I've Posted 180+ Consecutive Days on LinkedIn: Here's What Suprised Me

This week I crossed the 6-month mark —?184 days today —?of daily posting on LinkedIn. With more than halfway to go, I'm sharing my findings to inspire you to keep going or start going. There are so many opportunities when you do.

The Backstory: It Took Me Months

When I began my entrepreneurial journey in early 2020, I had to put myself out there. After years of building other people's brands, I had stalled at mine.

While I was active on LinkedIn and seeing success by daily commenting, I realized the rewards were going to those who actually posted content.

Knowing and going are two different things. It took me weeks then months to get out there. In December 2020, I had enough. The time was now, or never.

The Post That Started it Off

I set an over-the-top goal to post 365 consecutive days. I also made it public and created the #365Challenge on January 1, 2021, when I realized there were hundreds like me who wanted the same.

Lesson: We can't grow alone. Find/form a community to support and encourage one another. Now, nearly 300 strong, the #365Crew, has bonded, posted, and shared our successes and struggles.?

Here are the Top 10 Lessons I Learned from Daily Content Creation on LinkedIn:

1) Strategy, Not Spaghetti

The saying, "throw spaghetti at the wall and see what sticks," isn't very smart on LinkedIn or anywhere else. Find your lane and post accordingly with a set goal in mind.

This is the area where I've stayed mostly on course. I started posting on personal branding, then LinkedIn, and now content marketing and content strategy for personal brands. As you evolve, you'll see what sticks, learn what you enjoy and what your readers engage with most.

Lesson: People are busy, make it easy for them to know what you're all about. To start, be known for one area, for one avatar, solving one problem with one offer. Go with 3-5 content pillars to consistently post AND comment/engage with others.?

2) Results Aren't Instant, but They WILL Come

Going from 0 to 365-day posting was a huge leap, and I don't recommend it for everyone. Find your rhythm, your schedule, and stay with it. If you can post daily, great, if not, try 3x a week to start.?As long as you're out there, you're way ahead of 97 percent of LinkedIn users.

Lesson: You'll find your place and space likely in the first 30 days of posting, commenting, and engaging consistently.?Don't give up or give in these first critical days. I've seen way too many people pop in and out wanting instant results. Consistency wins!

3) Start Small, Stay Specific

I'm a people person and love to talk, and apparently like to write too much too. My first posts were too long and too time-consuming to write. I realize now each post should have written into bite-size posts.

My new goal is to give maximum value with the minimum invasion of words and long paragraphs. I write each post conversationally with easy-flowing text, shorter sentences, and lots of white space.

Lesson: We're all busy, the feed is crowded, and our attention spans are beyond short. Make your posts scannable, not necessarily readable.?

4) Keep the Feed Fresh

Don't just post one type of content before you figure out what works best and resonates more. I prefer text content but experimented with long and short-form posts, carousel sliders, polls, stories, memes, videos, live streams, quotes, post shares, pictures, GIFs (way too many Shitt's Creek gifs), and pictures, which for me,?don't engage as well.

Lesson: Test, test, test. You'll find what you like most, what your audience resonates with, and what gets the most engagement. From day 1, I use SHIELD PLUS to help me track my results.

5) Contribute Before You Comment

This is a valuable lesson I recently learned by interviewing a member of the SHIELD app team on my LinkedIn LIVE show. Their data shows that "warming" up the feed by commenting before you post is key. I'm trying this now and it does seem to help.

Lesson: LinkedIn works best when we apply the Law of Reciprocity. Give, give, give and expect nothing in return. But then watch it all come back to you.

6) Don't Take It Personally

When your posts don't perform well, it could be for a variety of reasons.?And I've seen good and bad days, trust me!

People are seeing your posts even if we don't tell you. The latest LinkedIn statistics show only 3% of users post weekly, which means people are reading and consuming your posts. I've had clients DM me who read my posts but never comment.

7) Comments are Content (and Content Ideas too)

Your content will be better supported when you comment consistently on other's posts. And not just your friends and 1st-degree connections, but 2nd-degree connections too.

On those days I don't plan ahead, I face severe writer's block. I find ideas reading comments, and several times, my comments have expanded into my daily post.

Lesson: Commenting is equally important as posting. Doing both helps you reach and build your community faster, which in turn supports your content.

8) Be Click-Worthy, Not Clickbaity?

Yes, I may be a tad nerdy about headlines (aka your opening line on your posts, articles, video, etc) but it's what gets people to read. Make your headlines short, specific, and intriguing.?There have been many times I've edited my headlines and seen much better engagement.

Lesson: When you're just starting, make your headlines all about others. Get to the point quickly on what's in it for them, how can you help them, what can you teach them.

9) Get Predictable

Find your ideal time to post, comment and engage. Make it a habit and watch it pay off. I started off posting before 8 am, then after a few months got busy and lazy, and found myself posting late afternoon with lackluster results. The engagement is better the earlier you post.

Lesson: People will support you and look for your content when they know when to expect it.?This is also where testing and the SHIELD app can help out.

10) Repurpose, Not Recycle

After six months of posting, I've archived every post by date, month, topic, and LinkedIn post URL. I'm now at a good place to reuse my posts. Here's how: tweak the headlines/wording, change up the formats. No one remembers what you posted last month, much less last week. There's a fresh set of eyes on your work each day.

Lesson: Don't make it harder than it has to. Repurposing is the smart choice to be strategic and successful in your content marketing. Turn a post to a video, a slider to an article, a video to a quote, etc. Set up a time to pre-write your content and have a content schedule, strategy, and repurposing plan.

Looking Ahead to Q4

Halfway there, it's getting easier, but not easy. Some days I love it, other days I'm stuck. A few days, I've questioned and doubted myself. But posting daily has been the most rewarding part of my entrepreneurial journey. I'm so glad I took the plunge.

The good news: ANYONE can do this. By putting yourself out there (consistently) posting content you'll find your clarity, your confidence, community, and even clients.

What About You?

With the second half of the year upon us, do you have plans to start posting? Or have you been at it these past months? Let me know below, I'd love to follow your journey too.