The differences between images and thumbnails in LinkedIn posts are often overlooked in social media management. Last week, someone asked me how to edit a published LinkedIn post and turn a clickable image into a non-clickable, individual one. It was on this day that I realized LinkedIn allows customized thumbnails (clickable images with embedded links).
Unfortunately, after a post goes live on LinkedIn, it’s not possible to edit or remove either the thumbnail or the individual image. The only solution is to delete the post and publish a new one. The only editable element in published posts is the text copy.
Before elaborating further on the details, I’d also like to remind everyone that customized thumbnails are only available on LinkedIn company pages.
Non-clickable images as individual assets
How to insert: click on the image icon at the bottom of the post editor. If it’s not clickable, just make sure you’ve removed any thumbnails (clickable images) in the draft
Features:
- Not clickable
- You can click and check out the full image
- Sizing is diverse, between 1:1 and 1.91:1
Good when:
- Sharing personal content
- There’s no need to direct traffic (for example, the link in your post belongs to someone else’s site that you don’t care that much)
- The image contains many details, like a quote or anything that’s worth checking out a larger/clearer version
Best practice: make sure every detail looks right, because people can check out the full-size image. Clean up your design before saving it as a png/jpg, and double-check the image before posting.
Image as a thumbnails
How to insert: copy and paste the link to the editor, wait for LinkedIn to generate a thumbnail using the page’s own metadata, and then click on the pencil icon to edit the thumbnail, including its title and image
Features:
- Clickable, therefore more likely to trigger clicks
- If you click on it, you go to the linked page right away
- Sizing: 1200x627px, or the image will be resized and lose details (Learn more)
- Be careful with sizing! Some images can look a lot worse when they’re automatically resized by LinkedIn. Details can become blurry, and even get cropped out if they’re around the edge.
Good when:
- The image and the link are highly related (use a branded image and link it to that brand’s website)
- The original header image in the linked page looks less appealing, or the meta tag cannot be processed by LinkedIn
- In my job we often handle “poorly made” links with customized thumbnails, so that the posts look less awkward
- You want to direct traffic to that website, so make the link more obvious with a thumbnail
Best practice: use the right sizing; be simple and straightforward; if any text is included, make it short.
Do not use a thumbnail if the image and the link are not related. As thumbnails are essentially big hyperlinks, people can easily find out that you’ve replaced the visual element in the webpage with something irrelevant. That’s as annoying as clickbait ads.
Examples
I included three examples to further explain the recommendations and reminders:
Example 1
A startup has posted a blog article on its website, and wants to promote it on its LinkedIn page. The article doesn’t have a cover image, but the social team has created one for the post.
What to do: add the image to the link, so it becomes a thumbnail. As both the image and the linked article are from the same company, this thumbnail won’t confuse the viewers, and can help increase clicks.
Example 2
Paul saw a great article about his industry, software development. He wants to share it on his LinkedIn page, but he doesn’t like its header image. He prefers a photo of him coding with his cat.
What to do: add the image directly to the post, and then add the link to the copy. In this way, Paul is sharing his personal content with a link that offers additional reading. This post won’t confuse readers, as the photo and the link are clearly separated.
Example 3
Lisa, a CEO, wants to hijack a trending news event and get more social exposure for her company and herself. She has found a good article and wants to include it in her post with her own insights. She’s not included in the article, though.
Her social team has created a social image with Lisa’s quote and her headshot, together with the company logo and some branding elements.
What to do:
As Lisa’s not sharing an article that quotes or features her, the link should be separated from the image (no thumbnail in this case). Also, what matters is her professional insights, not getting clicks for the external web page. Last but not least, as the image includes a quote, sharing it as an individual asset allows people to check out the details.
Given Lisa’s corporate importance, let’s discuss a bit more:
Option 1:
The company page posts the content, and then Lisa shares it to her profile, with her additional thoughts in the copy.
This is good especially when Lisa has more followers than the company – this is the case for many new companies. It also looks more natural when a company posts branded content (the professionally made image, for example) and the individual posts something simpler.
Option 2:
Lisa posts the content, and then the company shares it to its page.
This is more like an employee highlight post and can add more human tints to the company page. However, note that if Lisa later decides to delete the post, it will also disappear from the company page.
There’s no right or wrong. Both options work. In real life, I go with option 1 more often than option 2.
In my opinion, if the company is small and loves to put a focus on its people in its social content, option 2 is better. Think of a family business that makes lavender shampoo. The small, stable and human-heavy nature will make option 2 more reasonable than option 1.
When does option 1 typically work better? Well, think of a business under strict regulation, like a financial service firm. In this case, having the content coming directly from the company page facilitates compliance reviews, and the post will look more buttoned-up under a business name.
Thank you for reading! Please feel free to leave a comment to share your thoughts. Illustrations in this post come from https://undraw.co/.
Jessspeng 