10 Tips to Your First or Next LinkedIn Article!

You have written a LinkedIn article right? Anyone who is around me for any length of time on LinkedIn knows I love learning from and promoting LinkedIn articles.

Writing one can take a lot longer than putting a post or video together. Let's jump right in and talk about why you should take the time to write one.

Why you should write at least one LinkedIn article.

• ?LinkedIn articles are evergreen and have a prominent place and look on your profile.
• They are searchable on Google.
• It gives you the opportunity to provide more value to your network - up to 40,000 characters worth compared to 1,300 for a post - which also deepens your relationship with the reader.
• When you reach out to someone to connect who is very selective, having a published article could be what gets you in the door with them.
• Publishing LinkedIn articles show that you are knowledgeable in your field and creates brand awareness and authority.
• Most of those who are in the final stages of deciding to hire you or do business with you are going to read at least one of your articles. - It could be the one thing that sets you apart from your competition.
• It is accepted to write an "About Author" section at the end of the article letting the readers know more about the value you provide either as a business or as an employee. This is rarely acceptable to do in a post.

Besides the several LinkedIn articles that I have written, I have read hundreds more. Along the way I have learned what sets apart good LinkedIn articles and what increases the chances of one being read from beginning to end.

1.) What to write about

Here are some topic ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

• Provide value on your area of expertise but do it a unique way. Bring yourself into the article. You could do this by using personal examples and writing the way you talk (within reason ??). There might be thousands of people writing on your subject, but there is only one you! ????
• What do you enjoy most about your line of work (regardless of its popularity)? If it's the discussions that take place while you have your coffee break, write about it!
• What is an observation you have about life that you feel is overlooked by others?
• If you had enough money to never work again, what would you do for the rest of your life? Where would you live? Most importantly, why?
• What one thing has made the most difference in where you are today in your career, at home, going after your goals, etc.?
• If you could go back 20 or more years in time what would you change - what would you leave the same - what would you tell your younger self?
• Describe when you knew that what you are doing now is what you wanted to do for the rest of your life. Also write about what inspired your passion for your work.
• Share your top 5 values. Why they are. What they mean to you. And how you apply them to life and business.
• Share the best advice you have ever been given and the impact it had on your life.
• If people often say "you are so good at ..." write on that subject, even if it is not the field you make a living at. Examples are organization, optimism, and being driven.

2.) How to avoid writers block

(Photo by Emma Matthews Content Production on Unsplash)

First of all, I am going to help by not making this article too long and giving you too much to think about when writing your article.

Here are some ideas to help.

• Don't doubt the value you can provide. You have a unique perspective. The world is waiting to read what you have to say.
• Don't try to write the perfect first draft. Let the words and thoughts flow. Most of the time I have to delete about half of my first draft. But the time it took is not wasted because the half that I keep inspires the ideas to flow into a finished article.
• Turn off all notifications when working on your article. One way to do this is to write it off of LinkedIn and then copy and paste it when you are done.
• Write for the value you can provide - not for the potential engagement you can receive. Engagement is usually the byproduct of the value you provide anyway.
• No negative self-talk allowed! Positive affirmations only!

To sum this list up in 2 words - JUST WRITE!

3.) How to have your article read to the end

Attention spans are getting shorter these days making getting your article read to the end an art form.

• Bring your personality into the article and consider using personal examples.
• Grab the reader's attention in the first paragraph. I will share more on this in the next tip.
• Limit paragraphs to 3 or 4 sentences. Sometimes one sentence works - and at times, even a one word paragraph works.
• Use headlines, images, and lists throughout.
• Keep grammar mistakes to a minimum.
• Write like you are excited about what you are saying. (You are right? If you are only writing to check off the article content box your reader will pick up on it.)

4.) How to craft a strong opening paragraph

Many readers will decide within the first few lines if they will read on. Let's limit the chances of that happening.

• Start with a story that ties in with your message. You might also consider saving the ending of the story for the end of the article and both you and the reader have to work to resolve the problem throughout the body of the article.
• Start off with a strong statement. Avoid controversial ones, but be willing to be a little edgy. Here is a good example,

"3 months ago I made the decision to not read anymore books the rest of the year." Then the rest of the article could be about how the author committed the rest of the year to taking action on the books they had already read.

• State a problem the reader can relate to and tie in their emotions to it.

Example: "How does it make you feel when you get to the end of your day and you have only accomplished one fourth of what is on your to do list?"

Unlike articles on websites, the reality is, most people are reading your LinkedIn article because they saw it in their news feed - not because they were searching for your topic. They could have something completely different on their mind when they start reading it. Getting them to refocus their mind on their problem so they stick around for you to provide the solution can be important.

4.) Crafting a powerful close / call to action to your article

• Recap what you shared in the article, or what you learned from the experience you shared. Doing so in a list works great.
• Finish with a lot of energy and excitement. Your closing should be at the end of a crescendo. Avoid passive phrases like, "you should consider." Be bold with statements like, "Choosing to do this can really make a difference in your life or business"

There is a good chance the reader has read other people say similar things as your article. The energy and boldness of your closing could be what makes them take action on your article when they didn't on others.

• Consider finishing with a question. Many of those who are on LinkedIn are trying to find unique ways to show their expertise. So if you are writing about the value of persistence after looking for a job after 6 months a good example of a last line would be, "What would you advise those who have been job hunting for awhile?"

5.) The use of images

(Photo by Pietro Mattia on Unsplash)

Many times, the cover image is the deciding factor on whether a person reads your article or not. Also, interspersing images throughout your article make for more enjoyable reading and learning experience.

• The cover image specs are 744 X 400. The closer you get to that, the better chance you have of your image fitting correctly so it is seen.
• Using images throughout the article makes the article more enjoyable to read and increases the chances of being read to the end. The pixel size does not matter as much on images inside the article.
• It is important to use images that are legal to use. There are several free image sites that have a great selection of images that you have permission to use. Unsplash and Pexels are two that I use a lot.
• It is important to give credit to the source of the image.

6.) The title for your article

Like the cover image, the title can be the deciding factor of determining if someone begins to read your article.

• Use 40 characters or less if possible.
• Use humor in your title.
• Have a contradiction in your title that makes others curious.

Example: "Why cutting costs is expensive and hurting your business."

I have seen quite a few creative article titles on LinkedIn. I would love to know what you talented content creators would add to this list.

7.) LinkedIn article collaboration

(Photo by Croissant on LinkedIn)

Combining 2 or more perspectives creates a synergy that can provide extra value to the reader. Also, a lot of times, what starts out as a collaboration turns into a friendship. Something special can take place when 2 or more people work together on an article.

Here are some tips if you decide to do a collaboration.

• Get to know the person you want to work with. Make sure you can support their message and style of communication. Interact with each other before deciding to collaborate to make sure it's a good fit.
• Maintain a positive attitude and support each other throughout the process. Getting 2 or more busy people to work together takes patience, determination, and a lot of positivity.
• Designate who is doing what and write out the timeline so everyone is on the same page and can plan the written collaboration into their schedule.
• Jump on a phone call. Better yet, a Skype or Zoom call. When you team up, you are starting a relationship that may stand the test of time. Having a quick phone call can also build the rapport that is needed to put the article together. Lastly it can save a lot of time of writing messages back and forth to each other.
• Write the article as a Google Doc so both parties can edit and give their insight on certain parts of the article they believe might need to be changed.

8.) Promoting your article

To tag or not to tag? That is the question. ??

Because of the extra time it takes to write an article, I like to tag at least a few people and share it with others in a Direct Message (DM) so that I am not solely relying on them seeing it in their LinkedIn news feed. Also, the more people that respond to your article in the first hour, the more people LinkedIn shows your article to so it can be good to let your biggest supporters know about it.

Here are a few things I have learned along the way.

• In my opinion it looks more professional to limit the number of people tagged to 10 or less.
• When sharing your article in a DM, make sure you send it to one person at a time. The second you send it to more than one person, LinkedIn turns it into a group conversation!
• Use relevant hashtags. Especially in the post that LinkedIn gives you to promote your article. I recommend you use text to describe your article and put the hashtags at the end. Seeing an article that is only promoted by hashtags will cause less people to click on your article and they will miss out on the value you have to provide them.
• Share your article on all of the social media platforms you are a part of.

9.) Profreading your article

Don't worry. I know I misspelled proofreading! Or maybe I could start a new word by saying profreading is getting your college professor to read your article.

OK. Time to get back to the subject!

These tips will help when catching grammer (I mean grammar errors).

• Read your article out loud.
• Print out your article and read it on paper.
• Use grammar apps that catch usage and grammar errors better than whatever platform you are writing your draft on.
• Hire an editor to edit your article.

10.) Don't forget to celebrate!

You have just made the world a better place by sharing the value you provided in your article!

If people act on it, crime will go down, profits will rise, people will be more authentic, leaders will love their people more, marriages will get stronger, health will improve....!

I can't wait to read your first or next article!

Get it written!

Happy writing!

About the Author

Victor Hallock is a organic content strategy coach. He enables business owners and individuals to find a way to share their message in a unique way that is seen and heard above the noise of social media. One of the unique ways Victor provides value is by connecting LinkedIn article writers and readers together. You can see his promotion of LinkedIn articles by following his hashtag #ilovearticles.