Remember that LinkedIn post you spent two hours crafting last week? The one that got 3 likes—one from your mom, one from your college roommate, and one from that guy who’s trying to sell you life insurance? Been there.
Six months ago, my LinkedIn content was digital tumbleweeds. Now I’m averaging 15K+ views per post. The difference? I stopped posting what I thought would impress people and started creating what actually works on the platform.
Let’s dissect the anatomy of LinkedIn content that people actually engage with:
The hook is everything (and you’re probably doing it wrong) The first line of your post is fighting against cute dog videos, Netflix, and the entirety of TikTok for attention. “I’m excited to announce” or “Check out my latest article on” ain’t gonna cut it.
Instead, try pattern interruption. One of my most successful posts started with: “I got fired by email. On Christmas Eve.” People stopped scrolling immediately.
Structure for scanners Nobody—and I mean absolutely nobody—is reading your wall of text. Space. It. Out.
One-line paragraphs aren’t grammatically correct?
Neither is most human speech.
Write how people actually read on phones.
The vulnerability paradox My post about completely bombing a presentation to executives got 3x more engagement than my post about winning a marketing award. LinkedIn has enough highlight reels—people connect with honest struggles and lessons learned.
But there’s a fine line: professional vulnerability (“I made this specific mistake”) works, while personal oversharing (“My divorce has been so hard”) generally feels uncomfortable for a professional platform.
The 3-1 give/ask ratio Provide value in at least three posts before asking for anything—whether that’s “check out my newsletter” or “hire me.” I track this religiously, and my “ask” posts perform better when preceded by purely valuable content.
Time your posts strategically After testing dozens of posting times, I’ve found Tuesday and Wednesday mornings (8-10am) get the highest initial engagement, while Sunday evenings get better depth of engagement (fewer views but more comments).
Comment on your own post Add the first comment immediately after posting, either with an additional insight or a question. This boosts the algorithm by creating instant engagement and gives others a conversational entry point.
Last month, a director at Adobe commented on one of my posts. When I asked how he found my content, his answer was revealing: “I don’t follow hashtags or topics. I notice who consistently shows up in the comments of people I respect.”
The real LinkedIn algorithm isn’t technological—it’s human connection. Start there, and the views will follow.