This week’s topic was inspired by a post I didn’t even read!
I only caught a glimpse of it in my feed, but the headline or hook must have stuck in my brain and started to evolve into an idea for a podcast episode. It’s not the first time that’s happened—and it definitely won’t be the last.
Chances are, it’s happened to you too, even if you didn’t realise it.
That inspiration came from just one impression out of almost 20,000!
Impressions to irrelevant people don’t matter so long as there are enough relevant ones.
It can be argued that nobody is completely irrelevant anyway… you just don’t know!
Content topic is critical to attract attention of the right audience
So are impressions really a vanity metric?
To hear all my thoughts on this subject plus the following topics, click on the podcast link below.
Also covered;
A profile feature makes a welcome return
Video posting advice from LinkedIn™️...and it's actually quite good!
We often come across people on LinkedIn™️ who look interesting and produce content we find valuable...so we follow or connect and over time we feel as though we get to know them better.
But do we REALLY know them?
interesting People interviews are designed to reveal more about the background, personal lives and characteristics of some of our favourite people on LinkedIn™️.
Lea Turner is known for her openness and authenticity so it was a challenge to get her to reveal something we hadn't heard before...but she is most definitely very interesting!
The only dedicated LinkedIn™️ conference in the UK enters it's second year this week. I won't be able to attend but they have a stellar line up of speakers so I asked John Espirian to come on the podcast to give us a glimpse of what in person and virtual attendees can expect.
That plus;
The challenge of keeping up with AI!
AI video is getting better but it's not fooling me yet
So the worlds largest online business networking platform has decided to invest in offline networking? LinkedIn's new experience centre, in London is a bit more than just about networking but it's an interesting new development.
That plus;
Can you simulate the engagement of a LinkedIn™️ post?
New profile feature
Embedding posts
Do screenshots boost a posts reach?
Are Russian comment bots infiltrating LinkedIn™️?
The LinkedIn™️ DM privacy case has been dropped...but was it baseless?
In this episode of the Informed podcast I argue that thoughtful and considered commenting is the single most effective action that anyone can take on LinkedIn™️ - that's a bold statement but one I really believe to be true.
What would you spend your time doing if you only had one hour on LinkedIn™️ per week?
Is it possible to have impact in that time?
A recent interaction led me to think about this topic. One hour a week is woefully inadequate but it's an interesting challenge...what would be the best things to do in those precious 60 minutes a week?
We often come across people on LinkedIn™️ who look interesting and produce content we find valuable...so we follow or connect and over time we feel as though we get to know them better.
But do we REALLY know them?
interesting People interviews are designed to reveal more about the background, personal lives and characteristics of some of our favourite people on LinkedIn™️
This episode features the wonderful Louise Brogan, A much travelled LinkedIn™️ trainer with an IT background, a passionate feminist and advocate for small businesses.
You can listen to the episode by clicking below.
We talked about the following topics
Growing up in Northern Ireland during the troubles.
Going to a school situated along the 'murder mile'!
Why she left Belfast to study in Scotland
How her travels have taken her around the world three times!
Her early career in IT support including working for a massive corporate and why she eventually joined the NHS.
Starting her own business and being risk averse
The impact of losing her Dad when she had a 4 week old baby
The advice she received which guided her towards social media training
The pivot from broad social media to specialist LinkedIn™️ training & the benefits that has brought
How she became a successful 'YouTuber' (over 2 million views) and why it attracts customers
How she once turned criticism into a successful LinkedIn™️ post
Being a feminist
Her passion for small businesses
Meeting the King! 👑
Being an empath in business
Whats on her happy list
A book recommendation.
Louise is a talker...something we both have in common so I'm impressed that we managed to keep this recording to just over an hour!
I hope you enjoy listening as much as I did chatting with Louise.
This week, I discussed the mystery surrounding the disappearing connections and revealed that this is not the first time it has happened! Also, in this episode...
LinkedIn™️ say that 10 million users have a services page, a 48% increase year on year.
But the vast majority of those profiles aren't really freelancers or even service providers!
In addition, LinkedIn™️ are stating that there has been a 65% increase in service enquiries. My experience tallies with this but the enquiries are almost mostly inappropriate & irrelevant!
Services has so much potential but it's LinkedIn™️'s worst feature...poorly designed and implemented.
You can be great at posting content that engages an audience, you can have a highly impressive profile and you can be amazing at searching for the right contacts
...you can be a LinkedIn™️ superuser!
But none of that matters if you are not primarily focused on building strong, sustainable relationships with the right people.
More of that later, the other topics covered in this episode are;
Have LinkedIn™️ really stopped training their AI with our content?
A few new features and a couple of retirements!
Is LinkedIn one of the worst social media platforms for your privacy?
LinkedIn™️ want you to show personality without being 'personal'
There is lot's of well meant advice out there about how to get your videos featured in the new mobile feed but most people are just making educated guesses.
I've crunched the data and can reveal a detailed analysis of what features are most likely to land your video in the new feed.
More of that later, the other topics covered in this episode are;
Another job scam DM that could easily be prevented.
New: Share a quote from articles
Sneaky LinkedIn have quietly added a new data privacy setting
"I just don't have the time to post on LinkedIn™️. It's not that I undervalue the benefits, it just takes me far too long because I overthink it"
This came from a delegate on a course I delivered recently and it hit me right between the eyes...That's why so many people find it hard to find the time to post content, they overthink it!
Also in this episode;
Feedback on pods and direct messaging.
How demure and mindful is your profile? I found out and got roasted!
More changes coming to video content and Livestreaming...potentially.
What are your objectives and are you achieving them?
This week I received a message which challenged my views on posting content on LinkedIn™️. I disagreed with the points made but that doesn't make them wrong or inappropriate, just different and a good challenge to my thinking.
So I thought I would share my thoughts in this weeks episode.
LinkedIn™️ are finding it hard to control pods so some LinkedIn™️ users have decided to take the law into their own hands and expose people who use pods to falsely inflate the engagement on their content.
But...are these exposures accurate and could some people be caught up in the fallout?
That plus;
'Videos for you' on mobile app
Sharing comments
You really don't need hashtags
'LinkedIn is a mess. Here's how to fix it' The Guardian has it all wrong!
Post of the week
Direct download: 445.mp3
Category:general
-- posted at: 12:00pm UTC
We often come across people on LinkedIn™️ who look interesting and produce content we find valuable...so we follow or connect and over time we feel as though we get to know them better.
But do we REALLY know them?
interesting People interviews are designed to reveal more about the background, personal lives and characteristics of some of our favourite people on LinkedIn™️
This week I chat with one of the nicest and most helpful LinkedIn™️ Experts out there - My friend John Espirian.
Subscribe to my newsletter for full show notes https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/6726487426274992128/
I was hoping that we, the LinkedIn™️ community, would have learnt by now but no, illegal (Linkedin law) automation products are still thriving and new ones seem to appear almost every month.
It's been a long time since I tackled this subject - remember the battle I had with John Nemo in episode 198? John has since changed his views but since those days (2018), the tools have become more sophisticated but still do the same damage to this platform so I thought I would return to this important topic.
I'm back from a wonderful two weeks in Greece...back to a windy and wet UK (summer lasted two days apparently!) So to warm myself up, I got stuck into the following topics in this weeks podcast;
Should a company be posting this?
Congratulations you are in the top ten experts list!
We often come across people on LinkedIn™️ who look interesting and produce content we find valuable...so we follow or connect and over time we feel as though we get to know them better.
But do we REALLY know them?
interesting People interviews are designed to reveal more about the background, personal lives and characteristics of some of our favourite people on LinkedIn™️
This week I chat with my favourite Kiwi, New Zealand based LinkedIn expert Lynnaire Johnston.
Lynnaire has a fascinating career history in radio, publishing and copywriting before finding her passion for LinkedIn™️.
Lynnaire is one of the friendliest, most generous and knowledgable LinkedIn™️ experts out there and I'm sure you will enjoy hearing her describe her background.
It's a common belief that the answer to poor (and getting worse) organic content reach from a company page is employee advocacy. So why are so many organisations getting it horribly wrong?
That plus;
The new video feed and how it impacts the videos we post.
Multiple image posts - new dimensions
Images on external links are shrinking and it really doesn't matter!
An outrageous post of the week
The New Video Feed
I was chatting recently with Lynnaire Johnston about this new feed (she doesn't yet have it) and she made the valuable point that this new style of delivery might necessitate a change in the way a video is produced.
Because the scroll has audio enabled (unlike in the normal feed) it puts more emphasis on the opening few seconds of the video and less emphasis on the words you type to accompany the post - these appear at the bottom of the video in this feed. This doesn't mean that you should worry less about the words because they still play an important role in the normal feed on both mobile and desktop (see image below).
In addition, the new video feed appears to zoom in somewhat which creates an issue with text on the video or even captions if you add them yourself.
How a video is displayed in 3 different feeds
As a reminder, this video feed is only enabled once you tap on some video posst you see on the main mobile feed, at the moment this is only for about 40% of the videos I see in my feed. Once you are in this feed you can the scroll to see more videos and those videos all autoplay with sound.
I suspect that LinkedIn will fix the zooming issue but that will probably take some time so it's worth ensuring your text does not go near the edges of your video for now.
Multiple Image Posts
The way images are displayed in a multi-image post is beginning to change as you can see here in these example of 2 and 3 image posts;
LinkedIn™️ have provided this helpful document which can be downloaded here.
I've had this change for a while but apparently more the majority of users are now seeing this in their feeds.
Images On External Links
LinkedIn™️ have announced that images on posts with external links are shrinking unless you sponsor (advertise) that post, in which case the image stays the same size as it has always been.
Lots of people are up in arms about this!
Why?
External link posts are seen by very few people anyway so not seeing a larger or small image results in the same...it's not seen!
OK I'm being a bit cynical there but honestly guys, have you not learnt yet?....don't post external links, unless you really have to.
Employee Advocacy
Earlier this year I was a panel member on stage at UpLift Live when a question about employee advocacy on LinkedIn was asked. My slightly cynical response was to state that asking employees to Repost or Like a company page post was not employee advocacy in any sense yet that is as far as most organisations go.
I stand by that answer but it did occur to me that it was worth trying to explain what a more productive method would be.
Firstly I am not a fan of the phrase 'employee advocacy'. To my understanding an 'advocate' is someone who promotes someone or something. This leads to a belief that employee advocacy is all about encouraging employees to promote the company that they work for.
And for the most part, that is what happens. Employees either repost company page content or directly promote the organisation that they work for either to other potential employees or customers.
This is highly ineffective.
Below is a classic example. Robert Half have published an article (ironically about employee advocacy) and then asked their employees to post it...so they do!
This is merely a distribution mechanism and, as you can see by the lack of engagement, not a very effective one!
Whilst this might be employee advocacy for some organisations, others 'ask' their employees to post about the amazing work environment or how they are so happy working for them or how impressed they are with the products or customer service etc etc.
It just comes across as forced and hollow...frankly nobody is buying it!
We all know that promotional content does not do well on LinkedIn, it is difficult to attract engagement and so typically achieves poor reach. So why do companies do it? It strikes me as being nothing more than a 'ticking the box' exercise.
"employee advocacy...done!" ✔️
All that said, we know that company page content has extremely limited reach and this reach seems to be getting worse so it does make sense for organisations to use their employees personal accounts for their benefit.
If however the objective is promotion, it simply won't work. The problem is that the objective is wrong, if the objective was greater visibility then employee advocacy could work, if done the right way.
When an employee of an organisation becomes influential on LinkedIn then the organisation will benefit from their greater visibility. To become influential on LinkedIn though, the employee shouldn't be posting about how amazing the company is, that's not great content.
The trick is to identify individuals within an organisation who have the motivation and ability to gain a following and influence on LinkedIn. This does not need to be many employees, just a few with the right mindset and desire.
The second part of this is about what employees are asked to do and many organisations will be deeply uncomfortable with what is the right approach - to encourage employees to develop their own personal brand by producing content that is helpful, interesting, entertaining and focussed on the audience.
This is usually seen as a threat in most organisations and that is the heart of the problem.
In the podcast I also get into the topic of recruitment and how this strategy will impact the sort of people that are recruited.
Tip: Start small by encouraging a few select employees to comment on company page content. Make sure the content is focussed on the audience and not the company and let the employees contribute to it by adding meaningful comments that add value to the piece.
These same employees should also be encouraged to comment of many other posts (not from the company) that are focussed on topics that will be interesting to your target audience.
Let them build their confidence and credibility this way first.
Then give them the tools and skills to start posting great content designed to encourage engagement.
Once they have gained a strong following and influence, they can occasionally post something about their employer or it's products/services but the main objective is to increase visibility and influence.
Ultimately, the power of employee advocacy lies in authenticity. By encouraging employees to share their unique perspectives, you can create a more compelling and genuine narrative for the organization.
Post Of The Week
This a belter from Lara Bywater and mainly because the topic is just....well, unbelievable really!
How on earth could anyone be so stupid as to think that this business card is OK? Maybe they would defend it by saying it's just harmless banter...if you believe that then just read the comment thread!
It's not clever, it's not funny and it shows a complete lack of empathy or understanding of how a woman would receive this.
The post is also well structured with a great hook line.
Well done to Lara for a great post and for having the courage to call out this sort of behaviour.
That's all for this week.
If you are in Odense in Denmark at Linkedsummit this week, come and say hello!
People call me 'Mr LinkedIn™️' · LinkedIn™️ visibility · Informed Podcast host · One to one online coaching · Speaker · Social Selling · Online sessionsPeople call me 'Mr LinkedIn™️' · LinkedIn™️ visibility · Informed Podcast host · One to one online coaching · Speaker · Social Selling · Online sessions
So the organic reach for company pages has gone from poor to almost non-existent...so what do you do? You turn to your employees (who have better reach) and you call this employee advocacy! Sharing company page content is not employee advocacy, it doesn't really help either the company or the individual...but there is a better way. More of that plus; 🔶 The new video feed and how it impacts the videos we post. 🔶 Multiple image posts - new dimensions 🔶 Images on external links are shrinking and it really doesn't matter! 🔶 An outrageous post of the week from Lara Bywater
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This week I had a thoroughly enjoyable and thought provoking chat with Copywriting expert and author of the modern classic 'A self-help guide for copywriters' Dan Nelken .
I've been a follower and admirer of Dans work for several years, so I was delighted to finally get him on the podcast to talk about copywriting techniques, LinkedIn™️ and Bunions!
Plus a post of the week about gender equality!
Here are the topics we covered;
Dan's Journey and Overcoming Self-Doubt.
Dan shared his early days working as a forklift driver, his later studies at copywriting school, and his subsequent work as a copywriter at various ad agencies, working with massive brands.
Authenticity in Professional Content
We chatted about how people find it challenging to really be themselves on LinkedIn™️ and how we need to become 'an expert in being ourselves' and why our inner critic is a 'ding dong' - I wrongly assumed this was a Canadian term!
He also shared his struggles with self-doubt and the importance of remaining true to oneself in communication
Balancing Personal and Professional Content
We discussed how sharing personal experiences can effectively engage the target audience by illustrating overcoming relevant challenges. Dan emphasized the importance of authenticity and using language to impress oneself rather than others
"Your audience is you"
We also discussed the trend of using complex vocabulary in professional settings and debated its effectiveness as a means of communication.
Content Creation Strategy and LinkedIn Success
Dan admits to being no expert in LinkedIn™️ content strategies but he has, through trial and error developed a style using images, quotes and carousel templates that resonate with his audience.
He also discussed his 'list and twist technique' as demonstrated in this 2 page carousel post...
AI & Creativity
Dan does use AI and is impressed with it's capabilities but he "prompts it to prompt him to be more creative"...not to answer questions or create for him.
Book Rankings, Deals, and Course Launches
Dan revealed his challenges with the competitive element of launching a book and bestseller rankings and how with that and marketing his course he stuck to his values and accepted that he is not going to appeal to everyone and that being helpful to others is more important than maximising sales.
Maximize image
Edit image
Delete image
Click on the image above to view Dans book
Embracing Self-Expression on LinkedIn
Everyone has to start somewhere and Dans advice is to start small and develop a habit for content, even if it's just 15 mins a week brainstorming ideas for posts. Figure out who you are and how you want to communicate and develop the habit of creating content ideas.
As mentioned earlier, above really is a very brief summary of a 55 minute conversation so I strongly recommend you listen to the full episode to gain the most from Dan's expertise.
Thanks again to Dan for taking the time to share so many golden nuggets.
This weeks winner had less impressions and engagement but I've picked it because I think we can learn more from it.
An attention grabbing and recognisable image of a film star couple with a brilliant hook 'My new man!!' followed by...
Well icon…. Well screen saver.. ok not even screen saver… look I took the image from Google!
and then the (now irresistible) 'See more' link
Great structure, a great use of image and even more critical to it's success, an important and potential controversial topic.
Congratulations to Jo (although you would be much easier to tag if you used your full name...just sayin!) and thanks toKatharine Robinson for nominating it.
That's all for this week, feel free to say hi to Dan and let him know what you thought of the episode.
"It's inevitable, this is what social media companies do" and "All they are interested in is posting more ads" I keep seeing people comment but it really isn't as simple as that. LinkedIn is not an advertising company like Meta, they are a business that primarily generates revenue from subscriptions so the reasons for the decline in reach is more complex...
LinkedIn™️ Groups...Once heralded as a cornerstone of professional networking, their prominence has waned over time. However, amidst the shifting tides, could membership in these groups still hold untapped value? Tracy Bedwell certainly believes so. In this compelling episode, we delve into Tracy's firsthand experiences and unveil the strategic tactics she has wielded with remarkable success, shedding light on the enduring potential of leveraging LinkedIn Groups.
We often come across people on LinkedIn™️ who look interesting and produce content we find valuable...so we follow or connect and over time we feel as though we get to know them better.
But do we REALLY know them?
interesting People interviews are designed to reveal more about the background, personal lives and characteristics of some of our favourite people on LinkedIn™️.
This week, it was my immense pleasure to sit down and chat with the UK accountants mentor and speaker MARK LEE FCA .
Bruce Johnston has been helping people use LinkedIn™️ more effectively for the last 13 years and I've been a follower for 8 years. Bruce is a great wordsmith and one of the more original thinkers out there when it comes to LinkedIn™️ so I thought it was about time to bring him onto the show to share some of his insights.
LinkedIn™️ seem to love it, more and more posts are created by it and comment threads are becoming infested with it...so I thought it was time to revisit the topic of AI and try to answer this important question...
Can AI be used in a credible, authentic and ethical way on LinkedIn™️?
That plus...
New - Company page premium inc' Who viewed your company page'
An improved 'Premium benefits' page plus a special offer
Why the new 'Recruiters verification badge' is a disgrace!
Post search results now favour Articles
A great new option for profile custom buttons
An interesting piece on Colla'boring'ative articles!
This week I chat with Merrill Charette a long timer listener to the podcast (and a podcaster himself!) about his upbringing, experiences and how he ended up in the maritime industry.
I really enjoyed chatting with Merrill who is a fascinating character and a great raconteur. In this interview we cover;
How he grew up the '6th child' with his other siblings being 5 Old English Sheepdogs!
His very sports orientated childhood and his (and his fathers) obsession with Lacrosse
The benefits of focus and determination to achieve his potential in lacrosse
How he attended 4 high schools in 5 years experiencing bullying at every turn
Tough love from his father
Why he gave up lacrosse and rebuilt his identity
Dealing with authority (when you know they are wrong)
The 1000 Origami Crane Challenge and how it changed him
Completing a challenging 2,200-mile trek along the Appalachian Trail
Quitting law school
The difference between moving on and giving up
How a random comment from a stranger "You could always live on a boat" led him to the maritime industry.
How he negotiated for and bought his first boat
How he taught himself to sail his first voyage from New York to Boston
Finding a new community of boat owners
Becoming a boating entrepreneur as an outsider to the industry
With the demise of Creator mode, or the opening of creator mode to everyone (however you wish to view it!) imminent, it probably opens up the possibility of all LinkedIn™️ users having the opportunity to create their own newsletters.
So it seems a good time to have a new look at this feature so that you can decide whether you will be be going down that track.
That plus;
A new mysterious 'Who viewed your profile' filter.
Your comment doesn't comply with our policies!
AI enhancements drive an increase in LinkedIn™️ Premium subscriptions.
This month we will see Creator mode disappearing and with it, the obligation to have 'Follow' as the primary option on your profile so I thought it was worth revisiting the persistent question...Connect or Follow?
That plus;
New Recruiter & Learning tools that assist retention but might also have the the polar opposite impact!
New Privacy setting
New option for profile custom CTA button
Feedback from last week regarding the homepage feed
It's that time of the year when the legend that is Richard van der Blom publishes his LinkedIn™️ algorithm insights report so in this episode I discuss some of the highlights, what we can learn and why we need to treat the results with caution.
This week I find out about the 'person behind the profile' with the LinkedIn content Queen herself Nanna Sondrup
Nanna was very open and honest in this chat where she describes a troubled childhood experiencing terrible bullying and parents distracted by her brother who had severe ADHD challenges.
She herself was later diagnosed with Dyslexia and ADHD yet has managed to become a very well known LinkedIn™️ expert in Denmark.
Join me in hearing why Nanna is such an INteresting person!
LinkedIn™️ is primarily a B2B networking platform but that doesn't mean that a B2C (business to consumer) business can't succeed. This week I talk with Anna Williams about how she recently relaunched her coffee shop on LinkedIn™️.
Welcome to the first edition of interesting People, a new type of show for the LinkedInformed podcast.
We often come across people on LinkedIn™️ who look interesting and produce content we find valuable...so we follow or connect and over time we feel as though we get to know them better.
But do we REALLY know them?
interesting People interviews are designed reveal more about the background, personal lives and characteristics of some of our favourite people on LinkedIn™️.
For this first episode, I sat down and had a good old heart to heart chat with Ashley Leeds.
Ashley always comes across as energetic and very positive...but is he always like this?
We discuss the traumatic events that influenced his childhood, why he quit his promising career as a Chef, how he met his wife Debbie, his kids, his many career and job moves and how he ended up being the 15-minute LinkedIn™️ guy!
I absolutely loved finding out more about Ashley and I'm sure you will too
Every year I dust off my LinkedIn™️ crystal ball and look at what changes I think we will see on the platform over the coming year...every year I get it spectacularly wrong! I like to think I'm ahead of LinkedIn Corp' with my thinking because often my predictions eventually come to fruition a few years later! Either way, it's always fun to do and gets us thinking about what we want from LinkedIn™️ (in truth I produced a wishlist rather than a list of predictions, this year is a bit of a mix)
So here are my predictions and wishes for this year...
Last week I shared a message I received from Sandra Long (AKA East coast 🇺🇸Sandra) about collaborative articles where she shared that she finds them very useful asked me to have another look at them...so I did!
I will share the results of my findings later but first, here's what else I cover in this weeks episode...
Feedback on company page competitors
A new profile feature
A couple of improvements to Newsletters
Why the out of office reply feature needs updating.
Why do men approach women on LinkedIn when they would never act that way in real life? Why do people send a sales pitch DM immediately after connecting? People seem to act in strange ways with a keyboard, often very differently to the way they would in person. In this episode of LinkedInformed I had the pleasure of chatting with Jacob Elton about this fascinating topic
Part two of my chat with Karen Tisdell about LinkedIn™️ profiles. In this final part we discuss... 🔶 Experience section 🔶 Recommendations 🔶 Skills 🔶 Background image 🔶 Pronouns and there misuse 🔶 Name pronunciation
Thanks again to Karen for helping out with not just the recording but also helping me put together this summary of the podcast.
Profiles are the bedrock on which everything else you do on LinkedIn™️ is built. So why do we sometimes take them for granted ❓ Perhaps it's time to take a closer look at your profile? This week I chat with Karen Tisdell, who is a professional profile writer about what makes a great LinkedIn™️ profile. We don't agree on everything but I think you will find this discussion valuable.
Business development on LinkedIn. Some focus on inbound whilst others cold approach multiple prospects (knowing they will mainly get rejected). Luis Báez 🇵🇷🏳️🌈 has a different approach...one that is more targeted and highly personalised.
This week I chat with Luis, a sales enablement strategist and coach dedicated to online business owners and B2B professionals - he also used to work for LinkedIn in sales!
This week, I sat down for a chat with the relentlessly helpful, and all-round top bloke John Espirian about the exciting news that there will be a conference for LinkedIn™️ enthusiasts in Birmingham, UK next year...How exciting!
More on that later but here's the other things I covered in this weeks podcast
Are search filters going to become a premium feature? 👎
An update of profile custom buttons 👍
Do you hide your connections? 🤔
Are LinkedIn Notifications The New Homepage Feed? 🤔
LinkedIn™️ introductions make a return...ish! 👎
About this profile becomes more prominent 👍
Does AI generated content put you off the 'author'? 🤔
We've had creator mode for over 2 years now and for some, the decision on whether to enable it or not is still debatable...not for me, It's a no brainer!
That plus,
Passkey access is coming to LinkedIn
10 free AI courses on LinkedIn Learning
Generative AI comes to Sales Navigator
Do Thought leader ads damage subsequent posts reach
This week has seen another example of the notorious LinkedIn help center being less than helpful! It's an all to common story unfortunately but why does this happen?
According to LinkedIn Help they are 'experimenting' with dropping education, location and wait for it...employers from LinkedIn profiles! Is this true or are they misinformed?
That plus;
Company page content is showing signs of better reach
A new 'personalised' home page feed
Thought Leader ads are now rolling out to all companies
I swap seats this week and find myself being interviewed by Lynnaire Johnston.
"What does it take to produce 400 episodes of the world’s most listened to LinkedIn podcast? How does the host manage to inform and entertain us week after week? And why is Greece his favourite holiday destination?"
It’s LinkedInformed, episode 400.
Thanks to all those who contributed to this special celebration episode.
Many of us are experiencing a dramatic reduction in post engagement notifications and LinkedIn have admitted that they are prioritising other notifications instead. This week I look at what notifications are most useful to us and ask why we can't choose our own.
I've been away in Greece for 10 days...it was pure bliss!
While I was away, a few things have been happening on LinkedIn so in this episode, I'm catching up on it all!
The biggest news was LinkedIn's algorithm changes: I will give my thoughts on content dominance, meaningful comments, and the quest for 'knowledge & advice' amplification.
As you would imagine,I have a few things to say about it!
This is the talk that I gave at LinkedSummit in Odense, Denmark this year.
We know that the content that perhaps should really be on Facebook does well on LinkedIn, but it's not going to generate business and pay the bills! On the flip side, neither is boring business content that fails to engage and is seen by very few.
A special episode of the podcast this week as I talked through my recent experience of the LinkedIn conference in Odense, Denmark.
I can only give my feedback on the English language sessions from Ruben Hassid and Richard van der Blom for obvious reasons but they both provided plenty of gems in their presentations.
That plus a few new features and some features LinkedIn are retiring.
This week I discuss the 7 ways to become more visible on LinkedIn. In the competitive world of professional networking, it's essential to make your presence known and stand out from the crowd. By applying these tips, you'll significantly improve your visibility on LinkedIn and attract more career opportunities. So, grab your notepad and pen, and let's dive into the world of LinkedIn visibility.
Imagine you're on another social media site and you see a great video post - it's ideal content for LinkedIn and especially your audience! You quickly check whether the author has posted it on LinkedIn and they haven't. What do you do next?
Plagiarism is rife on LinkedIn and LinkedIn don't seem to be doing much about it. Can we help?
That plus:
Feedback from the last LinkedInformed regarding the prevalence of LinkedIn ads in our feed plus some more thoughts on that strange data from Social Insider.
You can now specify that a job application on LInkedIn is one of your 'Top choices' but do Recruiters really care?
Did Fiverr game the algorithm by changing the job titles of their staff?
LinkedIn cut 716 jobs, discontinue InCareer in China, and close their graduate training program.
LinkedIn starts to test AI-generated posts
A technique for getting great results from Chat GPT
The single biggest factor that holds people back from using LinkedIn is time…or the lack of it and this is especially true for content creation.
Your job involves many other activities, LinkedIn is, for most people, a small part of it. This a massive challenge for everyone…some people give the appearance of having nothing else to do than spend all day on LinkedIn!
But is that true?
How do they manage to make so much time for Linkedin?
I will share my thoughts and ideas on that this week plus;
We know that LinkedIn are especially interested in supporting helpful 'knowledge transfer' type posts, so we all need to get on the 'knowledge transfer bus' if we want to increase our visibility...but are we teaching or preaching?
That plus 5 new features and an excellent video post of the week.
LinkedIn are heavily pushing collaborative articles with notifications and prompts pushing us to get involved but what exactly are they and should we be bothering with them?
That is the main topic of this weeks LInkedInformed but before I'm also going to cover;
LinkedIn soon turns 20!
Should LinkedIn position itself as the next Twitter?
As I continue my journey with ChatGPT, I discover why it's called a 'chat' and learn how to utilise it better in LinkedIn posts, articles and profiles.
Also, Microsoft results show modest sales growth for Linkedin but they have now reached the 900m member milestone.
Plus a couple of new features and a joyous post of the week!
Producing an authentic profile on LinkedIn used to be an advantage...with the growth of ChatGPT it's becoming an essential tool to prove that you are real!
That plus;
4 new features/changes to LinkedIn
My assessment of Tomer Cohen's recent podcast interview
LinkedIn search parameters are unreliable
Some interesting LinkedIn stats
Do LinkedIn really know a good profile when they see one?
This week I explain my 11 key wishes for LinkedIn this year, some are design/functional changes I want LinkedIn to make, and others are related to how the community behaves and use the platform.
PLUS - Post of the year 2022
and of course, the first post of the week for 2023
This week I look back at my disastrous predictions for LinkedIn in 2022 and what actually did happen by highlighting my 10 favourite new features of the year.
Fake profiles are everywhere! And they are in danger of killing this valuable resource
What can LinkedIn do to stop them and what can we do to help?
This week, I talk about this important subject and Candyce Edelen shares a story about that reveals how far some organisations go to 'game the system'.
Does it pay to post 2-3 times a day or 2-3 a week or month? Should we be putting out LinkedIn content daily or less often? This week I'm covering the tricky subject of posting frequency.
Also;
Are LinkedIn being disingenuous about the recent HiQ ruling?
I chat with John Espirian about this years algorithm research
An amusing and very topical Twitter related post of the week
For years I've been telling anyone that will listen that Skills are one of the worst features LinkedIn has ever produced...but is that still true? I decided to take a fresh look at Skills to see whether they have improved.
Also covered;
Headlines still count for search results - confirmed!
The new 'About this profile' feature...is it any good?
New LinkedIn AI goes head-to-head with AI-based image generators
Will LinkedIn's new 'suspicious message' feature be a help or a hindrance?
Microsoft's quarterly financial results show continued growth for LinkedIn
Should we stop Liking before we comment?
How can you accurately measure the impact of Dwell time (posts)
Finding your old posts
New types of links for image, video, and template posts
This week I sat down for a chat with Nigel Thomas who recently approached me with the following message;
Big fan of the podcast and I'm reaching out because I believe I can bring your audience value. Here are 3 topics which I think they'd resonated with:
1- Getting Noticed: I can break down my exact posting strategy including focusing on headlines, optimizing for mobile, and how to write in a way which evokes emotion.
2- Engagement: Most people know engagement is important for LinkedIn but not many engage in a way that attracts their ideal clients - I'll explain how.
3- Networking: Likes and hearts are great for dopamine but the real power is in relationship building. I'll uncover how to build power connections to skyrocket growth.
If you want to increase the impressions of your posts, don’t focus on impressions! Instead, you are better served by focussing on making your content comment-worthy. This week I’m going to take a look at a failed post that had great potential and examine how it could be changed to attract more engagement.
With LinkedIn announcing a new feature allowing links to be added to photos or videos, I thought it was worth discussing the topic of links in posts again.
Some people post about a good deed they have done, show a picture of their flashy new car, or casually mention that they are on an exotic holiday. Most of us would never post anything like that but it can’t be denied that such posts typically attract high engagement so I thought it would be a good idea to explore this technique and evaluate whether it’s a good idea or not!
July 23rd 2022. Having been away for a few weeks, partly holiday, partly family health issues…I needed to catch up with what’s been happening so who better to call than our good friend John Espirian.
Are you just engaging with their content and occasionally sending them a message or are you making the effort to talk with them face to face?
This week I talk with Kathryn Strachan, the MD and Founder of Copy House, a technology content marketing agency about how she has used a LinkedIn outreach strategy successfully on LinkedIn.
