In recent years LinkedIn has been, among other things, aiming to create more user-generated content.
Two items they’ve made easier to use and have encouraged users to take part is are video and blogging (currently called Publishing).
Obviously these features aren’t anything knew. You’ve been able to create both on many channels. Some have even been specifically for those content items. Think of Medium and their push for quality blog-type articles.
LinkedIn is a little different, though, for the fact that they have users with business networking intent. The company has also been working very hard to provide people with a platform to enhance their careers in a variety of ways including networking, recruiting, sales and more.
Creating content on the channel has proven to be a viable way to achieve those goals. Not everyone has success, but many do. If you’re looking to create a blogging strategy for LinkedIn, here are a few tips to help with creating titles.
1. Who Is Your Reader?
This is the biggest item for just about any content strategy. Blogging on LinkedIn is no different. A small portion of blogging, in my experience, can be things you want to write about. But the better strategy is to find the overlap between what you want to write and what your audience wants to read.
One of the best practices you can do before creating content is to think about who you want to be the reader. Even with just a general idea you should be able to have more success. Both with your writing quality and with attracting readers.
Remember that people on LinkedIn are generally their for professionally-related content.
2. What (Professional) Questions Do They Have?
A simple, but very effective, blogging strategy is question and answer. Identifying the questions your target readers are asking and providing the best answer you can with your blog posts.
Think back to conversations you’ve had with people you think would be readers. No question is too simple to answer. You can probably come up with about a dozen ideas, but obviously that will only get you so far.
Start paying attention to future questions. Begin asking your LinkedIn connections for questions. Join LinkedIn groups that match your industry and look for questions people are asking.
3. What Is Going On With Your Career?
Another outlet for finding titles is to think about what is happening in your career. You’ve probably seen people have success with this type of post on LinkedIn. They share a story that they’ve experienced. Maybe they share a lesson they’ve learned. Others often engage with similar experiences.
4. What Experiences & Lessons Come From Your Professional Past?
Building on the last one is taking time to think about your experiences from your past work life. Something that occurred 20 years ago could be very interesting and helpful to your target readers. Often, the best topics are the ones that never go out of style.
5. What Do You Want To Rant About
Finally, you can rant about things once in awhile. Think of it as experimenting with a new type of post. When people start blogs they often take this route with 100% of their content hoping to attract readers. But it’s rarely something others want to read. But you never know and that’s why it’s okay to write this type of content once in awhile. Say about 5% of the time, which if you’re doing weekly posts is about 2-3 articles per year.
Conclusion
LinkedIn’s blogging platform, Publishing, is a great opportunity to reach a professional audience looking for professionally-related material. Start looking for sources of the questions your target reader is asking relating to their professional life. Then do the best you can to provide a helpful or entertaining answer. Do this over the long-term and you’re in a great position to experience positive benefits from LinkedIn blogging.