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LinkedIn has deployed artificial intelligence to offer career advice and introduced games to its platform in an effort to engage users more frequently and drive growth in the competitive social media industry.
The professional social network recently introduced an AI feature that creates daily puzzles and advice articles for employees.
The move is part of a broader overhaul of the Microsoft-owned platform, which is known for its narrow focus as a professional development tool and whose members typically log in less frequently than users of entertainment-focused networks such as Facebook and TikTok.
Slowing revenue growth has sounded warning bells about LinkedIn's traditional business model, with analysts highlighting the need to expand the platform, keep users on the site and build revenue streams beyond subscriptions.
“It's about getting into a daily habit,” editor-in-chief Daniel Roth told the Financial Times. “When you join LinkedIn, it's time to share knowledge, to gain knowledge, to get information, to get content.”
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LinkedIn said it saw “record engagement” in June, with 1.5 million content interactions per minute, but did not disclose site traffic or active user figures.
While visits to the platform, which hit 1.8 billion last month, have risen in recent years, growth has stalled since the beginning of 2024. Year-over-year growth in site visits slowed to 5% in June, less than half the average for 2021 and 2022, according to data from analytics firm SimilarWeb.
“For continued growth, platforms may need to become more 'sticky,'” said Kelsey Tickeling, a media analyst at Forrester. “Being simply a place for jobs and applications may not be enough to retain consumers' attention and time.”
The latest push into engagement comes as LinkedIn seeks to grow its advertising business amid tighter marketing budgets. LinkedIn has already been driving cost-cutting, with two rounds of job cuts last year affecting more than 5% of its roughly 20,000 employees.
Daily Games, which launched in May, aims to engage users by tracking their “streaks” of puzzle completion and showing who in their connections has played. Users can share their scores and view leaderboards comparing different industries, companies and universities.
Ross said the game is meant to be a conversation starter and is designed to be quick because LinkedIn is a professional site. “You shouldn't spend a lot of time on this stuff,” he said.
Last year, the platform introduced an AI feature that generates advice questions, invites relevant experts to comment or contribute, and compiles them into “collaborative articles.”
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As part of an effort to increase user engagement, LinkedIn has begun mimicking the algorithm-driven feeds of platforms like LinkedIn, TikTok and Instagram, where users see content from people they follow, as well as posts and videos from creators that the algorithm predicts they will interact with.
Some analysts warned that LinkedIn risked alienating existing users if its efforts to boost engagement didn't live up to the platform's reputation for expertise and trust.
“Practical advice and tools are the best way to grow usage – getting back to its core mission of why people use LinkedIn, rather than competing in different areas where it doesn't need to compete,” said Rebecca McGrath, technology analyst at Mintel.
