Over the last 3 years, my content has been seen 250M+ times on LinkedIn. That content has helped me grow from 0 to 250k+ followers and generate over $2.5M in income with zero ads.
This guide is an attempt to break down much of what I know about LinkedIn. It will be continuously updated as I learn/remember more. I hope it’s helpful.
Focus
First of all, if you want to be great at LinkedIn, stick to LinkedIn to start. It’s really difficult to be great at 3 platforms at once. Master one before moving to another.
Think like a marketer
Think like a marketer when you’re building out your profile page. Your profile is essentially a sales page or landing page.
Here is the journey someone goes on when they decide to follow you:
1) reads your content online
2) clicks on your profile
3) reads your banner image
4) reads your tagline
5) reads your about section
6) checks out your featured section
7) follows or doesn’t.
Optimize for these things above ????????
Find a niche
Pick a niche (fitness). Then pick a sub-niche (CrossFit). Then pick a micro-niche (CrossFit for marathoners).
Start there, and get good results by producing content every day. Expand later.
Stay consistent by choosing the right medium
Choose a medium you love. You’re significantly more likely to produce content on a regular basis if you actually like what you do.
Like to write? Write.
Like to record video? Record video.
Ignore all of the other noise telling you that you must do 5 different things. It’s all meaningless if you don’t stay consistent.
Get on base every day
Produce daily. Even if it’s something small, put your thoughts out there into the world each day. It’s the attention economy and self-promotion wins. I call this, playing “Moneyball”.
Get your mind right
Worried about low engagement? Who cares. Nobody remembers the sh*tty singles, they remember the hit songs.
You can’t make a hit without a lot of tries. Thicken up your skin and get creating. I produce every weekday. It works. (see below)
It’s not about you
Nobody cares about you, they only care about how you can help them. Keep the reader in mind when you write content.
Remember to ask yourself three questions before you push out content:
- Does this teach the reader something specific?
- Does this entertain the reader and remain relevant to my niche?
- Does this cause the reader to think about something in a new way?
If the answer to all 3 is “no”, then create something else.
Focus on what matters
Like engagement? Share a sad story or some news article that’s a topical tear-jerker. You’ll get a lot of “likes” and “comments” so you can get your dopamine fix.
Like success? Share your actual opinions. Produce original content underneath your own name.
Everything else is worthless.
Understand copywriting
If you really want people to read what you write, learn to write great copy. Don’t know where to start? Try Google or YouTube or a copywriting book.
The people who write the best copy online aren’t just winging it. They’ve read and practiced. Spend some time.
Break people’s scroll pattern
Having great information or advice to share means nothing if you can’t get the reader to stop scrolling and actually read it.
So, how do you do that? Learn to write good copy (see above) and focus on what is “above the fold” i.e. what the reader sees before “see more”.
Ask people to participate
Want even more engagement? Ask people to engage.
A CTA (call-to-action) or CTC (call-to-conversation) will help boost your content.
Systematize your writing
If you want to create content quickly and easily, you need a process.
I’ve been writing every weekday for 1,250+ weekdays, and I struggle just like any other person.
The difference? I have a system. It’s called, “The Content Matrix”.
I use the following:
- A mantra (what do I believe?)
- Pillars (what supports my mantra?)
- Core concepts (what strong opinions do I have about those pillars?).
By having many strong opinions, I have many topics to write about.
I match those up with styles and voilà – content.
Note: If you’re struggling to create content that resonates, build an audience, network with other creators, and find your tribe, I highly recommend my course, The LinkedIn Operating System. Right now, in 2022, LinkedIn is the easiest place to build a massive audience and business online.
Build relationships like a person
Remember that early on, it’s all about building relationships. If people DM you asking about your content, write back.
If you get comments on things you write, take time to respond.
I spend 45 minutes each morning from 7:15a CT until 8:00a CT responding to nearly 75% of comments I get on my content.
Interact with me
Write me a comment and I’ll interact with you in that time window.
You’ll get more engagement and so will I. Win/win.
If you have the LinkedIn notifications, (it’s still in beta, so not all users have the feature yet) then turn them on for me.
You can turn them on easily by clicking the bell 1x – it should say “You’ll now receive notifications for all new posts from Justin.” See below.
Connect with other thought leaders
Once you begin to get some decent engagement, reach out to relevant people and form real, actual relationships with them.
Don’t be transactional.
Instead, get to know them like you might a friend in real life. Jump on a call. Help them out. This works on any platform.
Collaborate
If you vibe with someone, start to co-create.
Form a small community of creators all aimed at the same niche, but approaching it from different angles.
Create videos, interviews, webinars, guest blogs, live events, etc. Get creative. See what works, see what doesn’t.
Don’t ask for permission to help someone. Just do it.
If you want to start interacting more meaningfully with large accounts, take some of their work and turn it into different formats or reshare it with some commentary.
I had a few folks turn my writings into drawings or carousel posts on LinkedIn.
It got my attention, my engagement, and in turn, helped them get more eyeballs on their content.
Go deeper to share more
As you get more and more experience in your particular niche, go deeper.
Write longer-form articles that teach your audience or provide behind-the-scenes looks at how you’re doing what you are doing.
Build-in public. Share it openly. Ask people for their feedback.
Create more based on what they like and want from you.
Move people to your email
Once you have some good engagement, remember to stop renting and start owning.
Make simple, irresistible offers and get people onto your email list.
Remember…If LinkedIn changes its algorithm? Goodbye engagement.
Well, that’s all for now. I hope you found it helpful.