Two months ago, I posted what I thought was a brilliant analysis of industry trends. Hours of research, thoughtful insights, carefully crafted prose. Total engagement: 12 likes and a comment from my mom saying “So proud of you!”
The next day, I hastily shared a two-paragraph story about a mistake I made early in my career. Within hours: 327 likes, 48 comments, and 13 connection requests.
If you’ve ever had a similar experience, you’ve bumped up against the mysterious black box that is the LinkedIn algorithm. After spending the last year obsessively testing different content strategies (and analyzing over 600 posts from top LinkedIn creators), I’ve reverse-engineered what the 2024 algorithm actually prioritizes—and it’s not what most “LinkedIn gurus” are telling you.
Dwell Time is King LinkedIn doesn’t just track if people engage—it measures how long they spend looking at your content. This “dwell time” metric has become increasingly important in 2024.
Posts that make people stop scrolling and read perform dramatically better than skimmable content. When I started adding “hook and payoff” structures to my posts (compelling first line, valuable insight at the end), my average engagement increased by 78%.
Early Engagement Window is Shrinking LinkedIn gives each post a small test audience to gauge performance. In 2022, you had about 60 minutes to generate engagement before the algorithm made distribution decisions. Now that window appears to be just 30-45 minutes.
I’ve found scheduling posts when my most engaged followers are online dramatically increases reach. For my network, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings between 8-10am outperform other times by a factor of 3x.
The Comment Quality Factor Not all engagement is equal. The algorithm now appears to weight “meaningful” comments more heavily than likes or one-word responses. When my posts get 5+ comments that are at least 20 words long, they consistently reach 3-4x more people than posts with just short comments or reactions.
Pro tip: Reply to comments with questions to encourage longer threads. The algorithm loves multi-layered conversations.
Native Content > External Links LinkedIn wants to keep users on the platform. When I included external links in my posts, reach dropped by 40-50% compared to identical posts without links. If you must include links, put them in the first comment instead.
The Format Bonus Certain post formats get algorithmic preference. Based on my testing:
- Text-only posts with 3-7 paragraphs: baseline performance
- Carousel posts: +35% reach compared to baseline
- Polls: +80% reach (but with less meaningful engagement)
- Text posts with exactly one relevant image: +25% reach
- Videos: -15% reach but +120% dwell time
The “Fresh Perspective” Multiplier LinkedIn’s 2024 algorithm update explicitly rewards content that brings new perspectives rather than repeating conventional wisdom. My most successful recent post challenged a standard industry practice with data, and LinkedIn’s analytics showed it reached 4x more people than my typical posts.
Remember: The algorithm is a means to an end, not the end itself. Gaming these factors might increase your reach, but without genuinely valuable insights, you’ll be broadcasting empty content to a larger audience. Focus first on providing unique value, then optimize for algorithmic distribution.