The Personal Branding Playbook: Decoding the LinkedIn Algorithm

Hello, folks! Welcome to the first ever edition of The Personal Branding Playbook! The Personal Branding Playbook is your go-to weekly update on everything you need to stay updated with, in the LinkedIn personal branding ecosystem. We dissect personal branding hacks, give you cheat codes to outshine the LinkedIn algorithm and keep you up-to-date with all you need to know to growth-hack your LinkedIn personal brand to thousands of followers. Learn more about personal branding and how the ReachifyMe AI platform can help you spruce up your content game. Become a part of the exclusive ReachifyMe club!

Do you realise the power of Content Creation?

Imagine you’re a fitness geek who’s started recording their fitness journey on social media, dedicatedly posting every step of the way. Fast-forward to 3 months later - you’ve got an invitation to meet the Prime Minister and an entire nation following your fitness challenge.

This is the true story of Ankit Baiyanpura - a wrestler turned fitness influencer who shook Instagram with his 75-Day-Hard Challenge and grew his personal brand to a whopping 6 Mn followers through sheer grit and dedication.

But what we’re trying to say is that content is mad powerful. It all depends on 3 things - creativity, dedication and decoding the algorithm.

The LinkedIn Algorithm Mystery

In the fast-paced world of social media and digital networking, there's one platform that has emerged as the undisputed king of professional connections: LinkedIn. It's the place where careers are nurtured, business deals are struck, and professionals from all walks of life come together to showcase their expertise. But have you ever wondered how LinkedIn displays your content on the feed of your audience? What exactly happens when you post content on LinkedIn?

Here’s a flowchart to take you through the process of how the LinkedIn algorithm categorises your posts -

If you understand how to tailor your content to please the algorithm, it can definitely be advantageous for you. However, if you miss the mark, your content might end up getting lost in the depths of LinkedIn's algorithmic obscurity. So, let's dive into the workings of the LinkedIn algorithm - get ready to jot down some notes, folks!

1. LinkedIn's Algorithm Sorting Hat

Yes! It determines if your post is a hidden gem or just plain spammy noise. It's like a virtual judge, evaluating various factors to decide your content's fate, neatly sorting it into one of three categories: spam, low-quality, or high-quality.

Let's delve into the sorting process:

• Spam: If your post resembles an online grammar crime scene or tries to cram too many links, consider it a potential spam suspect. Also, be mindful not to flood your network's feeds with excessive posts (give it at least three hours between updates) or tag half the internet with your content. Beware of hashtags like #comment, #like, or #follow; they can raise algorithmic eyebrows too.

• Low-quality: Not quite spam, but not quite quality content either. If your post doesn't have that engaging spark, the algorithm will label it as low-quality. To keep it in the high-quality club, here’s a checklist:

i. Make sure it's easy to read

ii. It should pose engaging questions

iii. You are recommended to use only three or fewer hashtags

iv. Incorporate juicy keywords

v. Tag only the folks likely to join the conversation

vi. Oh, and save those outbound links for the comment section, champ!

• High-quality: These are the VIP posts that follow all of LinkedIn's content recommendations to the letter. They are well-structured, provoke thoughtful responses with tantalizing questions, keep hashtags in check, sprinkle strong keywords, and tag only the chosen few who will genuinely engage. And remember, it's a best practice to save your outbound links for the comment section – don't give everything away in one go! 2. LinkedIn puts your post to the test

The first hour is crunch time! Here's how to ace the test:

• Post when your audience is online (our LinkedIn analytics guide can help with that).
• Engage with comments and questions promptly.
• Stoke the fire with questions or prompts.
• Keep a consistent posting schedule to keep your superfans hooked.
• Interact with other LinkedIn posts; your name popping up might entice others to check out your content.

Now, onto the next phase!

1. LinkedIn delivers your engaging content to more users

This depends on three crucial ranking signals:

• Closeness: The closer you are connected to a follower, the higher the chances they'll see your content. Think work buddies, former colleagues, or your old university study group.

• Topic Interest: The algorithm is a matchmaker when it comes to interests. If your post touches on topics or companies aligned with a user's interests, it's a LinkedIn love story in the making!

• Engagement Likelihood: This signal has two parts. First, it gauges how likely a user is to engage with your post based on their past behaviour. Second, it looks at the overall engagement your post is receiving. If it's sizzling with conversations, more people will want to join the party.

Unleashing Your Post’s Potential

The algorithm's potential lies in the idea that if you produce content that aligns with a particular audience's interests, your content will be visible to them. Conversely, for audiences, the content they interact with determines what they will see.

If you consistently engage with marketing-related content, your Feed will feature more of it. Similarly, if you consistently post content related to marketing, your intended audience will inevitably come across more of your content. Furthermore, the more specialized your approach, the more effectively the algorithm can direct your content to the top of relevant Feeds.

P.S - Here’s a cheat code to generating content that LinkedIn loves and growing your personal brand.?

Our AI content generation platform ReachifyMe helps busy individuals like you generate high-performing content for their LinkedIn personal brand

And the best part? You can try it NOW and avail the first 3 months FREE. Try it HERE!

The bottomline is that in the grand LinkedIn scheme of things, your content's destiny lies in the hands of this savvy algorithm. Make it intriguing, engaging, and oh-so-shareable, and the LinkedIn world will be your oyster! Want a 101 on creating terrific content for LinkedIn? Take a dive into our resource library!