Getting Started w/ Posting On LinkedIn

Credit Due To: Josh Braun, Calvin Patterson IV, Jake Dunlap, Chantelle Marcelle

LinkedIn is the world’s largest networking event. And it’s open 24/7, 365 and whether you’re in sales, marketing, product, or ops, your customers are there.

Just because they’re not actively posting content does not mean they are not ‘lurking’. Out of the 6B people who signed into LinkedIn last year, only 1% of them create content on a consistent basis. These content creators aren’t always ‘someone special’ either or ‘geniuses’ who are at the top of their game. They are just humans who have a story to tell, like all of us do, and decided to share it. You can do the same with many positive results.

There are a few key advantages you’ll achieve once you start posting on LinkedIn consistently:

1. Your customers will find you. You’ll be top of mind when someone is looking for a product, service, or skill set that you can provide. You’ll also be able to establish the credibility you need to gain trust in the market or overcome an objection (like selling in a competitive market, career pivots, etc.).
2. You’ll grow your reach. The more times people see you, the more opportunities you will have to achieve your goals. It’s a simple law of averages. Be everywhere. Posting, commenting, tagging, etc. are great ways to engage your audience without being that annoying person who’s always emailing them for a meeting. Your reach is currency!
3. You’ll help people. Everyone has a unique story and perspective to share. No matter how senior or junior you are, there’s someone out there who can benefit from learning from you. It feels great to be able to share your insights with others and make a positive impact on their life.

What To Post:

Generally, there are 3 types of posts you can make on LinkedIn (listed in order of difficulty):

1. Educate the market on something you know a lot about
2. Add your perspective on insights that have already been shared by others
3. Share what you’re learning on a daily basis with your network

When To Post:

Everyone will tell you different but the most common advice is post between 8–9am and avoid Friday evenings. Others will tell you to post anytime that’s comfortable for you! We recommend posting at least once per week minimum and about once per day max, unless you already have a big following, then go wild!

Tips:

• The LinkedIn algorithm favors written posts over any other format
• This means videos, photos, articles, and re-shares will generally not get as many views or engagement as written posts
• Contrary to point #1, post videos! You can make more written posts than others but don’t ignore mediums like videos or photos to get your message across. Video is a very effective way to engage an audience, as covered in The 10–30–10 Video Framework.
• DO NOT post articles or re-share others’ posts. You will barely get any views or engagement as LinkedIn will penalize anything that takes a user off of the platform.
• What you can do is post links in the comments, and mention that you did so in your post.
• Pro tip: As more people game the algorithm, LinkedIn has gotten smart and will ding you if you write “See link in the comments” in your post, instead use “See link in the comm*nts” (This hasn’t been confirmed but try it anyway, it looks cool, and might even drive comments asking why you did that!)
• Dwell time. Format your posts to read like… Text… Line Break… Text… Line Break… Text and so on. What this does is increase the amount of time that a reader spends on your post (“dwell time”) which will increase the ‘power’ LinkedIn gives your post to reach more people. Here’s an example of a post written this way.
• Use comments! There are two ways, generally, to use comments strategically on LinkedIn:
• Gaining comments on your posts gives them a boost which LinkedIn recognizes to get your post seen by more people. This is why you’ll see a lot of posts that say things like “Let me know in the comments” or “Disagree? Let me know below!” or “What is your favorite tool for this?”, etc.
• Use comments to engage your network. There are people who only use comments and never post. It’s not ideal, but you don’t always need to post. You also don’t need to send someone a message, email someone, etc. to engage with them. You can simply comment on their posts, comment on a post they liked or commented on, or tag them in a comment to shout them out if you already have a relationship with them. Also, you’re helping their post get a boost from LinkedIn which we covered in point #1, which they will love you for!
• Bonus: Once someone comments on your post or you comment on someone else’s posts, now you are opening up your brand to their audience as well, increasing your reach and relevance!

In conclusion, there are many reasons to be active on LinkedIn, and many reasons not to. But if you’re in the business world and not attending the biggest networking event in the world, then you’re inevitably missing out on opportunities that can change your life, or someone else’s.

What is the #1 tip for getting more active on LinkedIn?

Just do it!

Don’t overthink it.

You do have a story to tell.

You have a unique perspective.

Now go out there and share it with others, and watch your opportunities grow.

I look forward to seeing your content.

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Get in touch or learn more about Haithem at HaithElem.com

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