By Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter
In today’s competitive job market, young professionals need to build a personal brand and establish their influence. One platform that offers great opportunities for personal growth and professional success is LinkedIn. In this blog, we will discuss why building a personal brand on LinkedIn is beneficial, how the LinkedIn algorithm works, tips for profile optimization, and strategies for creating a successful content strategy.
Why Build a Personal Brand on LinkedIn?
There are several reasons why building a personal brand on LinkedIn is a good idea. First, LinkedIn is a popular platform for employee recruiting. Potential candidates often look up a firm on LinkedIn to learn more about its culture and values. By regularly posting content on LinkedIn, you can showcase your firm’s positive attributes and attract top talent.
Second, LinkedIn is an effective tool for corporate communication. Unlike internal channels, such as a corporate intranet, LinkedIn allows leaders to reach a wider audience within their organization. By posting on LinkedIn, leaders can disseminate information, share updates, and engage with their employees more effectively.
Lastly, LinkedIn provides opportunities for lead generation. With the right content strategy, individuals can attract new customers and grow their business. LinkedIn offers a unique platform for networking and establishing valuable connections that can lead to business opportunities.
Even if you’re a young professional without a leadership position, LinkedIn can still be a valuable platform to build your personal brand and influence. Being a creator on LinkedIn opens up opportunities for personal growth, career advancement, and financial success.
Maximizing Reach on LinkedIn
LinkedIn offers significant reach, even for small accounts. Unlike other platforms like Facebook, where the organic reach is limited, a post on LinkedIn can reach a larger audience even without boosting it with ads. For example, if you have a thousand followers on LinkedIn, you can expect your posts to be seen by approximately 2,000 people. This presents a great opportunity to increase your visibility and establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry.
One way to substantiate the reach on LinkedIn is by looking at data. Many LinkedIn users have experienced significant views on their posts compared to the number of followers they have. For example, a post with 18,000 followers received 30,000 views, and some posts even reached 188,000 views, which is ten times the number of followers. This demonstrates the potential reach and the opportunities that exist on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn also prioritizes personal profiles over company pages when it comes to reach. Personal profiles are more likely to be seen by a wider audience, including people who have similar interests to your followers. Therefore, it’s important to focus on building your personal profile rather than relying solely on a company page.
Furthermore, LinkedIn is actively pushing its development into an influencer and creator platform. They have introduced initiatives like the Top Voices Award to highlight and encourage creators on the platform. By starting now, you have the opportunity to be an early adopter and take advantage of the significant opportunities LinkedIn offers.
Understanding the LinkedIn Algorithm
The LinkedIn algorithm plays a crucial role in determining the reach and visibility of your posts. Understanding how the algorithm works can help you optimize your content and increase your chances of going viral.
The algorithm works in a similar way to other social media platforms. When you post something on LinkedIn, the algorithm initially shows the post to a small fraction of your audience. It then observes how these initial viewers engage with the post. If the post receives positive engagement, such as likes, comments, and shares, the algorithm will continue to show the post to an extended audience.
The algorithm evaluates various signals to determine the quality and relevance of a post. Positive signals include time spent on the post, sharing the post, commenting on the post, sending the post to others, and gaining new followers. Negative signals include hiding the post, unfollowing the creator, muting the post, and reporting the post.
While the exact workings of the algorithm are not publicly disclosed, these assumptions are based on common observations and tests conducted by LinkedIn users. It’s important to note that the algorithm is constantly changing, so it’s essential to run your own experiments and adapt your content strategy accordingly.
Optimizing your LinkedIn Profile
A well-optimized LinkedIn profile can help you establish credibility and attract the right audience. Here are some tips for optimizing your profile:
- Use a background picture to make your profile visually appealing and convey your personal brand.
- Create a concise and punchy tagline that summarizes your background and expertise.
- Make use of hashtags in your profile to indicate the niches and topics you focus on.
- Utilize the featured section to showcase your best and most relevant content.
- Turn on the creator mode on your profile to access additional features and change the call-to-action button to “Follow” instead of “Connect.”
Creating a Successful Content Strategy
A well-executed content strategy is key to building your personal brand and increasing your influence on LinkedIn. Here are some tips and tactics to help you create engaging and impactful content:
Choose a Niche: Define a specific topic or niche that you want to be associated with. This will help you attract a targeted audience and establish yourself as an authority in that area.
Understand the Anatomy of a Successful Post: Structure your posts with a hook, body, and a call-to-action. The hook should spark interest and encourage readers to click “see more” to read the full post. The body should focus on delivering value and insights, while the call-to-action should prompt readers to engage with your post.
Use Visuals: Posts with visual attachments, such as images or videos, tend to perform better on LinkedIn. Including a picture, even if it’s unrelated to the content, can significantly improve the reach of your post.
Engage Your Audience: Encourage engagement by asking questions, conducting surveys, or sharing thought-provoking statements. Surveys can be particularly effective in driving engagement and increasing views on your posts.
Avoid Self-Promotion: Focus on delivering value to your audience rather than constantly promoting yourself or your business. People are more likely to engage with content that provides insights, tips, or educational information.
Minimize External Links: LinkedIn penalizes posts with external links, so avoid including them in your original post. If you need to share a link, do it in the comments section instead.
Experiment and Adapt: LinkedIn’s algorithm and user preferences are constantly evolving, so it’s important to experiment with different types of content and strategies. Monitor the performance of your posts and adjust your content strategy accordingly.
Conclusion
Building a personal brand and influence on LinkedIn is a valuable investment in your professional growth and success. By understanding the LinkedIn algorithm, optimizing your profile, and creating a thoughtful content strategy, you can maximize your reach and establish yourself as a leader in your industry. Remember to focus on delivering value to your audience and engaging with them authentically. With dedication and consistency, you can unlock the full potential of LinkedIn and achieve your career goals.
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ABOUT JEFF ALTMAN, THE BIG GAME HUNTER
People hire Jeff Altman, The Big Game Hunter to provide No BS Career Advice globally because he makes many things in peoples’ careers easier. Those things can involve job search, hiring more effectively, managing and leading better, career transition, as well as advice about resolving workplace issues.
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