8 LinkedIn Updates That Will Make You Unstoppable Online
The formula for LinkedIn success is right in front of you.
Pay attention to LinkedIn.
The platform that once existed as a “professional network” for resumes, recruiters, and job applications has undergone a massive transformation.
People share status updates on their life. They use humor and satire in their posts. They offer advice on weight loss, entrepreneurship, and recent wins or losses.
Videos, live streams, and virtual events have begun to mirror more casual social media outlets like Facebook with stories on the way in the near future.
Now, LinkedIn is much more of a content lifestyle platform, bringing your career into focus alongside your personal life. It’s the perfect opportunity to build your community and establish a presence that can grow across multiple platforms.
Wondering where to start? Here are nine small but effective ideas to build an audience on Linkedin and position yourself as a leading voice in your industry.
Methodically Build 500+ Connections
I don’t have five hundred friends.
I couldn’t name five hundred people.
But I have over five hundred LinkedIn connections and for the sake of this post, that’s all we care about.
While you might be thinking that having this many connections is a meaningless goal, there are actually some strategic perks of being in the five hundred club. For starters, it acts as an extra layer of credibility. When someone searches you, you are more likely to have 1st, 2nd, or 3rd connections with them. Plus, more 1st connections mean more people receiving notifications from your articles, posts, and career updates.
At the very least, having five hundred connections gives the illusion that you are well connected.
Now, I don’t recommend adding every person you see. I took several years to build a network of professionals in my industry who were leading important conversations, making interesting moves in their careers, and working in positions I hoped to one day achieve.
Quality beats quantity. But Linkedin success depends on how quality intersects quantity.
Write an “About” Section That Generates Interest
How do you sum up your entire career in 300 hundred words?
My advice: you don’t.
Instead, cut the buzzwords and tell a story. One that will make someone want to learn more. Don’t tell them what you are or what you do. Show them through your personality.
Here’s an example of the first half of my LinkedIn bio:
Let me tell you a quick story.
Someone much wiser than myself once said, “Life is growth. You grow or you die.”
When I graduated from DePaul University in 2017, my life was comfortable. I had a degree, a solid job, and a path to corporate stability. Guess what? I wasn’t happy. There was little room for growth.
It was too comfortable — predictable even. I needed some excitement. To be uncomfortable. Something that would let my own unique voice shine through.
So I started writing. A lot.
Right away, readers know it doesn’t follow the traditional format. And hopefully, they will want to learn more about what happened. Plus, I am playing on the thoughts and emotions of dreamers stuck in jobs they don’t enjoy.
What would happen if I took a risk?
Or leapt into something different? What else is out there that I could be doing?
LinkedIn doesn’t have to be a stiff platform reserved for “strategic thinkers” and “highly motivated” workers.
Use descriptive narration that shows how you work and what you have done without simply stating it. Then, use keyword-rich skills as the finishing touch to improve your search rank.
Make Your Headline Multi-Dimensional
The most visible component of your Linkedin profile.
Think of a few quick-hitting words that describe what you do personally and professionally to captivate your readers. This is something I experiment with a lot. It really is an acquired taste and depends on how bold you want to be with your words.
Right now, mine says, “Writer. Creative. Marketer. Human.” I have also had “Content Strategist x Contributing Writer” on there recently but that felt a little dry.
I think that it’s best to have some fun with your headline rather than leaving it as your job. LinkedIn is ultimately about having conversations with people who you can help and who can help you.
Ignite their desire to start communicating by standing out with a multi-dimensional headline.
Produce Native Articles and/or Videos
So many people call themselves “thought leaders” without ever producing a thought leadership piece in their life. While most people turn to their personal blog or a platform like Medium, LinkedIn actually offers a solid platform to establish your voice.
You basically have three options on LinkedIn if you want to be successful:
- Engage with other people’s content (more on that below)
- Create valuable content through video
- Create valuable content though articles
According to Hootsuite, The LinkedIn algorithm has evolved in recent years to favor personal connections, interest relevance, and engagement probability. When crafting an article, think about those signals to increase the likelihood of showing up in members’ feeds.
To try and beat the algorithm, be personal., relevant, and niche-focused (at least in the beginning). For example, I wrote this article a year after graduating from college and it performed really well, even receiving acknowledgment from a LinkedIn marketing person.
It worked so well because I knew all of my peers were reflecting on their college experience as I had been and were more likely to engage. Plus, publishing LinkedIn articles was not something a lot of early 20-somethings were doing, at least in my circle, so posting something fairly personal would pique their interest.
Just be authentic and relatable. That’s what your connections really want.
Comment on Trending Posts
This is a tactic that works on every platform. Whether you're reading a Medium article that is about to explode or see a Tweet thread that is gaining attention, leaving a thoughtful comment can bring you way more traffic than producing your own content.
The same is true on LinkedIn.
Leaving a long, insightful response or asking an open-ended question on a trending LinkedIn article will grab the author's attention and those engaging with his/her original post.
You can easily search for topics like “marketing” or “content strategy” in the search bar and then filter out the industry you want to look into.
Respond to Comments on Your Own Posts
Besides just being good etiquette, responding to comments on your posts proves that you are actively engaged and care about the content you produce.
Strategically, LinkedIn wants you to stay on their platform for as long as possible. If LinkedIn recognizes that a post is starting to gain traction and people are actively having conversations in the comments, they are more likely to promote it.
If you stop responding, the conversation dies. Not only does it make you seem less personable, but it will prevent people from re-engaging with your content in the future.
Take Advantage of the “Featured Links” Section
It always surprises me when top writers and designers don’t take advantage of Linkedin’s featured links section.
Working like a pinned Tweet, features allow you to display your best work or an important call to action. When trying to stand out online, every little detail counts. A single article feature can be the difference between someone getting drawn to your website and entering your email subscription workflow, or clicking off your profile and forgetting you existed.
I like to rotate this section between recent case studies, blogs, Medium articles, and personal website announcements so people can always discover something fresh.
Never Spam People
If you send me a sales pitch in the opening line of a LinkedIn message, I will remove you.
If you send me a link without even introducing yourself or providing some background, I will remove you.
Nobody wants to be spammed on social media yet so many people still do it. If you want me to sign up for your newsletter, ask me some meaningful questions first. Comment on my posts or send me links to relatable topics. Once that connection gets established, then you can send me a pitch.
LinkedIn is still a great place to network.
But you have to be patient and respectful of people’s notifications. The proper way to do it is by giving each other and your respective community value first and a “sales” pitch second.
Final Thoughts
Every person who owns a social media account is a brand.
If you’re on LinkedIn, think about what you would want to see from others. Is it a carbon copy of every buzzword heavy “leader” in your industry, or an insightful, active, personable, and interesting connection who leads through their action.
This understanding is the foundation of a LinkedIn profile that grabs attention. Hopefully, the tips above will help you build your image online through LinkedIn as it continues evolving into so much more than a job-search platform.