EP #001: What is the value of a viral post?

Newsletter Highlights:

• A viral post on LinkedIn can drive measurable business value
• A viral post can also have a lasting impact on your audience
• You cannot engineer for virality - high quality content, published consistently, is still the key to success on LinkedIn?

Deep Dive:

Everyone wants to go viral on social media. But what’s the business impact for an executive if their post actually does?

I was able to witness the real impact of virality firsthand last year thanks to Keziah Wonstolen , a client and friend of mine. Keziah runs a fractional Chief of Staff company, Vannin Chief of Staff . When we first started to work together, Keziah was only posting a few times a year. She had 2,866 followers and averaged 19 likes per post.?

Keziah adhered to the content strategy EP recommends to all of our clients: she upped her posting frequency to three times per week. And rather than promoting her company or driving traffic to a webinar, Keziah used her platform to add value for her audience. She did this by educating her network and audience about common misconceptions about an overlooked but invaluable position: the Chief of Staff.

Her third post with us exceeded all expectations - the impact surprised even me. Here’s what her viral post looked like :

Keziah shared an insight relevant to her business (Chief of Staff solutions for high-growth businesses), without ever mentioning her company.

The impact?

• 12 months of sales pipeline (from a single post!)
• 720,000+ views of her post
• 53% increase in followers
• A sustained, 10.3X increase in average likes per post

The biggest immediate impact was the growth of her sales pipeline: $450,000 in one week…from a single LinkedIn post.

But the long-term impact is that her posts are now averaging 139 Likes, 7.3X higher than before her viral post. And every additional like means the chance for a new person - someone outside of Keziah’s existing network - to find her page in their feed.?

What’s the takeaway?

Virality is great. But it’s not guaranteed.

The best way to win the lottery? Buy more tickets. By increasing her frequency of posting from 3X per year to 3X per week, Keziah was able to increase the chances that her posts would strike a chord with her audience.

Summary:

A viral post on LinkedIn has major implications for your business. But you can't plan for virality. Instead, you can create the conditions that make virality possible:

• Educate & add value with your posts (don't just sell or promote your company)
• Create high-quality content (don't just write off the cuff)
• Publish content consistently (2-3 times per week at a minimum)

Thanks for reading!?

If you know of someone who would enjoy this newsletter, please forward it to them. And, if you’re a leader looking to become a thought leader on LinkedIn, sign up for a consultation. On the call, I can share specific advice based on your situation, and see if we’re a good fit to work together. You can sign up for a consultation here .?