“I’m struggling to understand CMOs,” shared a co-founder of a martech company, adding, “I mean, how is LinkedIn followership a top priority?” He then shared a screen grab with a CMO’s boast about follower growth. Fortunately, this was a text thread, so I could pause and think about this from multiple angles...

The Problem With Follower Obsession

At first glance, follower growth appears to be a classic CMO vanity metric.

Like site traffic and leads, followers of the company’s LinkedIn page are a far cry from SQOs and revenue. Given the limited organic reach that LinkedIn provides for brand posts, it’s unclear whether a larger follower count equals greater reach. Depending on the mix of new followers, it’s quite possible that engagement rates (and reach) will actually drop over time.

So, where is the business value in LinkedIn follower growth of company accounts?

Honestly, I'm not sure. It’s definitely not the same as an increase in newsletter subscribers, since typically open rates remain consistent, assuming you’re attracting the right target. More subscribers, more reach.

And reach does have business value. The 2025 Edelman-LinkedIn B2B Thought Leadership Impact Report highlights the hidden buyer phenomenon and the need to reach a much broader audience to persuade the whole buying committee.

When LinkedIn Growth Actually Means Something

Can’t you find one positive in growing LinkedIn followers?

Yes! Assuming this growth is not driven by ads, it is a clear indication that the company’s LinkedIn posts are resonating with its target. In other words, that company’s content is above average and getting noticed. And that doesn’t suck.

Would you recommend that other CMOs put energy here?

Absolutely not. There’s one important statistic that every business should acknowledge. LinkedIn posts from individuals garner 5 times the organic engagement of corporate posts. 5X. To increase your company's exposure on LinkedIn, help your executives to post thoughtfully multiple times a week. This will drive a dramatic increase in reach.

But seriously, does anyone care about individual content anymore? Isn’t everyone just watching TikTok videos?

First, short videos rock, and viewership is skyrocketing across platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and LinkedIn. So, help your execs create short vertical videos. However, and more importantly, high-quality thought leadership remains crucial. According to the LinkedIn/Edelman study, 95% of hidden buyers say that high-quality thought leadership makes them more receptive to sales and marketing outreach.”

So, Do Followers Matter After All?

Given this last statement, our boasting CMO may be gaining more corporate followers due to the consistent “high-quality thought leadership” they are producing. In which case, there may indeed be significant business value hidden in this otherwise seemingly insignificant metric. Yes, I just waffled.

Having come full circle, I told the CEO, “Yup, you may not always understand CMOs, but God bless you for trying!”

Written by Drew Neisser