A 3-step writing process responsible for 33.038M impressions on LinkedIn

Over the last two years, I’ve used LinkedIn to generate over 33M impressions that power my advising, consulting, executive coaching, and product businesses.

Often, people ask me for a tip to stand out in the crowd, grow their audience, or write content that people actually read.

I use many different processes for writing, but I want to share one helpful way that I think about creating content quickly and easily. Feel free to steal it.

Before we dive into the breakdown, I'll start by sharing the full post:       

Step One: The "Meat" of the content

The first thing I do is create "the meat" of the content. This is where you’re teaching, showing, or suggesting. 

It’s the information you're attempting to convey.

In this example, I am trying to teach the reader how to get someone’s attention online. 

With that in mind, I started creating this content by writing out four suggestions:

People might find these suggestions helpful. But they’ll never see them if they don’t stop to read the content. It’s time to break patterns.

Step Two: The "Trailer"

The next part of the content I create is the "trailer." 

The trailer has 2 jobs:

- Break the scroll pattern with the first line.

- Make each line intriguing enough to get the reader to the next one.

Here's the trailer for this particular piece of content.

Part of writing a good first line is knowing your audience. What do they care about?

I know my audience cares about getting people’s attention. The first line is short, consumable, and gets their attention when scrolling.

The second line recommends they “help them in public”. If they are curious about how to do that, their eyes move to the third line of the trailer, the hook line: “Here are 4 simple ideas:”

The hook line is the last line before the “…see more” button on the LinkedIn feed.

It’s where readers commit to reading more or continuing their scroll. It needs to be intriguing. I create intrigue by promising 4 simple ideas to help them get someone's attention.

If they click "see more", the trailer has done its job and they are onto the "meat", which I've already shared with you.

Step 3: The Summary and The Mantra

It’s time to wrap the content. 

My goal in the ending is to give the reader the entire piece of content packaged up nicely in a few sentences. Think of it as the summary of the content.

After the short summary, I try to create a catchy line that they can take away with them. Something that makes the content memorable. A line they will repeat in the comments section.

I do this because I know attention spans are shrinking. 

I want the reader to participate in the comments without having to reread the full content piece. So, instead, I summarize it nicely for them. 

I want them to see those last few lines, think of a response, and get participating.

I summarized this content by writing:

Those 3 lines capture the post in a simple summary and provide a catchy mantra for readers to remember: "Help is a digital currency."

This particular post was seen 72,477 times, for 867 interactions and 166 comments. This is in line with a typical post for me each day.

So, remember:

- Step 1: Start with the meat (the information). What are you teaching or suggesting?

- Step 2: Create your trailer. Does each line get the reader to the next? Is the hook compelling?

- Step 3: Make it easy to engage. Leave them with a short summary.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. If you found this helpful, I'd be honored if you drop it a like or retweet here on the Twitter thread. ????

I spent a good deal of time creating this process, so it would be wonderful if some people read it and got some value out of it. Thanks again.

Cheers,

Justin