July in Review: 3 Insider Insights

??Question worth asking

Suppose someone stumbled across your post and you hooked them ??, how would they read more on that topic from you?

Sure, they can click Follow, but then what? They'll have to WAIT.

And, how long will they have to wait?

Well, assuming you have 5 rotating content pillars and you post every other business day, your posting schedule will look something like this:

That means, it'll take 2 full weeks before you return to Pillar #1.

Now, that content schedule is great for generating variety. But if you hook someone with Pillar #1, it'll be 2 WEEKS before they see a follow-up!

2 weeks in social media time is an eternity, which means any excitement you generate from your post will be long gone.

So, what can you do? How do you help that new reader scratch their itch?

Use a hashtag?

The hashtag feed on LinkedIn is problematic because it's FULL of distractions, ex: posts from other content creators, games (why LinkedIn?!), news, and even LinkedIn ads.

Net-net, your new reader will have to fight through lots of distractions to get to YOUR posts. That's not a winning strategy.

Instead, I propose using an Index Post.

What is that? ??

An Index Post (for lack of a better name) is a LinkedIn text post that you create to showcase your top, hand-picked posts on a specific content pillar and has links to each post so the reader can read further--like an index.

That way, readers can easily go back-and-forth between your content, like this:

Then, every time you create a NEW post for that content pillar, add a call-to-action to your Index Post.

So if you hook people (immediately, days later, weeks later, etc.), they will be drawn into your web of top, hand-picked content on that topic.

Not only does this help the new reader scratch their itch, it also makes your back catalog of content discoverable. Meaning, your old posts can get another chance at generating engagement.

And, who can't use more engagement?

Plus the best thing is, LinkedIn lets you edit posts, so you can add or remove posts from your curated index as things change.

?? If you want to see an example of an Index Post for my company Pipelineapp.io for the Accounting & Tax industry, see the Index Post for that topic ?

To the big thought leaders that I follow here on LinkedIn, I would love an Index Post from you, because unfortunately for me, I only found you all recently.

• Catherine Brown - As you're sharing wisdom from books you read, I would love a Best Of based on the book you read. Even a Best Of your #followupfriday series would be gold.
• Olena Bomko - Your post about the 40+ times you went viral on LinkedIn is how I first discovered you. It made me immediately want to read your 40 viral posts. But, I had no luck finding them. ??
• Candyce. Edelen - Your #markupmondays series is fantastic! I wish I knew you sooner, because I have no idea how to find old posts from that series.

FYI, if you don't know these thought leaders, give them a follow. They are brilliant!

?? If you found this insightful, please give this article a ??or tag your friends in the comments. It really does help :).

??Event worth attending

As a small business owner, have you ever wondered HOW to get out of working 10/12 hours a day, 6/7 days a week?

Most small business owners are wearing lots of hats and troubleshooting all kinds of problems, from sales, to HR, to client management, and probably everything in between.

But do you need to be the Chief-Everything-Officer?

According Harvard Business Review, the typical knowledge worker spends 41% of their time on tasks that could be delegated to others.

Now, I'm sure you're thinking, but, HOW?

?? How do you delegate so that you’re confident tasks will get done the way you want it?

?? How do you find a trustworthy person to delegate to?

?? And, how do you automate those activities where it HAS to be done by you, ex: sales calls?

Come get those questions answered in a free, 30mins mini-webinar: Thurs, Aug 15 @ 2-2:30pm, Central on Zoom (3-3:30pm Eastern, 12-12:30pm Pacific)

?Find out what to do and what not to do

?Walk away with insights and immediate next steps

?Plus, get free admission to an elevator pitch workshop ($200 value) (only for LIVE attendees)

?? Keira C. and I will be co-panelists. So, don’t miss out! Click here to register ?

??Thought leader worth following

So true!

I think most organizations and/or teams within organizations don't think about systems and processes until things reach a breaking point, either because of a major customer-facing disaster (CrowdStrike anyone?), a key staff member quitting, or both.

That's when all the problems are exposed, and all the process debt they've accumulated comes due.

And, usually, at the WORST possible time.

Now, I get it. Clearing process debt is not fun. Nobody wants to do it.

So, how do you, as the leader, get the ball rolling?

?? My friend, Sasha Crabtrey , was recently interviewed on a podcast about this, and she had a brilliant strategy to get people started without overwhelming them. Take a listen on Apple Podcast or Spotify ?

And in addition to her day job, she's also the founder of Be Kind in the Grind, a mantra that reminds everyone that although we cannot always control our circumstances, we CAN control how we respond.

She says, "Whatever it is you’re doing, do it with kindness in your heart. You could be working with, talking to, or even just standing beside someone who is doing their best to not fall apart that day. Don’t be the person who causes them to crumble. Be the person that helps them stand taller."

If you're looking for big ideas like that, Sasha regularly posts about these topics and more, so definitely follow/connect with her.

#BeKindInTheGrind

About Brewing Insights

Brewing Insights is a monthly newsletter for small/medium business owners and executives who want to skip the fluff and get straight to the insights and answers. Subscribe to learn 3 insights every month as John shares what's top of mind for him and distills them into immediately, actionable next steps. Subscribe on LinkedIn here ?

About John Way

John Way is the Founder and Product Owner of Pipelineapp.io, a B2B SaaS platform that takes the idle leads in your CRM or email list and converts them into qualified sales conversations and paying customers. It does that through digital scorecards and automated onboarding.

John is also a LinkedIn Top Voice for Business Networking, and he shares his expertise as host for B2BSalesMagic, a B2B-only, networking mastermind community. Why? Because random acts of networking can lead to coffee conversations but they rarely land you customers.

?? Want to see what strategic networking is like? Register for the next B2BSalesMagic open networking event ?