The Go-To Beginners Guide To Content Creation on LinkedIn

Welcome to the go-to beginners guide to content creation on LinkedIn.

Over the past 5 years I have created over 30,000 individual content pieces for myself and my clients.

I have also built a highly respected and credible personal brand and a successful business all thanks to my consistent content journey on LinkedIn, so believe me when I say, you're in good hands.

If you are here and reading this, you likely understand the impact that content creation can have on your brand, business, and community.

You have probably seen your peers, colleagues, or competitors successfully create and post content on LinkedIn, and you feel like you are late to the party or don't even know where the party is.

You might think of content creation as a chore, a burden, an obstacle, or perhaps you might feel like it’s just one more thing that you must do that you don’t have time to do.

I would guess that you currently fall into one of the following categories:

●?????You have realised that you need to start your content journey.

●?????You have already started your journey, but you don't know what you're doing.

●?????You are creating content, but you want to take things to the next level.

Let me alleviate your concerns.

You are not late to the party!!

There is plenty of opportunity moving forward for you to make an impact. But you do not want to wait much longer.

Before you start your journey or decide to take things to the next level, you must first understand why you are doing this.

So let’s start with that.?

5 reasons WHY you need to create content

1. Be perceived as an expert - creating valuable content establishes and builds your brand, which helps showcase your expertise and positions you as a credible expert within your industry.
2. It creates more traffic - more traffic = more visibility, more visibility = more leads, more leads = more customers.

?3. It keeps you top of mind - posting content keeps you top of mind with your stakeholders as they frequently see you adding value in their LinkedIn feed. Traditionally, it used to take 6-7 exposures before a potential client would reach out and do business with you. Now, that figure has jumped to 26 exposures.

4. Customers trust you more - the more customers or potential customers see you adding value and consistently sharing go-to information, the more they are inclined to trust you.

5. Validates your customers' decision to buy from you- your customers want to make sure they are working with the best. Making yourself visible and giving frequent value, assures your customers that they have moved forward with an expert.

That all makes sense, right?

Ok, now that you know the why, the next step is to understand the strategy. After all, you don’t want to go into this blindly.

Many people over-complicate the initial strategy; however, it doesn't need to be.

The initial strategy is simple.

You are trying to get people to know you, like you and trust you.

They must first get to know you. That means you must put yourself out there, create content, and post content. It doesn't matter initially if it is a text post, an image, a blog, or a video. But you must make yourself visible by both creating content, and also engaging in other people's content.

Next, you have to get people to like you. It sounds like a weird thing to say, right? Well, it's true. The best way to get people to like you is to be authentic and be consistent with your authenticity. You don't need to build a character; you need to embrace yourself with a genuine focus on serving instead of selling - That is the key to likeability.

Once people know you and like you, they will then tend to trust you. And that is where you want to be at. Once people trust you, they are more likely to do business with you and repeat doing business with you.

For a more in-depth strategy, please refer to my popular previous article ‘The Go-To Beginners Guide to Personal Branding on LinkedIn’ to get clarity on your personal brand fundamentals and strategy. I included all my proven systems and strategies, in that guide, make sure you check it out.

You’ll come across many marketers trying to sell you this information. I’ve provided it to you all for free because that’s how I roll.

Click the following link to view the article:

Believe me, first getting clarity on your personal brand will help you show up strategically, consistently, and with a purpose. As opposed to creating and posting content for the sake of it.

?Ok, moving on.

?So… content comes in many shapes and sizes.

?Let me give you some examples of different content types.

?These are just a few examples. Your creativity will be your only limitation.

Types of content

1. Text
2. Video
3. Articles
4. Carousels

?Let's dive a little deeper on each.

Text Posts

Text posts are a very simple way to create content and add value.

They are limited to 1300 characters, and you get 140 characters before the “See More…” option cuts off the rest of your post.

There is however an art to writing text posts (copy) which I discovered through experimentation.

To help you structure compelling copy, I’ve broken down a text post into 4 easy to follow sections; 1) The Intro 2) The Body 3) The Outro 4) The Question.

This will make more sense as you read on. For ease, visualise a text post divided into 4 parts.

1.The Intro

●?????Think of the first 2-3 lines as the headline to your post.

●?????It should be engaging enough that people want to click “see more” and read the rest of your post.

2. The Body

●?????The body of the text should present practical takeaways, actionable tips, new information, or a new perspective on a topic.

●?????Write about relatable problems, and also solutions, systems or strategies that help to overcome those problems.

3. The Outro

●?????The outro should summarise the main lesson, key take away or “AHA” moment.

●?????Think of this as the conclusion or “outro”, a simple one sentence summary will do.

4. The Question

●?????Finish with a question that prompts your reader to engage in conversation within the comments e.g. “What are your thoughts?” or “What else would you add?

Remember, every piece of content you create on LinkedIn, requires some form of copy (caption) and the above structure can be used accordingly.

Video

When it comes to video, most people think that you need to buy expensive equipment and set yourself up before recording it.

Wrong!!

You only need two things to get started with video.

And that is a phone and a message. That’s it!!

You don't need fancy lighting, backdrops, or a professional studio setup.

In fact, waiting until you have the “perfect” equipment setup is often a reason (or excuse) to procrastinate.

More important than having the perfect setup, is to become familiar with creating video content, being comfortable on camera, and building the habit of speaking to the camera in the same way you would speak to a friend.

?Short Video Tips:

1. Hold your phone vertically (portrait) and press record. Recording your short form video in portrait mode makes it optimised for Instagram Reels, Facebook Reels, Tik Tok, YouTube Shorts, and LinkedIn.
2. Keep your video to less than one minute, if possible, the sweet spot is 30 seconds - 45 seconds due to short attention spans and the popularity of short form videos.
3. You don’t need anything other than a phone to get started, however if you want to optimise the use of your phone for filming, I highly recommend a lapel mic, tripod, and ring light.

·?????The tripod holds the phone in a stable position while recording.

·?????The lapel mic provides clear audio which is especially useful when recording outdoors - it simply attaches to your shirt and plugs into your phone.

·?????And the ring light provides a good source of natural light when recording indoors.

Bonus Video Tip: If however you’re recording outdoors, the hour just before sunset and just after sunrise is called the “Golden Hour” and is typically regarded as having the most desirable light for photography and video.

Next, we have articles, one of my favourite pieces of content to showcase expertise and authority.

Articles

Quick tips on how to write a LinkedIn article (just like this one):

1. Character Limit: LinkedIn articles can have up to 130,000 characters. But that would be way too long. I found the sweet spot is 2000-3000 words.

2. Article Content: You can include text, images, videos, and even embedded content like SlideShare presentations to make your article engaging and informative.

3. Choose an Engaging Topic: Pick a subject that aligns with your expertise and is relevant to your target audience.

4. Write a Captivating Introduction: Grab readers' attention from the start with a compelling introduction.

5. Focus on Value: Provide valuable insights, tips, or solutions to address your readers' pain points or interests.

6. Keep it Structured: Organise your article with headings, subheadings, and bullet points to enhance readability.

7. Use Visuals Wisely: Incorporate relevant images or videos to supplement your content and make it visually appealing.?

8. Use Concise Language: Keep your sentences clear and to the point, avoiding jargon and unnecessary fluff.

9. Edit and Proofread: Ensure your article is error-free by thoroughly editing and proofreading before publishing.

10. Setting up a Newsletter: To set up a newsletter on LinkedIn, follow the below visual instructions:

?How To Optimise Your LinkedIn Newsletter?

·?????Choose a clever newsletter title and description that aligns with your expertise and would compel your audience to subscribe. e.g. My newsletter is titled 'Brand Credibility', my audience knows this is my expertise. I have also added the following description to the newsletter: 'Your weekly dose of proven systems and tips to build a CREDIBLE personal brand on LinkedIn'. I know that is a topic that my audience is very much interested in, and a topic I can of course speak on with great confidence and conviction. Find your equivalent.

·?????Upload a newsletter logo (300×300 pixels), this will appear alongside every article that you post. Refer to my 'Brand Credibility' Logo as an example.

·?????Write a compelling headline that clearly articulates what the reader can expect. The best articles contain informative, actionable, and insightful content.

·?????Upload an eye-catching cover image (744 x 400 pixels) that compliments the headline of each article.

·?????Be consistent. When setting up a newsletter, you’ll be asked how often you want to publish. If you select ‘weekly’ as an example, make sure you commit to it.

Carousels

A carousel post is a type of content format that instead of containing just one static image, you can create a carousel of multiple images containing its own media and accompanying text.

Your audience would view the carousel as a slide show, swiping through each page from right to left.

Carousels are perfect for storytelling, providing step-by-step tutorials, highlighting key features, valuable tips, or sharing industry insights. All presented in a cohesive narrative and series of related content pieces that is actually one post.

They are also great way to keep your viewers engaged and increase the chances of them spending more time on your post.

Next week, I’ll be publishing an article titled ‘How To Design The Perfect Carousel on LinkedIn’. I’ll be explaining a step by step of how to design and structure valuable, engaging, and visually appealing carousels. Make sure you subscribe to this newsletter so that you do not miss it.

For now, I have included visual instructions below of how to publish a carousel post.

It helps to mix up all the above content types.

Using a variety of the above pieces of content will allow you to stay front of mind with your audience and continue to educate, entertain, and inspire.

But, please do not think that you must be creating ALL forms of content. My biggest advice is:

Lean on your strengths

Yes, video content is a great way to build your brand as it is personal and engaging. However, if your strength is in writing, and you can best articulate your message via a text post, article, or blog, write until your heart’s content.

Some of the best creators I know have not released a single video.

If your strength is in video and you cannot write to save your life – then deliver your message via video.

But remember, this is also a process of jumping out of your comfort zone and building new skill sets.

Let me give you an example.

It took me 1 hour to record my first video, and the video itself was less than a minute.

Why did it take me so long to record?

Because I had no idea what I was doing, I was not a video creator; I mean, who was I kidding?

Combine that with the fact that I was self-conscious about the process and hated the way I looked on video.

I recorded the video, watched it back, and then deleted it, as I would find some excuse as to why I did not like it. I repeated that process for an hour.

Until I came to a realisation, and that was … DONE is better than PERFECT.

I posted that video, it received very little engagement, and I continued to perfect my craft.

And I am so proud that I did not let the fear stop me.

I continued to jump out of my comfort zone, pick up my phone, hold it horizontally, press record, and speak my truth.

And guess what?

Fast-forward to today; video content is not only a strength but one of my most significant skillsets.

My point is this…lean on your strengths, but use this opportunity to challenge yourself.

You never know what you're capable of until you apply yourself.

Ok, let's move on.

Let me share a few things that I have learned.

My Top 5 Content Creation Tips To Crush It On Social Media

1.Volume

Aim to post something of value every single day or once every two days at a minimum. If you're unable to do this, then you should hire someone that can. Your goal is to remain visible at all times by staying in the feed, and most platforms have a post-life of approx. 1-2 days.

2. Consistency

It is important to remember that building influence via content is not a sprint; it's a marathon. Those that win are those that can stick to these five steps and be consistent with them. It took me 3-6 months of posting consistent content to build traction.

3. Collaboration

Collaboration is a great way to become visible to people outside of your network. Volunteer to be interviewed or interview influencers within your industry. This can be done via podcasts and recording audio or interviews via zoom/face to face and recording video. You then repurpose the content to post it in other forms elsewhere (more on repurposing below).

4. Batch content

Set aside intentional time in your calendar to create, write, design, or record content. It might be 1 hour a day to record a few videos at a time or to craft a few posts and articles in one sitting. Batching is far more productive and will save you a considerable amount of time. It will also give you the ability to structure a content calendar to know exactly what you will post on any given day.

5. Repurpose content - use your existing content to craft other pieces of content e.g., A 10-minute video can be crafted into several shorter videos, several quotes, or transcribed into an article. An existing blog can be used for the script of a video. Get creative, make it easy on yourself, and work smarter, not harder.

Now I must point out that you don’t want to get into the habit of posting content for the sake of posting content.

There is enough fluff on social media.

Your content should have a purpose; it should add value to your ideal audience; it should be targeted and powerful; otherwise, you're just adding to the white noise.

So, let me give you some tips on how to break through that white noise and hit the mark with your target audience.

4 Ways To Create Powerful Content

1.Solve a problem for your audience.

If you can solve a problem with free value-add content, you will not only create an impact, but you will earn yourself a follower and fan. Know your audience and target your potential clients by providing solutions to some of their biggest problems. Please do your research, understand what questions they are asking, and then answer those questions via your post.?

2. Tell a compelling story that resonates.

There is no better way to communicate a message than via a story. Some examples might include; a case study of a client that has made a transformation using your products or services, or a personal account, showing some vulnerability. Speaking of failure or adversity and the lesson learned is a powerful way to articulate a message. And there is nothing more impactful than telling your truth.

3. Read comments from your audience to find a common theme.

Reading comments from your audience is the equivalent of having a live focus group. They will tell you their thoughts, problems, pain points, and they will also ask questions. Your job is to listen, respond, and take notes – as thoughtful comments on your post could be the subject of future content pieces that hit the mark with your target audience.

4. It is never about you; it is always about them.

If you wish to have impactful content, you must always remember that it is never about you, it is always about them. Nobody cares about your humble brags, the fact that last week you earned six digits, or that you had two scrambled eggs with a side of orange juice for breakfast. Always put yourself in their position, and if you're not solving a problem, then at the very least, you should be educating, entertaining, or uplifting them.?

Thank you for reading thus far.

I'm going to leave you with 3 pieces of advice that have been incredibly helpful for me to maintain the right perspective on this journey.

Please remind yourself of these whenever you are starting to doubt why you are doing this.

1.???You are not trying to impress; you are trying to make an impact.

2.???Do not focus on trying to grow a following; focus on building genuine relationships.

3.???Do not obsess about being popular, obsess about being yourself.

Boom!!

Ok, NOW you’re good to go.

You may feel overwhelmed; I know, I did.

You may feel like it’s simply not for you, I know, that was the reason I procrastinated for so long.

But let me share a quote that inspired me to get started.

“There are people less qualified than you, doing the things you want to do, simply because they decide to believe in themselves. Period!!”

Now, go forth, create content, share your expertise (and your personality), and watch as exciting career and business opportunities come your way.

If you don’t have the time to do all of this, you don't know where to start, or you would like some guidance to make a serious impact with your content, I've got you.

I would much prefer you spend your time doing things that are the best use of your time, and leave the content to us.

If you need help creating content that is not only showcasing your expertise but expediting your career and business goals, I can help in one of two ways:

1?? The 1:1 Power Hour - A one hour LinkedIn, branding, and content strategy session. I provide personalised advice on how you can best leverage LinkedIn for your specific brand and/or business.?Book a session using the following link:

2?? The Brand Credibility Service - We become your trusted LinkedIn partner managing your personal brand, content, and strategy from end-to-end including a personal brand blueprint, LinkedIn content strategy, compelling content created for you, analytics reporting, leveraging our global networks, and access to myself for ongoing guidance and support.

?? DM me to learn more or get in touch at [email protected]

? Ahmad Imam 2023. All Rights reserved.