Alright, so you’re looking to up your presence on LinkedIn and you’ve read all over the platform that one of the requirements is for you to TURN UP the LinkedIn engagement.
But you’re feeling a bit weird about it.
Maybe a little on the icky side knowing that you’re going to actually have to talk to strangers on the internet?
I feel you.
I was exactly the same when I first started.
I can talk to any stranger in person, in fact, I’m probably my friends best wing woman because I’ll approach anyone on behalf of them, but throw me into an online space and suddenly talking to randoms in their comments just makes me feel like a child trying to learn to speak for the first time.
I’m suddenly using the same words over and over again and trying not to shout that I’m stoked for them every other second.
So, instead of approaching it blind, let’s talk about it, remove the awkwardness and get stuck in properly.
Engaging on LinkedIn: what you need to know
I’m diving in head first here and giving you my most honest piece of advice.
If you want to grow on LinkedIn and think that 5 minutes of engagement daily is going to cut it, I have some bad news for you.
Growth takes time.
A lot of it.
It’s not just about sending connect requests willy nilly.
It’s about creating time and space in your day to fully connect with the platform for multiple hours.
Yep, you did read that right.
Multiple hours of scrolling on a platform and commenting on people’s posts with actual good comments, not just random shit that makes no sense and sounds like a bot wrote it.
And this is not the time to think AI can help you out, because it can’t.
To build your personal brand, it has to be personal.
Engaging on LinkedIn is also not just comments, it’s so much more.
Engaging on LinkedIn is:
Commenting
Liking
Re-sharing
Sending personalised connect requests
Following
Sending messages (without being weird or salesy)
Showing up every day.
Engaging on LinkedIn is hard.
But it can be done.
Who to engage with on LinkedIn
So where do you even begin?
Now, if you’ve been scrolling on LinkedIn for a while, you’ve probably noticed a few larger creators.
That’s where we want to begin.
Finding 3-5 bigger creators in your niche, ones that are frequently posting, not once a week or once a month, but ones who are throwing content out 5x a week.
Once you find those, it’s time to start engaging with their content.
I want you to understand their posting schedule and start showing up daily, like their post, try and get into the comments early doors and go back to engage with other people leaving comments.
Once you start doing this, you’ll start to notice the creators engaging on other people’s posts.
This is where you can also step in – by diving into their engagement pool.
It’s like seeking sloppy seconds on LinkedIn but making it professional and good for your algorithm.
Don’t get weird about it, get smart about it.
The good thing about starting to engage is that your feed will quickly change and you’ll be shown more creators and more people posting, which allows you to dip in faster and faster each time.
You’ll also notice that most creators who are in the same time zone will more than likely turn up to post at the same time everyday. They might say it doesn’t matter the time you post, and to be fair it doesn’t usually once you’re bigger, but to start with and to build routine, block out an hour in your mornings to get stuck in.
So to simplify:
Find 3-5 bigger creators.
The more the merrier.
Block out a time on your calendar
Start leaving comments on their posts.
Not crap comments, but good ones, show your personality and don’t use big words.
Keep engaging daily.
What are good comments?
Great question.
Good comments are not:
Thanks.
This is good.
Wow.
Cool post bro.
Or anything that doesn’t exactly highlight your brain functioning.
I want you to pretend that this person has literally SPOKEN their post to you, what would you actually respond with? Would you ask a question back? Tell them how it made you feel? Seek more advice?
The comment section is literally one of the best places to start using your voice and getting to grips with bringing your personality to the forefront.
Not only that, the comments you leave are great practice for when you start posting on LinkedIn yourself.
You get a range of content ideas.
You get to see what other people are saying.
You get to learn how the creators are ALSO commenting on their own post.
Next up, connects.
Now, you could go on a connection request spree.
But that is just plain weird.
You wouldn’t just go up to everyone in a room and be like:
HI, YOU LOOK NICE, CAN I BE YOUR FRIEND?
Well, maybe you would, and to be fair I have done this on multiple occasions, but this doesn’t mean you should be doing it on LinkedIn.
Be precious with your connect requests.
Both sending them out and accepting them in.
LinkedIn is full of people sending connects like they’ll never go out of fashion, but those you connect with will be the ones that show up mainly on your feed.
If you’re not a fan of their content, stop sending requests unless you think you can actually add value to the person or vice versa.
Also, don’t just send them without even engaging with them.
I could make a really gross comparison here about bedroom antics and just going straight in for the kill, but I’ll leave your imagination to run with it.
The key here is:
Engage with them.
Show your face.
Present value.
Send the request.
You can add a message to go with it, but don’t send a sales pitch straight off the bat, nobody likes that and they aren’t interested.
Your inbox is the perfect place to actually TALK to people and deliver value, so when a good conversation is in flow, utilise it to your advantage and don’t cold sell.
LinkedIn engagement, summarised.
Engagement takes time, it’s not something that’s going to change your profile or following overnight.
It’s about dedication and creating a habit that sticks.
Growing your brand online on any platform takes time, but it’s great practice.
I always tell my clients that before you even start posting you HAVE to start engaging, that way when you hit post for the first time, there are people in your network that have seen you showing up and getting involved.
Another thing to note is that you don’t just have to engage with people who are your ideal clients, you’ll more than likely start attracting those people in as time goes on.
The majority of the people I engage with are in my niche, and once they see you getting stuck in, they’ll start showing up for you.
It’s all about leverage baby, you just have to keep it up.
