Here Are CMOs’ Hottest Topics on LinkedIn So Far in 2018

In this edition of the LinkedIn Content Insights Quarterly, which covers the first quarter of 2018, we explore two areas of focus: content that caught the eye of chief marketing officers on LinkedIn, and the top content about the General Data Protection Regulation. GDPR is a hot, yet confusing, topic, so we identified the top articles to give you the lowdown and help get you up to speed. As always, we have also provided the top topics and content engaging all of LinkedIn’s more than 560 million members last quarter. The top topic for CMOs is “CMOs.” This is a function where understanding people is key, so it’s not too surprising that CMOs like to read about what their peers are thinking and doing. Some of the other topics CMOs were interested in included specific strategies, like customer acquisition and marketing automation, as well as broader concepts, like business-to-business marketing and brand awareness. Lessons for marketers These topics provide a window on what’s important to marketers. It’s fascinating that B2B marketing—a discipline that is growing ever more complex in the digital age—is one of the top two topics. It’s also interesting that “customer acquisition” ranks much higher than “brand awareness,” which implies that CMOs are thinking more about return on investment than vanity metrics. On that note, it was surprising to see that “customer marketing” didn’t make the top 10. Top 10 topics engaging CMOs: CMOs B2B marketing Customer acquisition Mobile marketing Marketing automation Online advertising Marketing strategy Email marketing Market planning Brand awareness Top articles for CMOs Many would consider people in marketing to be a creative crowd, so it’s not surprising to see CMOs engaging with articles about innovative companies and successful startups. They were also interested in articles about their peers and their respective journeys to success. In our research, we saw an article that one wouldn’t expect the average CMO to engage with. High engagement by CMOs on Qualities of a Brilliant Salesperson Who Actually Closes Deals may reflect a desire by the CMO to better understand their sales partners, especially the most effective ones. What’s clear from the articles CMOs are engaging with on LinkedIn is that the stereotype of CMOs being preoccupied with creativity and not with business outcomes is outdated, if it was ever true at all. These articles demonstrate that this audience is interested in all parts of a business, including business plans, startups, innovation and closing deals. Top 10 articles engaging CMOs: Google SSA Appoints Mzamo Masito as its New Chief Marketing Officer As Airbnb’s First COO, Here’s My Plan Uber Has a New Chief Brand Officer—and She’s Incredible What’s Next It Took Apple Executive Angela Ahrendts One Sentence to Drop the Best Career Advice You’ll Hear Today The Newest $1 Billion Startup Is Led by One of Tech’s Youngest Female CEOs Qualities of a Brilliant Salesperson Who Actually Closes Deals No—I Won’t Write a Marketing Plan as ‘Part of the Interview Process’ The 2018 World’s Most Innovative Companies | Fast Company A Walmart Executive Who Sold His First Startup for $6 Million, Second Startup for $550 Million and Third Startup for $3-Plus Billion Reveals How to Become Wildly Successful Topic of the quarter: GDPR As I’ve briefly mentioned, GDPR is a hot topic for any global company working with customer data. It’s also confusing, with many struggling to understand how they can become compliant and the impact it will have on them. To help, below are the top articles around GDPR on LinkedIn that our members engaged with last quarter, as companies and employees across industries get up to speed. The top stories are a mixture of advice on compliance, learning from large enterprises as they get ready and the potential impact. GDPR is poised to become a transformative event not just in Europe, but around the globe. Many are making the case that GDPR is not just a law to comply with, but a rare and potentially game-changing opportunity for marketers to adopt a privacy-first approach in how they communicate with customers and prospects. Check out the hottest articles on this subject below. Top five articles on GDPR: Three Ways Technology Can Help Businesses Become GDPR-Compliant All AWS Services GDPR Ready—Amazon Web Services Deloitte GDPR Benchmarking Survey: The Time Is Now How GDPR Is an Opportunity to Create Business Value This Is How GDPR Will Change Cybersecurity Jennifer Brett leads Americas insights for LinkedIn Marketing Solutions.