Write LinkedIn Posts Without Fear or Overthinking
In the past, the idea of having a traditional blog felt overwhelming. You needed a blogger account, a domain name, website hosting, and a commitment to actually writing your blog regularly. I can help you get more consistent with your content creation efforts (with a swift kick), but the purpose of this blog post is to get you out of your head and those shiny thoughts out where people can read them and interact with you — on LinkedIn.
I’ve been blogging for almost fifteen years. Here, on Substack, and on LinkedIn. Each serves a different purpose, and I tailor my stories accordingly.
What if instead of a blog, you could write a microblog? LinkedIn is a fantastic place to do that.
LinkedIn is a hotspot for highlighting your talents and experience while growing your brand.
Posting consistently on LinkedIn is easy. It takes just a little more effort than writing a thoughtful status update. To further explain why you need to start writing there, here are some reasons:
You’ll stay top of mind with your LinkedIn connections when they see your posts
It can open the door for new business opportunities or jobs
You’ll position yourself as an expert in your field
When interviewing for a new role or trying to get new clients, and they see you’re actively writing on LinkedIn, you become the natural choice in their eyes
People can find you more easily on the internet
It’ll add dimension and layers to your otherwise snooze-worthy LinkedIn profile
You might have the same job title as 80,000 other professionals, but only you think the way you do and share your thoughts in your own unique way
Your writing will reach beyond your network and to your network’s network with social sharing
Your connections will feel more connected to you
Writing will make you better at your job
Convinced? Here’s how to start posting consistently on LinkedIn.
Just do it once. Don’t worry about creating a regular schedule yet. Just write once this week, then twice next week. Once you get into a groove, you might aim for three or more times a week.
What to write about. You sit down to write your first post and get writer’s block (which we don’t believe in around here, by the way). Here are some writing prompts to get you thinking:
What are people always asking you about?
What do you want to be known for?
What kind of lessons are you learning from a current project?
Did you attend an event or conference recently? What did you discover? Who did you meet?
What article did you recently read that was missing some deeper analysis?
Have you read a post that you could have written much better or covered differently?
These are all things I consider when working on my LinkedIn content strategy. Chances are, once you start writing, you’re going to have even more ideas come to you. Keep a notebook or separate document and list the topics you might like to explore in the future.
Quickly plan your post. Don’t overthink this.
Consider what you want your reader to FEEL.
What should they DO when they’re done reading (if anything)?
Think about what you want them to KNOW.
Start writing. Cover one topic or one lesson. Write with honesty. Your audience wants you to be clear and authentic, not dazzling or clever. When we’re reading your posts on LinkedIn, we don’t want to have to think hard to figure out what you’re trying to say. Imagine you’re writing an email or DM to one person.
Give it a quick proofread. As a 20+ year communications professional and author, I can tell you that I’m ignoring your typos and grammar and instead looking to learn or connect with your message. This entire posting process should take under 15 minutes.
Skip the professional graphics. People are used to glossing over professional graphics that you might have obsessed over. Simply post a quick photo from your camera roll, or post text-only.
Skip external links. Like every other social media platform, the algorithm wants to keep people there.
Post! You don’t need to publish right away — you can schedule your posts for later. Don’t worry about posting at the perfect time for your audience. Post when your post is ready. Again … stop overthinking this. You want to get posting so you can learn what people are interested in, engage with them, and keep growing.
Engage (!!!) Extra exclamation points here because LinkedIn is a social media tool. Invest 15-30 minutes daily in adding new connections and leaving genuine, useful comments on others’ posts. Then circle back to any new comments on your post and leave a comment on every single one (yes, do this). Then, pop back into LinkedIn later in the day to respond to any new comments.
In the end, don’t worry about likes and comments. The important part is that you did it. Depending on your industry, people may read without engaging because they don’t want others in their network to see their comments. Trust that with every post, you’re getting better and better.
Writing on LinkedIn is similar to blogging or writing on Substack. It’s a long game. So have fun with it, and be consistent for at least three months before revisiting your strategy.
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