How to use LinkedIn as a company directory

LinkedIn has evolved beyond a professional networking platform. It's also a great resource for business intelligence. Companies of all sizes and industries maintain profiles on LinkedIn, providing a ton of information that can be leveraged for various purposes such as market research, lead generation, and competitive analysis. In this blog post, we'll walk you through how to use LinkedIn as a company directory, show you the types of filters available, the kind of data you can find on companies – and how to build a list of companies using tools such as folk X to save you time and capture all the information you need.

Why there are company data on LinkedIn that can be leveraged

LinkedIn is a popular people directory for both business development and talent. Yet, it's often overlooked as a company directory even though it hosts a massive amount of company data. With millions of businesses recognizing the platform's value for recruiting and networking, companies actively update their profiles to engage with LinkedIn's B2B and B2C audience. This results in a treasure trove of information readily accessible to LinkedIn users.

What data can we find on companies?

When you visit a company's LinkedIn profile, you can access various types of information, such as their latest funding round and the following details.

• Company overview: Basic information like the company name, logo, tagline, and industry.
• About Section: A detailed description of the company's mission, values, products, and services.
• Employee count: The number of employees working at the company.
• Location: Headquarters address and other office locations.
• Company Posts: Updates, articles, and posts shared by the company.
• Job Openings: Current job vacancies and recruitment details.
• LinkedIn Insights: Data on employee distribution, growth trends, and other statistical insights.

What types of filters can be applied?

Want to use LinkedIn as a company directory? LinkedIn's search functionality is versatile, allowing you to filter results to find the exact type of companies you're interested in. Below are some of the key filters you can apply.

1. Industry

Narrow down your search to companies within specific industries like technology, healthcare, finance, etc.

2. Company size

Filter by the number of employees, ranging from small businesses to large enterprises.

3. Geography

Search for companies based on location, whether it's a specific city, country, or region.

4. Job listings

Identify different types of companies based on whether or not they have live job listings on LinkedIn. This can be accessed via 'All filters' on the search bar.

5. Connections

Filter by companies where you have first-degree connections. This can be accessed via 'All filters' on the search bar.

How to build a list of companies on LinkedIn using folk X

Fancy skipping the manual process of copying and pasting information into your database? With folk X, you can create a company directory in folk without leaving your browser. folk X is a powerful tool that can help you extract and organize company data from LinkedIn efficiently. Here’s how you can use folk X to build lists of companies.

1. Create a folk account: folk X comes free with all folk accounts. Creating a folk account is easy. You can easily set up using folk's free 14 day trial.
2. Download folk X via the Chrome web store.
3. Go to LinkedIn and choose the company page whose information you want to capture.
4. From the company page, click the folk icon to open folk X.
5. A tab will appear on the right-hand side of your screen. You will be able to capture the company and add it to existing groups, or create a new group without leaving the page.
6. Choose the information you want to capture. In this tab you will be able to see what group you added the company to, as well as the URL folk X has captured, the company address, and any other relevant information.

Conclusion

LinkedIn is an invaluable resource for anyone looking to gather detailed information about companies across various industries and regions. By using LinkedIn's search filters and leveraging tools like folk X, you can efficiently build comprehensive lists of companies tailored to your specific needs. Whether you’re a marketer, researcher, or business development professional, mastering the use of LinkedIn as a company directory can significantly enhance your efforts and outcomes. Try folk today.

More resources

• folk X Chrome extension

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