkedIn standard blue cover image!). And some marketers who have actually invested in great cover images are guilty of leaving the same one up FOREVER.

What are best practices for LinkedIn cover images and how do you make the most of this valuable real estate?

• Change it regularly. Have a set of “evergreen” banners you can swap in and out, quarterly if possible. Update them annually at minimum and any time you change your branding or company focus.
• Promote key initiatives. Create special banners for events, product launches, or key campaigns you are running. Since you can’t include a link in a cover image, you’ll want to create a friendly URL (e.g., mycompany.com/event) and use that text in your image.
• Address current events. Although this is not for everyone, if your solutions, services, or values align with current events—create a cover image that showcases your message. An example would be if you have a product that would help healthcare companies through the pandemic, create a special cover image and statement for it.
• Incorporate text. Adding text to your cover image enables you to share relevant messages, just make sure it is very clear, concise, and easy to read.

Looking for LinkedIn cover image examples for inspiration?

Here are some of my favorites and why I like them!

Pantheon Platform. It’s on-brand and stands out. With so many companies using stock images and a lot of blue, this technology marketer differentiates with black and white and a pop of yellow—their core brand color. Move from their LinkedIn page to their website and you know instantly you’re in the right place. Note their company page tagline too: Website operations platform for Drupal & WordPress. I know instantly what they do.

The Partner Marketing Group. We also use black and white with a pop of color for our LinkedIn banner. Just five words share what we do and who we do it for.

Sendlane. The BOLD pink color is fun and one you don’t see often on LinkedIn so it instantly makes this cover image stand out. Their sale flyer image and message say RETAIL without actually spelling it out!

Pluralsight. They use both simple text AND color to get their message across super fast.

Calypso Technology and Software Advice. Also relies heavily on text and simple design. While these may not be as visually engaging as an image, they accomplish the goal of getting their message across quickly and can be good “evergreen” banners to keep on hand. Experiment with color and backgrounds for added punch.

American Express. Ok, this clearly isn’t technology but it IS a great example of changing your banner to reflect a moment in time. “Don’t leave home without it” needs an update (at least temporarily) during a pandemic and American Express nailed it. Even with minimalist design, this banner grabs my attention and the font change in the tag line makes the most important point stand out.

Samsung. Also used their cover image to share their values and address current events.

Microsoft and NetSuite. Two great examples of a LinkedIn Cover Image to promote an event or other key campaign or initiative. Both also go for a VERY simple banner with pops of strong colors on a black background. That’s what I like about them. However, there are a couple of things I don’t like. Neither gives me a short URL to go learn about the event! In addition, neither has a pinned post on their page about the event so I need to do some work to find out what this is about.

Cooper Parry. Another example of using your cover image to promote something important. In this case, their selection as one of the Best Companies to Work for in 2020. The bold colors are part of their brand and make it impossible for you to miss.

And here are a few that use a single, strong visual for your cover image.

Mitsubishi. Stands out with a 3D drawing that is instantly recognizable and relatable to their prospects. Jabra does the same. Oracle, while adding a bit of text, uses an original illustration and piques your interest with their hashtag.

 

These are just a handful of my favorite LinkedIn cover image examples, but spend some time browsing LinkedIn for your own inspiration. Save your favorites and bring them to The Partner Marketing Group! We can design creative cover images for you completely tailored to the look and vibe you’re going for.

Be sure to download our Marketing Matters tip sheet, How to Build a LinkedIn Marketing Plan for more ways to stand out on LinkedIn.