Is this the secret to boosting your reach on LinkedIn?

28 Sept

LinkedIn being my favourite social media app is my worst kept secret.

Through posting on LinkedIn, I've expressed myself creatively through sharing memes, built a community full of lovely people (hello, Pretty Little Marketer blog!) and been asked to take part in some incredible opportunities, from talking for Adobe to collaborating with some exciting brands (more to come on that later...).

Everyone is different. But me? I treat it more like a diary than anything else; which I guess is why I post on it almost every day. But even that might not be enough...

the what

I do my best to keep my LinkedIn journey as consistent as possible. Sometimes life gets in the way, or work, or both - and that is totally okay.

As a baseline, I aim to post on LinkedIn once every weekday. These are, 99% of the time, scheduled posts that I've delivered in a batch.

Sometimes on the odd occasion, I'll aim to post twice a day.

It is rare, but sometimes I'll find myself being reactive and posting three times a day (remember my super speedy Taylor Swift engagement memes? It was my third post that day).

I know what you might be thinking. Alongside a full-time job, business, brand - three posts a day sounds like a massive amount of time, planning and headspace. Even more so if you throw kids in the mix (parents, I don't know how you do it).

According to new data from Buffer, posting more often on LinkedIn does help your reach, as opposed to harm it. Those who had posted 2-5 times per week, saw a modest increase on reach by 1,000 impressions.

The magic number that helps you see the biggest gains, by almost 17,000 impressions?

Posting 11 times (or more) per week generates the most reach, regardless of account size.

Stacked clips from the infamous scene where Dudley Dursley is asking how many presents he has with a text overlay reading HOW MANY ARE THERE? on top of an image of Vernon Dursley, with text overlay 11+, COUNTED THEM MYSELF.

so what?

You probably shouldn't start spamming LinkedIn like you're drunk, and asking your bestie whether you should text him or not (spoiler alert: NEVER text him).

But if you want to grow your reach, were considering posting more (or at all!) on LinkedIn and were unsure whether it was worth it... take this as your sign that it absolutely is.

now what?

Here's 5 questions to ask yourself based on this information.

1. What level of posting is sustainable for you to keep up?

I previously mentioned that sometimes life, work or both gets in the way of me consistently creating content for LinkedIn - and that is totally fine.

My baseline is, as mentioned, once every weekday. And if that fails, my absolute minimum is three posts per week. This is a manageable amount for me, unless I decide to take entire weeks off from posting (which has happened before and probably will happen again).

What you need to do is find what amount of posts is sustainable for you. Set yourself a minimum and baseline, but encourage yourself to go beyond that if you feel like you can. Leave yourself room to be reactive.

2. What different formats can you make work?

If you are trying to post more often on LinkedIn, you don't have to make every single post long and lengthy, or have a beautifully designed carousel each time (although if this is your goal, then make sure you have an easy-to-use template. Video content more your thing? Then here's which editors you should use).

My quick and easy go-to if I want to make a post, but don't have much time, is a poll. Social Insider found that polls on LinkedIn are served to the greatest number of people, so it'd be silly not to test it out.

3. What previous content can you reuse or repurpose?

You don't have to come up with something entirely new every single time (I am guilty of this). Use your time effectively - if you've found a format that works, reuse it. If you have a top piece of performing content from 2 months ago, repurpose it. Was it long form, and can it now be short form? Or vice versa? Or maybe it can become an infographic, or carousel.

4. Where can you find inspiration for your posts?

For me the foundation of my memes sits within personally tailored X algorithm as well as scouring through Pinterest. But it doesn't have to be that. Inspiration can come through many mediums - and it doesn't have to be from other social media posts. Look to books, TV shows, game shows, the radio, events.

5. How can you make sure you are posting for you?

My main advice? No matter how much you post or what, to post for you.

You need to make sure you are having fun with the content that you put out there. This is LinkedIn inviting you to test and learn what works for your platform. Which removes all pressures off to fit into any particular, pre-established boxes... so you may as well post content you enjoyed creating.