Everything You Need To Know About LinkedIn Influencers

Contrary to popular belief, LinkedIn isn’t just for recruiting or sharing news of your promotion. It has evolved since the early days of only making business connections to further your own career. In fact, some of the thought leaders or influencers on the platform are shaking up the creator economy.

So, if you are looking to become an influencer that is different from the traditional influencer, keep reading because we’ll be covering everything you need to know about LinkedIn influencers and how to become one.

LinkedIn influencers are known as “LinkedInfluencers,” a play off of the platform’s name. These influencers are people who have mastered the art of personal branding and content strategy on LinkedIn.

The influencers are active community members, known to frequently spark thoughtful conversations with their audience. But most notably, they’re not your stereotypical businessperson. They are content creators but on a platform that is known for a more professional and polished look and feel.

LinkedIn doesn’t have the aesthetic or fun posts of Instagram or TikTok. So why would a creator use it? Because of organic reach.

LinkedIn is a great platform to build a following and personal brand versus other channels. This means a better return on investment (ROI) for your time and efforts.

And because LinkedIn is all about making connections, the increased audience could lead to a new job, being a guest on podcasts or blogs, freelance consulting gigs, being invited to speaking engagements, and other thought leadership opportunities.

You can tap into hidden job or client markets because the more people you know, the more opportunities will come your way.

LinkedIn makes it easy to get in front of new audiences. Something as simple as a like or a comment can put you in front of these opportunities, giving you endless possibilities on the platform for really turning your creator gig into a job that keeps you busy and money coming in.

Spoiler alert: Anyone can become an influencer on LinkedIn.

But just like with any marketing effort, the not-so secret ingredient to getting the best ROI as a content creator on LinkedIn is uniqueness

In other words, you don’t need several PhDs or multiple businesses to become an influencer on LinkedIn. You could be a student, someone starting a business or have a full-time job. What you have to remember is that each of us has our own unique perspective, and that is what you have to amplify.

The important thing to remember when establishing yourself as a thought leader or influencer on LinkedIn is to share your opinion from your unique point of view. In other words, just be yourself.

Becoming an influencer is all about marketing yourself as a thought leader. And as we all know, the first step in any marketing effort is to define your goals

Before preparing your first post, think about and define your goals. This will help you define what success actually looks like. When you know what your end goal is, it can help you develop your strategy and even change it if you aren’t getting the results you want.

Becoming an influencer is all about marketing yourself as a thought leader. And as we all know, the first step in any marketing effort is to define your goals.

Before preparing your first post, think about and define your goals. This will help you define what success actually looks like. When you know what your end goal is, it can help you develop your strategy and even change it if you aren’t getting the results you want.

Once you have a definition of what success looks like, make it a point to prioritise authenticity in your strategies and tactics. Be yourself, so that means typing how you talk. We know that LinkedIn is a professional platform, but by writing up copy in the way you speak, you can literally make people feel like you are talking to them as a friend. It's a way to build community while also being yourself.

The big takeaway on this: It will help you streamline you're writing and keep you true to your brand. It can create an authentic first impression.

You’ve defined your goals and your brand, now it’s time to start posting. Simply put, you can’t grow on LinkedIn and build a community if you don’t share your unique thoughts and ideas.

So post, post, post! It may seem cringe worthy at first, but embrace the cringe and be true to yourself. Keep sharing, and you’ll see your following grow. Try posting 2–3 times a week to start, and adjust your timing and posts according to the insights you gain from your initial posts.

The goal of LinkedIn is to put yourself out there by joining in on conversations. This is the real potential of LinkedIn. One comment has the ability to unlock dozens of potential networking opportunities, sponsorships and customers.

It might seem uncomfortable to put yourself in rooms and conversations you might not normally be in because people don’t know who you are. However, you won’t reach new audiences if you don’t put yourself out there and engage with people outside of your network.

But it isn’t just about connecting with new audiences. It’s about maintaining and cultivating strong relationships with those who are inside your network too. You can’t bring people to your community and expect them to stay without routinely engaging with them. So make sure you connect with people in your space as they are the people most likely to engage with your content. As a bonus, this engagement can boost the organic reach of your posts.

On LinkedIn, you can have 35,000 connections, which for most people feels like an overwhelming number. However, when you think about how you can strategically reach out and send connection requests to people who fit specific criteria, you realise you have 35,000 opportunities to craft your following on this platform. Use that knowledge to your advantage to build connections with the right people who you want to speak to.

While LinkedIn has a very different feel from platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, it still has the ability to help creators grow their audience and create a successful brand. There is a lot of untapped potential on this platform. By sharing your unique perspective in a way that is authentic, you can begin to become a successful influencer on the platform.

To be truly successful, make sure to also define your goals for success, speak to multiple audiences, put yourself out there and make new connections.